Human Beings and their Images: Imagination, Mimesis, Performativity

Description

Bringing the image into dialogue with the imagination, mimesis and performativity, Christoph Wulf illuminates the historical, cultural and philosophical aspects of the relationship between images and human beings, looking both at its conceptual and physical manifestations. Wulf explores the cultural power of the image. He shows that images take root in our personal and collective imaginaries to determine how we feel, how we perceive the arts and culture, and how our bodies respond with physical actions, in games and dance to rituals and gesture. By showing how imagination occupies an essential place in our daily conduct, Wulf makes a significant contribution to how we think about the role of images in culture, the arts and society. Half Title Series Page Title Page Copyright Page Contents Introduction: Images, performance and human society Part I: Image and imagination Chapter 1: The world as image: The great image without form Chapter 2: Imagination and the development of human beings Chapter 3: Iconic forms of imagination Chapter 4: Theories and concepts of imagination Part II: Imagination and the imaginary Chapter 5: Collectivity and the dynamic of the imaginary Chapter 6: The imaginary, the symbolic and the real Chapter 7: The performativity of the imagination Chapter 8: Images as actions Part III: Imagination and practices of the body Chapter 9: The world of play and games Chapter 10: The anthropology of dance Chapter 11: The human need for rituals Chapter 12: Gestures as language Part IV: Mimesis and cultural learning Chapter 13: Cultural learning as mimetic learning Chapter 14: The intangible cultural heritage Chapter 15: Family rituals Chapter 16: Family happiness Conclusion: The power of images  Notes References Index