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Brief Lives

Nelson Goodman (1906-1998)

Alistair MacFarlane contemplates a philosopher who spoke the languages of art.

Nelson Goodman broke through a barrier that had separated art from science and logic. Many had struggled with the question: What is Art? None of their answers satisfied Goodman, who asked a different question: When is Art? In his view, asking when something functioned as art could be given a satisfactory answer.

Aesthetics has a long philosophical history, having been studied by Plato, Kant, C.I. Lewis and many others.

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