Transformation of the concept of genius in Enlightenment''s artistic consciousness in the first half of the XVIII century

Abstract

The transformation of the concept of genius as it was exemplified in English poets' and artists' critical and aesthetic works in the first half of the XVIII century is considered. The authors have analyzed the forms, contexts, the principal connotations of the concept in the texts by Joseph Addison, Alexander Pope, William Hogarth, Edward Young. The personalization of the concept of genius became apparent as the main trend in Enlightenment's artistic consciousness.