Project Gutenberg 2015-03-23 Public domain in the USA. 227 Santayana, George 1863 1952 Santayana, Jorge Santayana, Georgius 00001648 Interpretations of Poetry and Religion Understanding, imagination, and mysticism -- The Homeric hymns -- The dissolution of paganism -- The poetry of Christian dogma -- Platonic love in some Italian poets -- The absence of religion in Shakespeare -- The poetry of barbarism -- Emerson -- A religion of disillusion -- The elements and function of poetry. Produced by Marc D'Hooghe (Images generously made available by the Internet Archive.) "Interpretations of Poetry and Religion" by George Santayana is a philosophical work written in the late 19th century. The text examines the intrinsic connections between poetry and religion, arguing that both express ideals rather than empirical truths. Santayana proposes that poetry and religion serve similar purposes in human life, but only when religion transcends mere dogma to embrace its poetic essence do they harmoniously intersect. At the start of the book, the author sets the stage by discussing the various papers compiled within, each contributing to the overarching idea that religion and poetry are fundamentally identical but differentiated by their practical applications. He examines the nature of the human mind in relation to reality, highlighting the interplay between understanding, imagination, and mysticism. Santayana critiques the prevailing attitudes toward religion, suggesting that it should focus on ideals rather than factual claims, thus maintaining its nobility and coherence. The opening lays a philosophical foundation for further exploration of seminal topics, including the nature of poetic expression, the collapsing boundaries between myth and morality, and the significance of imagination as a crucial human faculty through which we interpret and engage with the world. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 50.5 (10th to 12th grade). Somewhat difficult to read. en Religion Poetry Literature -- History and criticism Aesthetics PN Text Category: Essays, Letters & Speeches Category: Philosophy & Ethics Category: Religion/Spirituality 453610 2025-07-19T12:15:26.424813 text/html 431636 2024-10-24T17:11:16 text/html 245572 2025-07-19T12:15:34.070826 application/epub+zip 251738 2025-07-19T12:15:29.539801 application/epub+zip 242128 2025-07-19T12:15:28.349812 application/epub+zip 471250 2025-07-19T12:15:37.601784 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 455141 2025-07-19T12:15:33.295832 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 424653 2022-09-22T05:16:54.632039 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 431120 2025-07-19T12:15:25.963840 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 411364 2024-10-24T17:11:16 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 18553 2025-07-19T12:15:37.726762 application/rdf+xml 16817 2025-07-19T12:15:28.841803 image/jpeg 3920 2025-07-19T12:15:28.593809 image/jpeg 243659 2025-07-19T12:15:26.458856 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia