Cecilia Sjholm reads Hannah Arendt as a philosopher of the senses, grappling with questions of vision, hearing, and touch even in her political work. Constructing an Arendtian theory of aesthetics from the philosophers fragmentary writings on art and perception, Sjholm begins a vibrant new chapter in Arendt scholarship that expands her relevance for contemporary philosophers. Arendt wrote thoughtfully about the role of sensibility and aesthetic judgment in political life and on the power of art to enrich human experience. Sjholm draws a clear line from Arendts consideration of these subjects to her reflections on aesthetic encounters and the works of art mentioned in her published writings and stored among her memorabilia. This delicate effort allows Sjholm to revisit Arendts political concepts of freedom, plurality, and judgment from an aesthetic point of view and incorporate Arendts insight into current discussions of literature, music, theater, and visual art. Though Arendt did not explicitly outline an aesthetics, Sjholms work substantively incorporates her perspective into contemporary reckonings with radical politics and their relationship to art.
Doing Aesthetics with Arendt