• Journal of Korean Philosophical Society
• /
• v.142
• /
• pp.295-321
• /
• 2017

This paper discusses Hegel's concept of Art criticism, focusing on the article "${\ddot{U}}ber$ die Bekehrten" in 16. Vol. of Hegel's Gesammelte Werke. Hegel is a theorist of the system of art, but also an art critic who actively participated in popular art practice. Until now, Hegel has been interpreted mainly as a theorist who usually constitutes the system of art. According to many interpretations, Hegel has been criticized for his theories frame interpretation of the Artwork compulsorily. But in this article we see another aspect of Hegel as an art critic. First, in this article Hegel shows as an art critic how romanticists distort the work with an emphasis on the theory. Hegel argues in his article written in early 1826 that romantic ironic theory does not help at all in understanding the "die Bekehrten" of Laupach. Whereas ironic theory emphasizes the contradiction between character and its action as the essential value of the work, Hegel interprets that the comic is at the center of the work, which lets the unessential sides of the unified character disappear, so that the unity of the character expresses itself. Hegel also interprets that the theory of irony represents the work of art for the scholars, which harms the objectivity of artwork and defends the artwork for the public. Second, Hegel began to apply the achievement of his criticism to his aesthetic lectures. Since 1826 Hegel has focused intensively on discussing two concepts, romantic irony and 'artwork for the public' in his aesthetics lectures. Thus, this article provides a basis for Hegel 's criticism of ironic theory after 1826 and the concept of artwork for the public. In this respect, we can confirm that Hegel has reinforced and extended his theories through his practice of criticism of concrete works of art rather than imposing systematic theories upon art criticism