“Beautiful and useful”: since sumerians – until nowadays

Abstract

The first writing of the antinomy of beautiful and useful found in the Sumerian civilization, more than 45 centuries ago. The author considers this mention and the first written violation of one of the basic laws of logic, as well as the oldest and still viable mistake of mankind. More than 20 centuries later, Socrates figuratively perpetuates such antinomy and tries to harmonize it on the basis of the third concept –morality. This is also consistent with the ancient idea of kalokagathia. But he does not associate the beauty of things, nature and soul antiquity with the spiritual Absolute, self-immolation and humility. Such a re-accent appears in the Christian outlook. As regards the interpretation of the beautiful as an unselfish, uninterested, non-selfish contemplation, it also appears in the Buddhist worldview (Shankara, IX centuries), and in the doctrine of I. Kant (ХVІІІ century), and then in the territories of Ukraine, and in philosophy and artistic creativity of H. Skovoroda, P. Tychyna, Yuriy Klen and other neo-classicists, in particular M. Rylskyi, which phrase from the poem "Roses and grapes" is the title of the article. Thinking about the peculiarities of H. Skovoroda's philosophical conception, the author objects the replacement of the "soul" with the "interior" and the Word (that is, the Word of God) with "knowledge" in the translation of Valeriy Shevchuk, and also rejects the old anonymous hybrid "typical work": both translations restricts the "Socratic forehead" of H. Skovoroda changing the essence of his teaching. It is also shown how social pragmatics affects the artistry of M. Rylskyi's "Roses and Grapes": the final aphoristic maxim of the verse does not in any way follow from the artistic logic of its three plots. It worries the life out the necessity to illustrate a sociological idea that had been defined in advance, although, one can find historical justification for sure. In the context of "the phenomenon of the cornflower" and its artistic comprehension in the poetry of P. Tychyna, A. Malyshko, A. Voznesenskyi, I. Drach an attempt was made to reveal the relevance of the problem of breaking the harmony between beautiful and useful in favor of pragmatics. Thus, the urgent topic: "beautiful / useful – and artistry" arises.