The Sublime and the Beautiful, terms coined by the British
philosopher and politician Edmund Burke, are two opposing aesthetic categories
which both emphasize the emotional affect that nature and art can have on human
beings. Whereas the Beautiful is associated with feelings of bliss and
tranquility, the Sublime simultaneously evokes awe and fear. These differing
effects result from the fact that the Beautiful can be easily perceived, whilst
the Sublime is too impressive for humans to capture. Hence, the Sublime
illustrates the irrelevance of human beings in comparison to the force of nature,
whereas men and nature can peacefully coexist in beautiful art. Therefore,
sublime imagery is used in order to celebrate the power, darkness and grandness
of nature, while beautiful imagery gives the impression of perfection, symmetry
and lightness. Although these two principles were developed during Romanticism,
they continue to be relevant in art and art criticism. While originally, sublime
and beautiful elements were not supposed to be combined in one piece of art, they
soon began to be juxtaposed and joined in order to show how they interact.
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