The subject of the research is a complex, systemic reconstruction of the fundamental philosophical and aesthetic problems of the early period of Stendhal's work, identifying the specifics of his philosophy of art, which largely contributed to the development of French romanticism. The essence of his ideas about romanticism as an art addressed to modernity, local color, free from aesthetic dogmas is revealed, which determines the nature of his criticism of classicist aesthetics. Stendhal sees the merit of romanticism as a revolutionary literary movement in the fact that it depicts the truth of its era, creating a national tragedy in prose; it combines a wealth of thoughts and an abundance of feelings expressed in a simple, lively, natural language. His concepts of artistic illusion, the priority of imagination over imitation in the creative process, rethought in the romantic spirit of the categories of beauty, aesthetic ideal, tragic, comic, aesthetic pleasure are analyzed. The facets of Stendhal's philosophy of art are shown, which found expression in his theatrical aesthetics, philosophy of painting and music, literary criticism: he gives priority to artistry in art. The multifaceted nature of this study predetermined the use of a number of methodological approaches: a philosophical and aesthetic approach, art history analysis, comparative and interdisciplinary methods. The main conclusion of the study is that the essential criteria for appreciation art for Stendhal are its ethical orientation, philosophical content, and freedom-loving spirit. With all his reverence for philosophy, Stendhal proceeds from the fact that human life is based on feelings and passions, not reason, and it is to their depiction that the art of romanticism should be devoted. The virtuoso mastery of Stendhal's “romantic realism” is due to artistry and analytical precision in expressing subtle, elusive spiritual movements in art. The development of an adequate artistic language for expressing the romantic mood in literature, painting and music distinguishes Stendhal's fundamentally holistic aesthetic views and constitutes their value for the development of the aesthetics of romanticism both for his era and for subsequent stages of the development of culture and art. The author's special contribution is that the study of Stendhal's aesthetic theory and artistic practice is based on original material. The novelty of the work lies in the multifaceted analysis of the aesthetics and philosophy of art of the outstanding French writer, whose romantic views have not previously been the subject of special research in Russian science.
Nadezda Borisovna Mankovskaya (Thu,) studied this question.