Friedrich Theodor Vischer (June 30, 1807 - September 14, 1887), German writer on the philosophy of art, was born at Ludwigsburg, and was the son of a clergyman. June 30 is the 181st day of the year (182nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 184 days remaining, and the last day of June. ... 1807 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... September 14 is the 257th day of the year (258th in leap years). ... 1887 is a common year starting on Saturday (click on link for calendar). ... Aesthetics (or esthetics) (from the Greek word αισθητική) is a branch of philosophy dealing with the nature of beauty. ... Ludwigsburg is a city in Germany, about 12 km north of Stuttgarts city center, by the river Neckar. ...

He was educated at Tübinger Stift, and began life in his father's profession. In 1835 he became Privatdozent in aesthetics and German literature at his old university, was advanced in 1837 to extraordinary professor, and in 1844 to full professor. In consequence, however, of his outspoken inaugural address, he was suspended for two years by the Württemberg government, and in his enforced leisure wrote the first two volumes of his Aesthetik, oder Wissenschaft des Schönen (1846), the fourth and last volume of which did not appear till 1857. Tübinger Stift is a hall of residence and teaching of the Protestant Church in Württemberg. ... Aesthetics (also esthetics) is the philosophy of beauty and art. ... 1837 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... 1844 was a leap year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Württemberg (often spelled Wurttemberg in English) refers to an area and a former state in Swabia, a region in south-western Germany. ...

Vischer threw himself heartily into the great German political movement of 1848-49, and shared the disappointment of patriotic democrats at its failure. In 1855 he became professor at Zürich. In 1866, his fame being now established, he was invited back to Germany with a professorship at Tübingen combined with a post at the Polytechnikum of Stuttgart. He died at Grunden on the 14th of September 1887. His writings include literary essays collected under the titles Kritische Gänge and Altes und Neues, poems, an excellent critical study of Goethe's Faust (1875), and a successful novel, Auch Einer (1878; 25th ed., 1904). The Elections and Parties Series Democracy Liberal democracy History of democracy Referenda Representative democracy Representation Voting Voting systems Elections Elections by country Elections by calender Electoral systems Politics Politics by country Political campaigns Political science Political philosophy Related topics Political parties Parties by country Parties by name Parties by ideology... Zürich (in English often Zurich, IPA ) is the largest city in Switzerland (population: 366,145 in 2004; population of urban area: 1,091,732) and capital of the canton of Zürich. ... 1866 is a common year starting on Monday. ... Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen (German: Eberhard-Karls-Universität Tübingen) is a state-supported university located on the Neckar river, in the city of Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. ... Stuttgart, a city located in southern Germany, is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg with a population of approximately 600,000 as of May 2005. ... Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (pronounced [gø tÉ™]) (August 28, 1749 – March 22, 1832) was a German writer, humanist, scientist, philosopher, and he conducted his civic services as a cabinet minister of Weimar. ...

Vischer was not an original thinker, and his monumental Aesthetik, in spite of industry and learning, has not the higher qualities of success. He attempts the hopeless task of explaining art by the Hegelian dialectic. Starting with the definition of beauty as "the idea in the form of limited appearance," he goes on to develop the various elements of art (the beautiful, sublime and comic), and the various forms of art (plastic art, music and poetry) by means of the Hegelian antitheses--form and content, objective and subjective, inner conflict and reconciliation. The shape of the work also is repellently Hegelian, consisting of short highly technical paragraphs containing the main argument, followed by detailed explanations printed in different type. Still, Vischer had a thorough knowledge of every branch of art except music, and much valuable material is buried in his volumes. G.W.F. Hegel Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (August 27, 1770 - November 14, 1831) was a German philosopher born in Stuttgart, Württemberg, in present-day southwest Germany. ...

In later life Vischer moved considerably away from Hegelianism, and adopted the conceptions of sensuous completeness and cosmic harmony as criteria of beauty; but he never found time to rewrite his great book. His own work as a literary artist is of high quality; vigorous, imaginative and thoughtful without academic technicality.

See O Keindl, F. T. Vischer, Erinnerungsblätter (1888); JE von Gunthert, F. T. Vischer, ein Charakterbild (1888); I Frapan, Vischer-Erinnerungen (1889); T Ziegler, F. T. Vischer (Vortrag) (1893); JG Oswald, F. T. Vischer als Dichter (1896).

This entry was originally from the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica. (Redirected from 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica) The Eleventh Edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica (1911) in many ways represents the sum of knowledge at the beginning of the 20th century. ...