DIALECTIC OF LOVE PLATONISM IN SCHILLER'S AESTHETICS Unravelling the contradictions and complexities of Friedrich Schiller's labyrinthine thought, David Pugh illuminates the inner dynamics of his writings and places them within a wider philosophical and cultural con- text. While modern discussions tend to focus on Schiller's thought in re- lation to the Enlightenment, Pugh argues that his ideas have a greater affinity with ancient and Renaissance thought. Dialectic of Love analyses the arguments of Schiller's major writings on aesthetics and argues that his philosophical thought, theories, and con- cepts are characteristic of the Platonic tradition. Pugh suggests that Schiller's conception of beauty be seen as synthesis, the sublime as sepa- ration. He connects these concepts to Aristotle's critique of Plato's the- ory of ideas, in which Aristotle points out an aporia of chorismos (separation) and methexis (participation). In Schiller's thought, Pugh ar- gues, beauty and the sublime operate primarily as metaphysical rela- tions of methexis and chorismos and only secondarily as aesthetic concepts. While Schiller, Pugh reveals, is not very well suited for the role of champion of the Enlightenment, he remains a crucial figure in the transmission of the Platonic tradition to modern idealism and to the aesthetic thought of the nineteenth century. DAVID PUGH is associate professor of German, Queen's University. Mc GILL-QUEEN'S STUDIES IN THE HISTORY OF IDEAS 1 Problems of Cartesianism Edited by Thomas M. Lennon, John M. Nicholas, and John W. Davis 2 The Development of the Idea of History in Antiquity Gerald A. Press 3 Claude Buffier and Thomas Reid: Two Common-Sense Philosophers Louise Marcil-Lacoste 4 Schiller, Hegel, and Marx: State, Society, and the Aesthetic Ideal of Ancient Greece Philip J. Kain 5 John Case and Aristotelianism in Renaissance England Charles B. Schmitt 6 Beyond Liberty and Property: The Process of Self-Recognition in Eighteenth-Century Political Thought J.A.W. Gunn 7 John Toland: His Methods, Manners, and Mind Stephen H. Daniel 8 Coleridge and the Inspired Word Anthony John Harding 9 The Jena System, 1804-5: Logic and Metaphysics G.W.F. Hegel Translation edited by John W. Burbidge and George di Giovanni Introduction and notes by H.S. Harris 10 Consent, Coercion, and Limit: The Medieval Origins of Parliamentary Democracy Arthur P. Monahan 11 Scottish Common Sense in Germany, 1768-1800: A Contribution to the History of Critical Philosophy Manfred Kuehn 12 Paine and Cobbett: The Transatlantic Connection David A. Wilson 13 Descartes and the Enlightenment Peter A. Schouls 14 Greek Scepticism Anti-Realist Trends in Ancient Thought Leo Groarke 15 The Irony of Theology and the Nature of Religious Thought Donald Wiebe 16 Form and Transformation A Study in the Philosophy of Plotinus Frederic M. Schroeder 17 From Personal Duties towards Personal Rights Late Medieval and Early Modern Political Thought, c. 1300—c. 1650 Arthur P. Monahan 18 The Main Philosophical Writings and the Novel Allwill Friedrich Heinrich Jacobi Translated and Edited by George di Giovanni 19 Kierkegaard as Humanist Discovering My Self Arnold B. Come 20 Durkheim, Morals, and Modernity W. Watts Miller 21 The Career of Toleration John Locke, Jonas Proast, and After Richard Vernon 2 2 Dialectic of Love Platonism in Schiller's Aesthetics David Pugh This page intentionally left blank DIALECTIC OF LOVE Platonism in Schiller's Aesthetics David Pugh McGill-Queen's University Press Montreal & Kingston • London • Buffalo © McGill-Queen's University Press 1996 ISBN 0-7735-1020-6 Legal deposit second quarter 1997 Bibliotheque nationale du Quebec Printed in Canada on acid-free paper This book has been published with the help of a grant from the Humanities and Social Sciences Federation of Canada, using funds provided by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Further financial support was granted by the School of Graduate Studies and Research, Queen's University. McGill-Queen's University Press is grateful to the Canada Council for support of its publishing program. Canadian Cataloguing in Publication Data Pugh, David Vaughan, 1952- Dialectic of love: platonism in Schiller's aesthetics (McGill-Queen's studies in the history of ideas; 22) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-7735-1020-6 1. Schiller, Friedrich, 1759-1805—Aesthetics. 2. Platonists. I. Title. II. Series. PT2496.Ep84 1997 111'.85 C97-900097-1 This book was typeset by Typo Litho Composition Inc. in 10 / 12 Baskerville patri Optimo This page intentionally left blank Contents Preface xi Acknowledgments xv Note on Translation s xvii Abbreviations xix 1 Introduction 3 II Mythological Transformations 39 III Logic and Metaphysics 67 IV Schiller, Kant, and Plato 101 v Ideals and Illusions 132 VI The Departure of Venus: "Die Gotter Griechenlandes" 168 VII New Solutions: "Die Kunstler" 205 VIII Beauty and Goodness: Uber Anmut und Wurde 239 IX The Rational and the Aesthetic State: Uber die asthetische Erziehung des Menschen 287
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