Abstract
I want to compare Schiller's aesthetic theory with Kant's in regard to "the objectivity of beauty" and the concept of "freedom". 1. "Freiheit in der Erscheinung (freedom in appearance)" In "Kallias" letters Schiller insisted that "Freiheit in der Erscheinung" is the objective concept of beauty that was denied by Kant. But his argument about the objectivity of beauty contains some contradiction, and the objectivity he assumed doesn't mean the universal validity that the concept "objectivity" necessarily means. Therefore his insistence upon the objectivity of beauty is groundless. 2. "beauty as symbol" In "Kritik der Urteilskraft" Kant asserted that the beauty is the symbol of "das Sittlichgute (the moral-goodness)". On the other hand, Schiller thought the beauty is the symbol of the "freedom". Kant never confirmed the "freedom" appears, but Schiller thought it must appear and its appearance is the beauty. This is a remarkable difference between Kant and Schiller. This difference is caused by Schiller's strong demand for the appearance of "freedom". Schiller's criticism of Kant's aesthetics didn't succeed in finding out the objective concept of beauty, but through this critical thinking Schiller instituted his original aesthetics in which the close relation of the beauty and the humanity is emphasized.
