| HUM 270 |
"ModernTheories of Art" |
Wolfgang Iser |
The discussion will be
devoted to prominent twentieth-century theories of art and
their consequences for interpretation: Phenomenology, Gestalt
Theory, Hermeneutics, and Semiotics.
The main concerns of the course will be the following: a)
a detailed examination of the framework and the assumptions
underlying each of the four approaches; b) what kind of
art is covered by each of these theories; c) what are the
methods of interpretation to be derived from the theories
concerned, including tests of their applicability.
Required Reading: Roman Ingarden, The Literary Work
of Art (Northwestern University Press, paper); E.H.
Gombrich, Art and Illusion (Princeton University
Press, paper); H.-G. Gadamer, Truth and Method
(extracts); Umberto Eco, A Theory of Semiotics
(extracts).
