Donnette Primo

U.S.I: 1012484
Major Statements in literary theory
Mr. Andrew Kendall
November 9, 2019

David Humes rules of art based on experiences not on A-priori

Humes's concept of art could be viewed as a stage of ‘enlightenment’ since it was in this period
that literary rebellion and liberation from the old forms and standards of art was taking place.
This signals literary creativity because much attention was given to rationality, clarity of general
truth and categorization. Creativity was restrained to convention and rules. Literary suppression
led to a longing for complete freedom of expression which manifested itself as a rebellion
against the established literary standard. Humes quoted in his essay ‘Standard of taste’, “Beauty
is in the eyes of the beholder”. This famous quote would resonate with anyone who has heard it.
It is with this quote in mind that Humes’s concept of art blatantly disregarded conventions that
seem to suppress an individual’s views on a piece of literature and how they respond to it. “If a
man looks at a painting and experiences it as beautiful, he cannot be wrong. If another man looks
at the same painting and experiences it as ugly, he too is right”.

Therefore Humes believes that persons should be able to freely express their innermost thoughts
and feelings in a way most comfortable for them. Therefore it is on this premise that a new
category of writers emerges, where the power of freedom of expression, the positive influence of
nature on the mind and effects of emotional intensity is accepted.

Humes believes that opinions are objective thus causing it to be measured. “If a person looks at a
painting and guesses that it measured by five, we can take a tape measure and discover whether
the guess is right or wrong”. Therefore persons that share this view will have to face the harsh
reality of being judged. Thus allowing them to see that a life of reality is rigid and therefore
pleasure is short-lived. John Keats in his poem “Lamia”, uses fairytale elements from the onset
of the poem which states “Once upon a time” (Keats Lamia lines 1). This aids in stretching
readers' imagination thus appealing to their senses.

Keats's poem rests on Humes’s premise of beauty being “subjective”. Lamia undoubtedly is a
sensuous poem. Readers were confronted with the image of a ‘woman’ whose wholesome
beauty, imagination and emotion were very appealing to the mind. This allows readers through
the use of sensory details to create a beautiful image concertizing the idea that creativity plays a
pivotal part in a man’s life. The diction used to describe the various sceneries adds to the
sensuous qualities of the poem. This is evident in (Keats, Lamia lines 172-173), “ Twelve
sphered tables by silk seats sphered, high as the level of a man’s breast rear’d on libbard’s paws
upheld the heavy gold of cups and goblets and the store thrice told”. Therefore by this
description of several images, the poet alludes to the fact that senses play an important role in the
individual since they can use these details to form their own opinion of things based on their
perspectives. This, therefore, highlights the fact that the imaginative mind helps a person to
enjoy the pleasures of life through different sensations created in the mind by imaginative
powers.