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A History of Western Philosophy: The Classical Mind, Volume I A HISTORY OF WESTERN PHILOSOPHY examines the nature of philosophical enterprise and philosophy’s role in Western culture. Jones and Fogelin weave key passages from classic philosophy works into their comments and criticisms, giving A HISTORY OF WESTERN PHILOSOPHY the combined advantages of [...] The fall of communism symbolized the triumph of capitalism and free market over protectionist economics. Resultantly, the world has experienced the concepts of free trade and free government pushed as the most effective means of combating and alleviating poverty, disease, and various plights suffered in greatest numbers in the least developed parts of the world. In terms of economic prosperity, the United Nations classifies the world into two categories: the developed world, which includes the industrialized countries of Western Europe, the United States, Japan, Canada etc. The rest, where four fifths of the world’s population resides, is known as the developing world. Neoclassical economics has become so institutionalized and embedded into our way of thinking that countries are defined as being either a ‘Least Developed Country’ (LDC) or a ‘Developed Country’ before it is viewed in terms of culture, components of its economy, or its existing political institutions. Among the loudest cheerleaders of the globalized system of capitalism are the neoclassical economists. In neoclassical economics, The triumph of capitalism and the free market society was altogether unsurprising for neoclassical economists. The reason for this is because the individualistic and independent element of the free market best complements their views on human nature. On the whole, individuals are rational in always viewing situations with self-interest. As a result, humans are continuously looking for ways to maximize their profits or satisfaction in their daily life, while minimizing their losses. This competitive and maximum utility characteristic in people makes a market that stresses the importance of advantage and individualism the most effective way in channeling their nature while insuring the opportunity of satisfying this human need. However, in addition to individuals and institutions attempting to maximize their self-interest in absolute terms, neoclassical economists view a large part of the equation is maximizing individual self-interest in relative terms too. Neoclassical economics sought to make economics a more grounded study by incorporating elements of mathematics, biology, politics, and social science to make it more relatable to the common worker engaged in the market. When looking at relative advantage in the market, The creators of neoclassical economics differentiated from other schools of economics in their understanding of what determines the utility of a commodity in the market. At the height of the Industrial Revolution, the market place was understood in terms of classical economic theory. In his text The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith explained that the labour theory of value ruled that the value of a product was linked to the “the toil and trouble of acquiring it.” The value of an item was determined by the costs and effort invested in producing it. As the intensification of industrialization started settling down, a new breed of economists began to interpret what influenced value from a different perspective. Neoclassical economists started moving away from classical economists views of the market from the macro-level, and diverted more attention to the micro-level. For the creators of neoclassical economics, the most important determiner of utility of a product was not in any concrete value in and of itself, but value was mainly determined by consumer’s own perception. “The most important aspects of classical art,” observed German historian and archaeologist Johann J. Winckelmann, “is its noble simplicity and calm grandeur.” As an archaeologist, Winckelmann became inspired by the ancient artifacts being recovered at the ruins of Pompeii and Herculaneum. In the late 1700s, the popular stylization in European art was baroque and rococo styles. To critics, these styles were vain and overly ostentatious to be truly considered art. Rococo art, for example, symbolized European aristocracy with its attention on great scale and themes of worldly pleasures. Likewise, baroque art became an institutionalized art because it often portrayed the grandeur and power of the Catholic Church, which supported the style. The new age of painters became disenchanted with this status quo. Occurring concurrent with societal and political shifts in Europe, neoclassical style was born. With the rise of reality television, it has become banal for young girls to become child stars. Unfortunately, with the present attention deficit disorder society, their success is often brief and limited. Knowing how easily fame can be achieved as well as lost, it magnifies the impressiveness of the accomplishments of Angelica Kauffmann. Born in 1741 in Chur, Switzerland, Angelica Kauffman’s father, Joseph Johann Kauffmann had minimal success of his own as a painter. But, Angelica Kauffmann was quick to adopt his best qualities with her fascination for stark colors. At a young age, Angelica Kauffmann developed a reputation for herself that would evolve into becoming arguably the most prominent female painter of the 18th century and one of the leading artists of early neoclassical art . |
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