LITERARY IMAGINATION, FANTASY AND THE AESTHETIC PERCEPTION OF REALITY: FROM NICHOLAS OF CUSA TO GOETHE
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29121/granthaalayah.v13.i12.2025.6685Keywords:
Literature, Creative Imagination, Fantasy, Literary Theory, Rational Science, Human ExpressionAbstract [English]
Thinkers treated fantasy as a vital aspect of the human soul, alongside rationality, intellect, and sensuality. Fantasy was understood not merely as imagination but as a deep form of intuitive knowledge, closely linked to creativity and aesthetic perception. Early modern writers saw it as the key to accessing the uniqueness of human expression and creation, bridging reason and feeling. Romantic thinkers, reacting against the dominance of rational science, emphasized the cultivation of fantasy and sensuality as essential to holistic understanding. In literature, this perspective resonates strongly: authors and poets relied on fantasy to explore human emotions, moral imagination, and the ineffable aspects of life. While the rise of scientific psychology in the 19th century narrowed its focus to measurable cognition and perception, literary theory preserved the richness of fantasy, connecting it to aesthetics, empathy, and inner experience. In this sense, the study of fantasy in literature reflects a broader cultural memory of human creativity and feeling that psychology once acknowledged but later largely abandoned. Reclaiming this imaginative dimension allows a more complete understanding of human expression, linking literature, aesthetics and the deep faculties of the mind.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Dr. Mahendra Kumar
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