Cambridge Library Collection - Philosophy

1 total work

A Philosophical Enquiry Into the Origin of Our Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful

by Edmund Burke

Published 16 February 1970

Edmund Burke's "Enquiry into ...the Sublime and Beautiful" was one of the most influential works of aesthetic criticism in the 18th century. With the confidence and freshness of youth - long before he made his reputation as a political writer and orator - Burke provided a systematic theory of the sublime and beautiful which satisfied generations of readers, and influenced the work of British and foreign poets, landscape gardeners, painters and critics. In 30 years from its first publication in 1757, ten editions were required in London alone. Others appeared in translation in Europe. This volume prints the text of the heavily revised 2nd edition (1759) to which Burke added an "Essay on Taste". The editor's introduction identifies Burke's original contributions to the contemporary critical debate, and gives special prominence to the range of his influence at home and abroad.