Beauty is a part of the human condition; we are attracted to what we find attractive and repelled by what we find unattractive. In the 18th and 19th centuries, scholars captured this concept and put into words what it means to experience beauty. Immanuel Kant, for example, had written books about this experience, a state of perception that consequently opened the doors to literary criticism. In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The House of Seven Gables, illusions of beauty and aesthetics were crucial to character development, particularly that of Clifford Pyncheon and Holgrave. By applying Kant's concepts of beauty and judgment to Hawthorne's characters Clifford and Holgrave, we can use comparisons between characters to investigate the existence of various levels of aesthetic development. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Kantian principles regarding beauty and judgment outline an overall step-by-step process. Humans are innately attracted to something they find beautiful and therefore judge it. This process of judgment is the lasting impression a person would make by establishing, yes, that an object is a beautiful thing: “To decide whether something is beautiful or not, we do not relate the representation by the intellect to the object object of knowledge, but rather relate it through the imagination (perhaps combined with the intellect) to the subject and his feeling of pleasure or displeasure” (Kant, 414). This aspect of precognition in identifying beauty is important in the concept of aesthetic identification and appreciation. It reinforces the concept that beauty is instantaneous and natural, universally created in all human beings. Kant further states: “The judgment of taste is therefore not a cognitive judgment, therefore not a logical one, but rather an aesthetic one, by which we mean one whose determining basis cannot be other than subjective” (414). From this statement originates the aesthetic terminology which refers to the logical and non-rationalized moment in determining beauty. In the case of Clifford Pyncheon and Hawthorne, it is essential to remember that they both have the same human traits capable of identifying and processing beauty. Starting from Clifford, an analysis of aesthetic development can be constructed. Clifford Pyncheon, an elderly gentleman just released from prison, has the expression of a child. Hawthorne does not fully explain what the technical aspects of Clifford's little mind are, but it is noted that his nature is described as that of a "sybarite", one who is strongly influenced by beauty and pursues it diligently. This quality of his character becomes an important attribute for examining his aesthetic development. The limitations of Clifford's aesthetic development can be factored into two reasons. The first is that Clifford was naturally born with a small mind. Clifford's childish mind simplifies his experience. This simplification, while limiting, creates space for aesthetic experience through its lack of knowledge and non-sublime encounters. “But Clifford listened with rapturous delight. The sound, however unpleasant, had a very lively life in it, and, together with the circle of curious children watching the turning of the wheel, seemed to give it a more vivid sense of active, lively, sunny existence than it had achieved in almost any other times. otherwise." This moment offers a preview of Clifford's childhood development in aesthetic appreciation. The limitations of his mind inhibit Clifford due to his inability to reach broader conclusions, rationalize, and create appropriate functionality in reaction to appreciation aesthetic. The secondreason hindering Clifford's development is the time he spent in prison for much of his life. The isolation and absence of beauty in the place have robbed Clifford of the ability to advance aesthetic appreciation in a way that is sustainable and slowly built. Being thrust into the free world, in almost every situation Clifford experiences aesthetic appreciation and is overwhelmed by stimuli. These limiting factors further work with Kant's efforts on beauty and judgment. “It is immediately clear that in order to say that it is beautiful and demonstrate that I have taste, what matters is what I make of this representation in myself, not how I depend on the existence of the object” (415). Clifford's stunted development creates this polar existence between aesthetic admiration and lack of aesthetics. This dynamic points towards an addiction to aesthetic gratification. When beauty is taken away from him, his existence becomes squalid. Kant says that there is a precognitive moment of appreciation of beauty. Likewise, the instant after this appreciation, a similar minute occurs in which the opposite of the sublime – the anti-sublime – occurs. This concept is in line with scholar Isaac Newton's law that "what goes up must come down." In this context, the peak of high feelings results in an absolute