HomeGroupsTalkMoreZeitgeist
Search Site
This site uses cookies to deliver our services, improve performance, for analytics, and (if not signed in) for advertising. By using LibraryThing you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Your use of the site and services is subject to these policies and terms.

Results from Google Books

Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.

Loading...

Real Presences

by George Steiner

Series: Leslie Stephen Lecture (1985)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
528445,481 (3.66)6
Renowned scholar George Steiner explores the power and presence of the unseen in art. "It takes someone of [his] stature to tackle this theme head-on" (The New York Times).   There is a philosophical school of thought that believes the presence of God in art, literature, and music--in creativity in general--is a vacant metaphor, an eroded figure of speech, a ghost in humanity's common parlance. George Steiner posits the opposite--that any coherent understanding of language and art, any capacity to communicate meaning and feeling, is premised on God. In doing so, he argues against the kind of criticism that obscures, instead of elucidates, meaning. From the power of language to vital philosophical tenets, Real Presences examines the role of meaning and of the spiritual in art throughout history and across cultures.… (more)
Loading...

Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book.

No current Talk conversations about this book.

» See also 6 mentions

English (2)  French (1)  Spanish (1)  All languages (4)
Showing 2 of 2
George Steiner’s Real Presences is a doozy of a book. It’s short and inviting, but contains some of the most complex ideas about language and art that I have ever read. Steiner’s supposition is that while most art and literary criticism seeks to dismiss the idea of God and spirituality, it is precisely this “presence” which makes all great metaphors great. He rails against vapid academism and deliberate obscurantism. One of the things that humans human, he states, is our both our ability to visualize and enact a future-based thought and to create any and all possible combinations of language and thought. These abilities lead to transcendent thoughts, which brings one into the real presence of divine art and literature. These presences in language form the basis of spiritual thought and works. Be prepared on this one to run to a dictionary as Steiner likes to use complicated words to explicate complicated thoughts. Once you get through it, however, it is very rewarding and thought-provoking. ( )
2 vote NielsenGW | Apr 8, 2013 |
Recommended by Kay Ryan.

Amazon: "Can there be major dimensions of a poem, a painting, a musical composition created in the absence of God? Or, is God always a real presence in the arts? Steiner passionately argues that a transcendent reality grounds all genuine art and human communication.

"A real tour de force. . . . All the virtues of the author's astounding intelligence and compelling rhetoric are evident from the first sentence onward."—Anthony C. Yu, Journal of Religion ( )
This review has been flagged by multiple users as abuse of the terms of service and is no longer displayed (show).
  clifforddham | Oct 20, 2015 |
Showing 2 of 2
no reviews | add a review
You must log in to edit Common Knowledge data.
For more help see the Common Knowledge help page.
Canonical title
Information from the French Common Knowledge. Edit to localize it to your language.
Original title
Alternative titles
Original publication date
People/Characters
Important places
Important events
Related movies
Epigraph
Dedication
First words
We speak still of 'sunrise' and 'sunset'.
Quotations
Last words
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
Disambiguation notice
Publisher's editors
Blurbers
Original language
Canonical DDC/MDS
Canonical LCC

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English

None

Renowned scholar George Steiner explores the power and presence of the unseen in art. "It takes someone of [his] stature to tackle this theme head-on" (The New York Times).   There is a philosophical school of thought that believes the presence of God in art, literature, and music--in creativity in general--is a vacant metaphor, an eroded figure of speech, a ghost in humanity's common parlance. George Steiner posits the opposite--that any coherent understanding of language and art, any capacity to communicate meaning and feeling, is premised on God. In doing so, he argues against the kind of criticism that obscures, instead of elucidates, meaning. From the power of language to vital philosophical tenets, Real Presences examines the role of meaning and of the spiritual in art throughout history and across cultures.

No library descriptions found.

Book description
Haiku summary

Current Discussions

None

Popular covers

Quick Links

Rating

Average: (3.66)
0.5
1 1
1.5
2 2
2.5
3 6
3.5 4
4 11
4.5
5 5

Is this you?

Become a LibraryThing Author.

 

About | Contact | Privacy/Terms | Help/FAQs | Blog | Store | APIs | TinyCat | Legacy Libraries | Early Reviewers | Common Knowledge | 202,649,445 books! | Top bar: Always visible