Abstract

In my paper, I interpret Hölderlin’s »poetic dwelling« in the sense of a contribution to the philosophy of design, i.e. a theory of beautiful yet functional artifacts. The interpretation aims at an ethics of aesthetics in which what I call ›poetry of design‹ is considered as a constitutive element for human autonomy in a world crammed with artifacts: good design is presented as morally good in the way that it does not interfere with self-determination, but instead promotes it because good design is beautiful.