- In full:
- Walter Horatio Pater
- Born:
- August 4, 1839, Shadwell, London, England
- Died:
- July 30, 1894, Oxford, Oxfordshire (aged 54)
- Notable Works:
- āMarius the Epicureanā
- Movement / Style:
- Aestheticism
- Subjects Of Study:
- Renaissance art
- Renaissance
- art for artās sake
Walter Pater
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Who was Walter Pater?
Walter Pater (1839ā1894) was an English essayist, critic, and humanist, advocating "art for artās sake" which became central to Aestheticism.
Pater studied at Kingās School, Canterbury, and Queenās College, Oxford, focusing on Greek philosophy. Later, he became a fellow at Brasenose College in 1864. His writings, including Studies in the History of the Renaissance, established him as a scholar and aesthete. In The Renaissance, he claimed art's sole purpose is its beauty, disregarding moral or practical considerations, linking him to Algernon Charles Swinburne and the Pre-Raphaelites.
His notable works include the philosophical romance Marius the Epicurean (1885), Imaginary Portraits (1887), and Appreciations (1889). His classical studies significantly shaped his views, emphasizing the intrinsic artistic qualities over moral or educational values. Oscar Wilde and other aesthetes were influenced by Paterās ideas.
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What is Walter Pater best known for?
Walter Pater, born in London in 1839, was an influential English critic, essayist, and humanist, most noted for advocating "art for artās sake," a core tenet of Aestheticism.
His Studies in the History of the Renaissance (1873) established him as a scholar and aesthete due to his refined style and sensitive appreciation of Renaissance art. In the concluding essay, Pater argued that art exists solely for its beauty, disregarding moral or utilitarian considerations. His association with Algernon Charles Swinburne and the Pre-Raphaelites further solidified these views. His philosophical romance, Marius the Epicurean (1885), explores an aesthetic and religious life, set in the time of Marcus Aurelius.
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What are some of Walter Pater's most famous works?
Walter Pater, a proponent of "art for artās sake" and a key figure in the Aestheticism movement, is renowned for his delicate style and sensitive appreciation of art.
Pater's notable works include:
* Studies in the History of the Renaissance (later called The Renaissance), a collection of essays on artists like Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo.
* Marius the Epicurean, a philosophical romance that explores Pater's aesthetic and religious ideals.
* Imaginary Portraits, shorter philosophical fiction.
* Appreciations, critical essays largely on English subjects.
* Plato and Platonism, a literary view of Plato.1 Britannica SourceCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
How did Walter Pater influence English literature?
Walter Pater, an English essayist and critic, significantly impacted English literature by advocating "art for artās sake," a core tenet of Aestheticism. His unique, refined style and insightful appreciation of Renaissance art established him as a prominent scholar and aesthete, influencing the subsequent literary generation.
Pater's focus on the inherent qualities of art, rather than its moral or educational value, set him apart from prevailing critical approaches. His critical essays and philosophical fiction significantly impacted writers like Oscar Wilde and George Moore, evident in their style and ideas.
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What ideas did Walter Pater have about art and beauty?
Walter Pater believed that art exists solely for its beauty, disregarding moral or utilitarian purposes. This idea became a central tenet of Aestheticism, advocating "art for art's sake." His aesthetic and religious ideal is thoroughly presented in Marius the Epicurean (1885). In contrast to evaluating art based on moral or educational value, Pater focused on the inherent qualities of artworks. His unique perspective on Christian devotion, combined with his classical studies, greatly influenced his refined artistic sensibilities.
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How did Walter Pater inspire the Aesthetic Movement and later writers?
Walter Pater, an English essayist and critic, significantly influenced the Aestheticism movement by advocating "art for artās sake," which became a central tenet of the movement. His essays on Renaissance art emphasized art's beauty alone, disregarding moral or utilitarian functions, which associated him with figures like Algernon Charles Swinburne and the Pre-Raphaelites.
Pater's aesthetic and religious ideals, explored in Marius the Epicurean, and his focus on the innate qualities of art, influenced the subsequent literary generation. His impact extended to Oscar Wilde, George Moore, and other aesthetes of the 1890s, who showed clear traces of his style and ideas.
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Walter Pater (born August 4, 1839, Shadwell, London, Englandādied July 30, 1894, Oxford, Oxfordshire) was an English critic, essayist, and humanist whose advocacy of āart for artās sakeā became a cardinal doctrine of the movement known as Aestheticism.
Pater was educated at Kingās School, Canterbury, and at Queenās College, Oxford, where he studied Greek philosophy under Benjamin Jowett. He then settled in Oxford and read with private pupils. In 1864 he was elected to a fellowship at Brasenose College. Paterās early intention to enter the church gave way at this time to a consuming interest in classical studies. Pater then began to write for the reviews, and his essays on Leonardo da Vinci, Sandro Botticelli, Pico della Mirandola, Michelangelo, and others were collected in 1873 as Studies in the History of the Renaissance (later called simply The Renaissance). His delicate, fastidious style and sensitive appreciation of Renaissance art in these essays made his reputation as a scholar and an aesthete, and he became the centre of a small group of admirers in Oxford. In the concluding essay in The Renaissance, Pater asserted that art exists for the sake of its beauty alone, and that it acknowledges neither moral standards nor utilitarian functions in its reason for being. These views brought Pater into an association with Algernon Charles Swinburne and with the Pre-Raphaelites.
Marius the Epicurean (1885) is his most substantial work. It is a philosophical romance in which Paterās ideal of an aesthetic and religious life is scrupulously and elaborately set forth. The setting is Rome in the time of Marcus Aurelius; but this is a thin disguise for the characteristically late-19th-century spiritual development of its main character. Imaginary Portraits (1887) are shorter pieces of philosophical fiction in the same mode. Appreciations (1889) is a return to the critical essay, this time largely on English subjects. In 1893 came Plato and Platonism, giving an extremely literary view of Plato and neglecting the logical and dialectical side of his philosophy. Paterās Greek Studies (1895), Miscellaneous Studies (1895), and Essays from The Guardian (privately printed, 1896; 1901) were published posthumously. Also published posthumously was his unfinished romance, Gaston de Latour (1896).
The primary influence on Paterās mind was his classical studies, coloured by a highly individual view of Christian devotion and pursued largely as a source of extremely refined artistic sensations. In his later critical writings Pater continued to focus on the innate qualities of works of art, in contrast to the prevailing tendency to evaluate them on the basis of their moral and educational value.
Paterās early influence was confined to a small circle in Oxford, but he came to have a widespread effect on the next literary generation. Oscar Wilde, George Moore, and the aesthetes of the 1890s were among his followers and show obvious and continual traces both of his style and of his ideas.