Kant's Concept of Genius: Its Origin and Function in the Third Critique

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While many studies have chronicled the Romantic legacy of artistic genius, this book uncovers the roots of the concept of genius in Kant's third Critique, alongside the development of his understanding of nature. Paul Bruno addresses a genuine gap in the existing scholarship by exploring the origins of Kant's thought on aesthetic judgment and particularly the artist.

The development of the word genius' and its intimate association with the artist played itself out in a rich cultural context, a context that is inescapably significant in Western thought. Bruno shows how in many ways we are still interrogating the ways in which a nature governed by physical laws can be reconciled with a spirit of human creativity and freedom. This book leads us to a better understanding of the centrality of understanding the modern artistic enterprise, characterized as it is by creativity, for modern conceptions of the self.

Reviews

"Paul Bruno's clear study examines the concept of genius and offers an insightful reflection on its philosophical sources. His book perceptively discusses Young, Gerard, Herder, and especially Kant, judiciously referring to the secondary literature. This innovative book will help the reader understand Kant's views of taste, art, and genius in connection with his philosophy of nature." Robert R. Clewis, Gwynedd-Mercy College, USA, author of The Kantian Sublime and the Revelation of Freedom

Author Bio

Paul Bruno is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Framingham State College, Massachusetts, USA.