decline. Clifford forms a dependence on this aesthetic level because without it, and without developed aesthetic skills and appreciation, there is no other means to arrive at than absolute nothingness. When beauty is not present, Clifford is absent and empty. This emptiness comes from the absence of aesthetics and a general withdrawal reaction. This concept of retreat can be seen throughout the scene where Clifford reflects on the dangerous move he made in almost jumping out of the window: “Perhaps, in a way, Clifford might have been right. He needed a shock; or perhaps he needed to take a deep, deep dive into the ocean of human life, to sink and be covered by its depths, and then emerge, sober, reinvigorated, restored to the world and himself. Perhaps, once again, all he needed was the great final remedy: death!” (Hawthorne, 115). This scene demonstrates the deep void within Clifford that only aesthetic engagement can fill. Needing “a shock” to break out of his tremulous spell of nothingness, Clifford acts in the most extreme and desperate way to free himself from the abyss. Therefore aesthetic obsession is not an overall positive experience. It is the highest form, which means that there is inherently a lower form. The experience of aesthetics and its immediate cessation constitute a shock to the man in whom he exists in that “nothing”. For an evolved person, the existence of beauty in other entities, even in their memories, satisfies this nothingness. This constitutes the explanation of the obsession with beauty in pursuit of aesthetics for the stunted life that Clifford lived. Aesthetic appreciation is an intense experience for Clifford due to the limited life he has lived thus far. Hawthorne's examples that illuminate beauty are symbolic of the aesthetics seen by Clifford. Furthermore, the emotions triggered by aesthetic appreciation surpass the very essence of Clifford. “So it was demonstrated with Clifford. He trembled; he turned pale; he cast a pleading look at Hepizbah and Phoebe, who were with him at the window. They understood nothing of his emotions and believed that he was simply disturbed by the unusual turmoil. Finally, with trembling limbs, he stood up, put his foot on the windowsill, and in a moment others would be on the unattended balcony. (115). The powerful window scene demonstrates how powerful aesthetics and their appreciation are. Another powerful moment in the novel is the sceneof the train where Clifford knows he is free from Judge Pyncheon and emotionally rambles to a stranger about everything he feels. This out-of-character moment is a direct result of the aesthetic appreciation experience. However, this moment is important to realize that aesthetic reaction comes in different forms. In this scene, Clifford succumbs to aesthetic experience not through sight, sound, or touch but rather a euphoric moment of complete enlightenment. According to Columbia Themes in Philosophy, Social Criticism, and the Arts: Queer Beauty: Sexuality and Aesthetics from Winckelmann to Freud and Beyond by Whitney Davis, the existence of various forms of aesthetic appreciation coincides with Kant's claims about beauty and judgment. “According to section 17 of Kant's Third Critique, the judgment of ideal beauty (le beau ideal) separates individual expressions of interested pleasure, such as a pederastic appreciation of the young male body, from the increasingly disinterested accumulation of multiple judgments rendered about the same or similar objects by the same person or by other persons” (Davis, 37). The different aspects that influence Clifford in different ways therefore cannot be limited to a single type. Clifford's seduction with aesthetics becomes his life mission. “Beauty would be his life; his aspirations would all tend towards this; and, allowing its structure and physical organs to be in consonance, its developments would also be beautiful” (Hawthorne, 74). This devotion to the pursuit of aesthetics greatly isolates Clifford as a character and places him in his own world. Although the pursuit of aesthetics is not an uncommon attribute in human existence, the severity with which Clifford engages in it becomes an obstacle not only in aesthetic appreciation but in personal growth as a whole. Clifford is no longer suited to his surroundings if aesthetic admiration is found. He exists only as a being, not as a functionally expanding person. The other character who expresses aesthetic development in Hawthorne's novel is Holgrave. In his profession as an artist he already has a relationship with beauty. This relationship includes the ability to differentiate different levels of beauty and what is “true” or not. The ability to tell the truth comes from his daguerreotypes which reflect what the true character of the subject is. “Though we give him credit only for representing the mere surface, he actually brings out the secret character with a truth which no painter would ever venture upon, or even