What terrifies us? What is it that elevates mere fear or nervousness to that all-consuming, paralysing emotion of terror? As a philosopher, Edmund Burke sought to understand what we actually mean when we talk of ‘terror’ and ‘beauty’.  In this essay, first published in 1767, he attempts to explain the idea of ‘the sublime’, and the effect that it has on us.

What terrifies us? What is it that elevates mere fear or nervousness to that all-consuming, paralysing emotion of terror? As a philosopher, Edmund Burke sought to understand what we actually mean when we talk of ‘terror’ and ‘beauty’. In this essay, first published in 1767, he attempts to explain the idea of ‘the sublime’, and the effect that it has on us.

What terrifies us? What is it that elevates mere fear or nervousness to that all-consuming, paralysing emotion of terror? As a philosopher, Edmund Burke sought to understand what we actually mean when we talk of ‘terror’ and ‘beauty’. &nbsp;In this essay, first published in 1767, he attempts to explain the idea of ‘the sublime’, and the effect that it has on us.&nbsp;

What terrifies us? Edmund Burke and the Sublime

A series exploring the big questions in literature and philosophy, and the thinkers that tried to answer them.

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What terrifies us? Edmund Burke and the Sublime

What terrifies us? Edmund Burke and the Sublime