rationalskepticism.org

Jef wrote:

shh wrote:Actually, does anyone know of anything good on aesthetics?

Not exactly, but you might find some interesting stuff in the old BBC documentary, 'The Shock of the New'.

Orpheus wrote:A bit dated, but still compelling and serious work in the area are Suzanne K. Langer's books, especially "Philosophy in a New Key".

Mr.Samsa wrote:I don't know if you're looking for an introduction-type resource, or just anything on aesthetics, but Walter Benjamin's "The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction" is a very interesting discussion about what makes art art and whether this is affected by the arrival of mass production etc. I don't agree with him on a lot of points, but I still think it's a worthwhile read.

Ty all, I guess I am looking for something introductory, it's quite hard to find anything that's recognised as good, so I've a bit of a reading list now.

Orpheus wrote:As an aside, I've noticed a distinct lack of threads on aesthetics in the Philosophy subforum here. It was a similar situation at the RDF; if I recall correctly, in a few cases people protested that threads should be moved to Arts, Entertainment, or some such subforum. It was as if many didn't know (or preferred not to acknowledge) that aesthetics is a real area of philosophy.

It's hard to find anything on aesthetics anywhere tbh, or anyone who'll admit it's philosophy, or relevant for artists. I've just finished a diploma in graphic design, and the current trend is to tell students not to read aesthetics, it's weird, because all the greats talk about how Graphic design has become stale and boring because people don't read aesthetics, then you go to college and your tutors tell you it's a waste of time.
But from the little I have read it's knowing aesthetics that makes the difference between being a designer and just someone who makes nice pictures.

ChildInAZoo wrote:Good grief! This thread is entirely too Nietzsche centred. I did three philosophy degrees without having to read any Nietzsche. He is far from the end-all and be-all of philosophy. Far, far from it.

Just happens to be my favourite, plus he's not bad to read if you're starting out, since he comments on such a wide range of philosophers, and what philosophy itself is.
I'd also recommend the Critique, but it's hardly an introductory text.

Katya z wrote:What about an intro to analytic philosophy? The Blackwell Companion and Anthology seem promising, has anybody read them?

Nope, I got most of my introduction to analytic philosophy around here and rdf, and a few other boards. Teuton would be a good person to ask about intro's I'd guess. (although I'm sure plenty of other people here would be good too)