THE EVOLUTION OF AESTHETIC THEORY: GREEK TO EXISTENTIAL THINKERS

Between ancient times and the postmodern era, aesthetic thought has seen significant changes. Aesthetic thought reflects changes in philosophy, culture, and the place of art in society, starting with the metaphysical questions of Plato and Aristotle and continuing through the romantic revolt of the 18th and 19th centuries, the rationality of the Enlightenment, and the humanism of the Renaissance. With an emphasis on influential philosophers and creative movements, this article explores how aesthetic theory has changed throughout time. It draws attention to the shift in aesthetic thought from an objective definition of beauty to a postmodern perspective that is pluralistic, subjective, and frequently cynical. The study comes to the conclusion that human interaction with beauty, meaning, and representation is becoming increasingly complicated, as revealed by the development of aesthetic theory.