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Plato discussed mimesis and argued that art was an imitation of reality; therefore, it could mislead people about the truth of the material world.

Aristotle saw art, especially tragic plays, as a way to catalyze catharsis in the audience and believed that it could furnish moral insights.

Kant believed that aesthetic experience is rooted in the subjective response of the viewer and that beauty was a matter of form and design, not function.

Hegel proposed that art reveals the absolute spirit and the development of self-consciousness through historical evolution.

Schopenhauer viewed art as a means of escape from the sufferings of life and asserted that through aesthetic experience, one can apprehend the Platonic Forms.

Nietzsche argued that art could be a life-affirming force and that it has the power to transfigure existence, often portraying the Dionysian and Apollonian impulses in creative expression.

Heidegger believed that art opens up an understanding of being and the world, suggesting that the essence of art is its existence as a work, and the way it sets forth a world.

Adorno posited that art serves as a critique of society and culture, often reflecting the contradictions inherent within a capitalist society.

Dewey saw art as the intensification of an experience and emphasized the importance of the environment and context in the aesthetic experience.

Benjamin argued that the 'aura' of a work of art diminishes with mass reproduction, changing its nature and its relationship to the observer.

Bell proposed the significant form theory, suggesting that the aesthetic emotion aroused by art comes from the forms within the work.

Danto introduced the idea of the 'artworld', which posits that the context or milieu in which an object exists contributes to whether it is seen as art.

Goodman's theory of symbols in 'Languages of Art' suggests that art is a form of symbolic communication and that aesthetic experience is a cognitive process.

Merleau-Ponty believed that art, particularly painting, offers a non-conceptual understanding of experience that reflects the pre-reflective, bodily engagement with the world.

Carroll rejects the need for a grand theory of art, instead advocating for a more pluralistic and pragmatic approach to understanding aesthetic experience.

Wollheim is known for his psychoanalytic approach to art, emphasizing the importance of the artist's intentions, the spectator's psychological engagement, and the ascription of meaning to artwork.

Sontag emphasized the importance of interpretation in experiencing art, criticizing the over-intellectualization of culture and advocating for a more immediate, sensory reception of art.