Sublime Reverberations: Shelley’s Ode to the West Wind and Kant’s Aesthetics
Abstract
This study delves into the intricate interplay between the aesthetics of the sublime as envisioned by Immanuel Kant and the creative genius of Percy Bysshe Shelley as exemplified in his poetic masterpiece, “Ode to the West Wind”. Kant’s sublime philosophy, expounded in the Critique of Judgment (1914) highlights the sublime as an aesthetic experience evoking awe, wonder, and transcendence in response to nature’s grandeur. Shelley’s poem serves as a captivating canvas in which the resonance and alignment between Kant’s conceptual framework and the poetic expression of the sublime is explored and analyzed. This study reveals that the poem “Ode to the West Wind” seamlessly harmonizes with Kant’s sublime: the mathematical and dynamical aspects, the pivotal role of the imagination, and the interplay between the beautiful and the sublime. Furthermore, the poem’s exploration of change, renewal, and transformation, resonates with the revolutionary sublime. Within the cultural and political context of the Romantic era marked by societal upheaval and transformation, Shelley’s thematic exploration finds a profound connection to the revolutionary spirit of the age.
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