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Zusatztext eminently readable by non-philosophers and as well as philosophers...contains many interesting citations from a host of historical! philosophical and religious authorities. Klappentext Why do gardens matter so much and mean so much to people? That is the intriguing question to which David Cooper seeks an answer in this book. Given the enthusiasm for gardens in human civilization ancient and modern! Eastern and Western! it is surprising that the question has been so long neglected by modern philosophy. Now at last there is a philosophy of gardens. David Cooper identifies garden appreciation as a special human phenomenon distinct from both from the appreciation of art and the appreciation of nature. He discusses the contribution of gardening and other garden-related pursuits to "the good life." And he distinguishes the many kinds of meanings that gardens may have! from their representation of nature to their spiritual significance. A Philosophy of Gardens will open up this subject to students and scholars of aesthetics! ethics! and cultural and environmental studies! and to anyone with a reflective interest in things horticultural. Zusammenfassung Why do gardens matter so much and mean so much to people? Seeking an answer to this question, this book identifies garden appreciation as a special human phenomenon distinct from both the appreciation of art and the appreciation of nature. It discusses the contribution of gardening and other garden-related pursuits to 'the good life'. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1. Taking Gardens Seriously; 2. Art or Nature?; 3. Art-and-Nature; 4. Gardens! People! and Practices; 5. Gardens and the Good Life; 6. The Meaning of Gardens; 7. The Garden as Epiphany; 8. Conclusion: The Garden's Distinction