detect” (Hawthorne, 63). The truth of daguerreotypes has an important impact in relation to Holgrave's aesthetic development as they represent a representation of art and beauty. Davis' work describing Kantian themes can be applied to Holgrave's art: “In Kant's Critique of the Power of Judgment and in the Kantian tradition, in fact, the erotic attractiveness of natural objects (or their figuration in works of art) had been defined as a type of human interest that must be entirely overcome for a truly disinterested aesthetic judgment to emerge” (Davis, 3). Davis' statement described here applies to Holgrave's images and how, as the artist behind the images, he recognizes the natural attractiveness of his subjects, being the reason he photographs them. Holgrave's character takes the form of an artist. As an artist, Holgrave is inspired by aesthetic beauty and finds the means to preserve it through photographs. This stepped formation differs markedly from the aesthetic appreciation shown by Clifford. Holgrave is able to rationalize aesthetic experience and expresses his appreciation for it through daguerreotyping. Clifford's encounter with aesthetics means being carried away by it, and soinvolved enough to no longer be present in reality. Hograve's aesthetic development has matured enough to appreciate aesthetics while being present in reality. Davis would argue that this concept of aesthetic judgment does not go against the precognitive need emphasized by Kant. “This process of accumulation and modification of aesthetic judgment, constituted and communicated socially, is neither mysterious nor sinister” (37). Holgrave's profession would therefore fall within this ideal. As an artist, Holgrave has an established sense of what he finds aesthetically pleasing. For this To achieve rationalization, Holgrave would have to have a spectrum in what he considers beautiful and what is not. Through many encounters with the aesthetically pleasing, Holgrave has been overshadowed by the many wonderful stimuli to which he has been exposed. This dulling did not take away his appreciation and respect for aesthetics, but rather only increased his development in aesthetic experience. With the further development presented in Holgrave's character, the process of aesthetic appreciation is further advanced. Davis states that “The psychic and social process must be transitive, whether Kant drew attention to the fact or not. Each order of judgment in the subjective consolidation and social transmission of an ideal, therefore, hides possibilities not only of satisfying the other order of judgment” (Davis, 38).” This means that Holgrave's internal psychic process of aesthetic admiration coincides with his social representation of it. Through physical representation in daguerreotypes, Holgrave demonstrates the social aspect in his judgment of beauty. This takes an interesting turn in his sharing daguerreotypes with others. The dissemination of what Holgrave finds socially aesthetic consolidates the aspect of his spectrum in the development of aesthetic appreciation. Clifford, in comparison, is so in love with aesthetics that he does not have enough development to be able to share the same beauty he admires with others. Holgrave's manipulation of aesthetics is also visible throughout the novel. With the narration of the old feud between Pyncheon and Maule, Holgrave's narration is so finely tuned and well composed that it has an overwhelming effect on Phoebe. “It was evident that, with a single wave of his hand and a corresponding effort of his will, he could complete his dominion over the still free and virgin spirit of Phoebe; could establish upon this good, pure and simple child an influence as dangerous, and perhaps as disastrous, as that which the carpenter of his legend had acquired and exercised upon the unfortunate Alice” (Hawthorne, 147). Hawthorne illuminates Holgrave's type of aesthetic relationship by insisting: “For a disposition like that of Holgrave, at once speculative and active, there is no temptation so great as the opportunity of acquiring an empire over the human spirit; nor a more seductive idea for a young man than that of becoming the arbiter of a young girl's destiny” (148). This section develops the concept that within aesthetic development, when such control and maturity emerges, the next step is the control of one's aesthetic capacity over that of another. To consider this idea, let's examine the functions of artistic professions. The expression and control in portraying the aesthetic vision that is achieved through proper construction of aesthetic development is intended to influence the audience in some way. Whether it is inspiration or hypnotization, art satisfies the aesthetic needs of other peoples through the hands of the aesthetic master. Later in this scene Holgrave contemplates its effect on Phoebe and it is crucial to remember that he acts on it in a certain way. The aesthetic control that Holgrave.