Aestheticism and Deconstruction

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Walter Pater's work on society and culture is reexamined to challenge the common dismissal of deconstruction as merely "aestheticist." Jonathan Loesberg argues that both aestheticism and modern deconstruction foster philosophical insight and political engagement through self-questioning and critique of dominant truths. By analyzing Pater's "Studies in the History of the Renaissance" alongside the theories of Jacques Derrida and Paul de Man, Loesberg highlights the significant connections between aestheticism and contemporary theoretical discourse, particularly in the context of new historicism.