Overview

Brayton Polka's book, On Poetry and Philosophy: Thinking Metaphorically with Wordsworth and Kant, is unique in bringing poetry and philosophy together in a single study. The poet and the philosopher whom he makes central to his project are both revolutionary founders of modernity, Wordsworth of romantic poetry and Kant of critical philosophy. Both the poet and the philosopher, as the author makes clear in his study, found their principles, at once poetically metaphorical and philosophically critical, on the religious values that are central to the Bible--that all human beings are equal before God.

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9781666701272

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In his trenchant readings of the poetry of Wordsworth and the philosophy of Kant, Brayton Polka deconstructs the traditional opposition between poetry and philosophy by demonstrating that human existence is metaphorical, not reducible to false idols that appear natural or literal in meaning. True poetry and philosophy arise out of the biblical imperative that human beings must interpret each other as moral subjects, not as natural objects, in accord with the love of God and humanity. --Grant Havers, Trinity Western University In this erudite, yet accessible, study of the deeper relationship between poetry, philosophy, and religion, Brayton Polka demonstrates once again why he is a master of interdisciplinary scholarship. By way of a brilliant analysis of two important pioneers of modernity, Immanuel Kant and William Wordsworth, Polka shows how the language of philosophy and poetry are ultimately metaphorical in nature, as they both transport readers from the finite natural world to the infinite world of spirit. --Bernard Lightman, York University

In his trenchant readings of the poetry of Wordsworth and the philosophy of Kant, Brayton Polka deconstructs the traditional opposition between poetry and philosophy by demonstrating that human existence is metaphorical, not reducible to false idols that appear natural or literal in meaning. True poetry and philosophy arise out of the biblical imperative that human beings must interpret each other as moral subjects, not as natural objects, in accord with the love of God and humanity. --Grant Havers, Trinity Western University In this erudite, yet accessible, study of the deeper relationship between poetry, philosophy, and religion, Brayton Polka demonstrates once again why he is a master of interdisciplinary scholarship. By way of a brilliant analysis of two important pioneers of modernity, Immanuel Kant and William Wordsworth, Polka shows how the language of philosophy and poetry are ultimately metaphorical in nature, as they both transport readers from the finite natural world to the infinite world of spirit. --Bernard Lightman, York University

Author Information

Brayton Polka is Professor of Humanities Emeritus and Senior Scholar at York University (in Toronto, Canada) and the author of numerous studies in philosophy, religion, literature, and music.

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