Unit:
Κατεύθυνση Ιστορίας της ΦιλοσοφίαςLibrary of the School of Philosophy
Author:
Pigkou Maria-Elisavet
Supervisors info:
Γεώργιος Αραμπατζής, Αναπληρωτής Καθηγητής, τμήμα Φιλοσοφίας, Ε.Κ.Π.Α
Ευάγγελος Πρωτοπαπαδάκης, Επίκουρος Καθηγητής, Ε.Κ.Π.Α
Γεώργιος Στείρης, Αναπληρωτής Καθηγητής, Ε.Κ.Π.Α
Original Title:
Αισθητική και σκληρότητα
Translated title:
Cruelty and aesthetics
Summary:
The subject of this thesis is cruelty in the aesthetic experience. Cruelty is a term denoting extreme violence, crime and torture. Nevertheless, in some cases, this term ceases to maintain the negative aspect associated, for example, with the sadistic provocation of pain, rather, it is experienced as a positive aspect. The prime example, which shows how cruelty instantiates the positive aspect in the aesthetic experience is Antonin Artaud’s “Theatre of cruelty”. According to Artaud the theatrical experience must include an element of “great metaphysical horror” which can be found in the ancient Greek tragedy. I argue that the best way to understand Artaud’s idea is by appreciating Nietzsche’s philosophical psychology. After looking in detail at the place of cruelty in the ancient tragedy, in Nietzsche’s thought and in Artaud’s texts on theatre and cinema, in the final chapter, I claim that the positive aspect of cruelty is taken by the genre of horror in cinematography. The successful use of it made horror one of the most popular genres in the postmodern culture.
Main subject category:
Philosophy - Psychology
Keywords:
cruelty, ancient tragedy, F. Nietzsche, A.Artaud, theater, cinema, the genre of horror movies, art horror
