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  Survival of the Beautiful: Art, Science, and Evolution (Hardback) By (author) David Rothenberg

  

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  Short Description for Survival of the Beautiful"Survival of the Beautiful is a revolutionary new examination of the role that art and culture play in nature and the evolutionary process. Taking his inspiration from Charles Darwin's observation that birds have a natural aesthetic sense, Rothenberg dives into the mysteries of why we create art, and why animals, humans included, have innate appreciation for beauty.Sexual selection may explain why
  Full description

  • Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
  • Published: 25 October 2011
  • Format: Hardback 311 pages
  • See: Full bibliographic data
  • Categories: Art History | Science: General Issues | Philosophy: Aesthetics | Natural History
  • ISBN 13: 9781608192168 ISBN 10: 1608192164
  • Sales rank: 128,906

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Full description for Survival of the Beautiful

• "The peacock's tail," said Charles Darwin, "makes me sick." That's because the theory of evolution as adaptation can't explain why nature is so beautiful. It took the concept of sexual selection for Darwin to explain that, a process that has more to do with aesthetics than the practical. "Survival of the Beautiful" is a revolutionary new examination of the interplay of beauty, art, and culture in evolution. Taking inspiration from Darwin's observation that animals have a natural aesthetic sense, philosopher and musician David Rothenberg probes why animals, humans included, have innate appreciation for beauty-and why nature is, indeed, beautiful. Sexual selection may explain why animals desire, but it says very little about what they desire. Why will a bowerbird literally murder another bird to decorate its bower with the victim's blue feathers? Why do butterfly wings boast such brilliantly varied patterns? The beauty of nature is not arbitrary, even if random mutation has played a role in evolution. What can we learn from the amazing range of animal aesthetic behavior-about animals, and about ourselves? Readers who enjoyed the bestsellers" The Art Instinct" and "The Mind's Eye" will find "Survival of the Beautiful" an equally stimulating and profound exploration of art, science, and the creative impulse.