Comparative Literature, (Comparative) Cultural Studies, Aesthetic Education, and the Humanities

Abstract

In her article "Comparative Literature, (Comparative) Cultural Studies, Aesthetic Education, and the Humanities" Sonja Stojmenska-Elzeser discusses comparative literature in the context of cultural studies and aesthetic education. Her starting point is the complexity of comparative literature as an academic discipline propelled by intellectual curiosity for what lies across the barriers which stand in the way of understanding and enjoying creative acts of all kinds everywhere and at all times. Literary and artistic investigations which focus on aesthetic values lead us towards general aesthetics, analyses which situate the arts and literature in context with little regard for aesthetic criteria take us towards cultural studies. How are these three areas related? Do they share the same concerns in relation to creativity? How do they survive and cooperate in the contemporary world in which the humanities are often sidelined?. © Purdue University.