What are aesthetic principles? Who determines this type of thing? We must first begin by defining both words. Aesthetics, by definition, is a set of principles that one uses to determine beauty in a given time and place. According to this definition, aesthetics are already a set of principles. Principles are a set of rules that one uses to determine something. So, in essence, aesthetic principles are rules that are used by people to determine beauty in objects. At the beginning of the paper which was given us, the author quotes Keat’s famous line: “Beauty is truth, truth beauty.” The author of this paper, Stanley Diamond, disagrees with quote, as do I. Truth is something that is a fact no matter what people say, and something that must be accepted by people whether they like it or not. Using this definition of truth, beauty is not subjective. This is a very bold statement, and one that I find hard to agree with. Keat seems to be stating that aesthetic principle does not exist and beauty is rather concrete. We see in our daily lives that people develop different tastes and interests, which I find to be proof that aesthetic principle DOES exist. People like certain artworks, while I may dislike them, and I may like works of art that they dislike. We are now back to a question earlier. Who determines aesthetic principle? In short, aesthetic principle cannot be defined, only developed by a person as he experiences life in his own way. To me, the freedom to develop one’s own aesthetic principle is a beauty in itself.
