Algernon Swinburne and Walter Pater

Victorian Aestheticism, Doubt and Secularisation

Nonfiction, Reference & Language, Foreign Languages, Language Arts
Cover of the book Algernon Swinburne and Walter Pater by SarahGlendon Lyons, Taylor and Francis
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: SarahGlendon Lyons ISBN: 9781351577052
Publisher: Taylor and Francis Publication: July 5, 2017
Imprint: Routledge Language: English
Author: SarahGlendon Lyons
ISBN: 9781351577052
Publisher: Taylor and Francis
Publication: July 5, 2017
Imprint: Routledge
Language: English

How did literary aestheticism emerge in Victorian Britain, with its competing models of religious doubt and visions of secularisation? For Lyons, the aestheticism developed and progressively revised by Algernon Charles Swinburne (1837-1909) and Walter Pater (1839-1894) illuminates the contradictory impulses of modern secularism: on the one hand, a desire to cast itself as a form of neutrality or disinterestedness; on the other, a desire to affirm 'this world' as the place of human flourishing or even enchantment. The standard narrative of a 'crisis of faith' does not do justice to the fissured, uncertain quality of Victorian visions of secularisation. Precisely because it had the status of a confusing hypothesis rather than a self-evident reality, it provoked not only dread and melancholia, but also forms of fantasy. Within this context Lyons gives a fundamentally new account of the aims and nature of Victorian aestheticism, taking as a focus its deceptively simple claim that art is for art's sake first of all.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

How did literary aestheticism emerge in Victorian Britain, with its competing models of religious doubt and visions of secularisation? For Lyons, the aestheticism developed and progressively revised by Algernon Charles Swinburne (1837-1909) and Walter Pater (1839-1894) illuminates the contradictory impulses of modern secularism: on the one hand, a desire to cast itself as a form of neutrality or disinterestedness; on the other, a desire to affirm 'this world' as the place of human flourishing or even enchantment. The standard narrative of a 'crisis of faith' does not do justice to the fissured, uncertain quality of Victorian visions of secularisation. Precisely because it had the status of a confusing hypothesis rather than a self-evident reality, it provoked not only dread and melancholia, but also forms of fantasy. Within this context Lyons gives a fundamentally new account of the aims and nature of Victorian aestheticism, taking as a focus its deceptively simple claim that art is for art's sake first of all.

More books from Taylor and Francis

Cover of the book Ethics and Global Security by SarahGlendon Lyons
Cover of the book Coaching in Education by SarahGlendon Lyons
Cover of the book The Gender Communication Connection by SarahGlendon Lyons
Cover of the book Bringing the Forest School Approach to your Early Years Practice by SarahGlendon Lyons
Cover of the book The Principal as Human Resources Leader by SarahGlendon Lyons
Cover of the book Peasants without the Party: Grassroots Movements in Twentieth Century China by SarahGlendon Lyons
Cover of the book Lifestyle TV by SarahGlendon Lyons
Cover of the book The Evolution of Economic Theory by SarahGlendon Lyons
Cover of the book Pax Britannica? by SarahGlendon Lyons
Cover of the book Education and the Social Condition (RLE Edu L) by SarahGlendon Lyons
Cover of the book The Business of Humanity by SarahGlendon Lyons
Cover of the book A Dictionary of Grammatical Terms in Linguistics by SarahGlendon Lyons
Cover of the book Music Theory and Analysis in the Writings of Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951) by SarahGlendon Lyons
Cover of the book Freedom of Expression and Religious Hate Speech in Europe by SarahGlendon Lyons
Cover of the book Turbo-folk Music and Cultural Representations of National Identity in Former Yugoslavia by SarahGlendon Lyons
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy