Representationalism and Aesthetics
Representationalism and Aesthetics
If one were to be provided a spectator’s view of visitors of an art museum, they would witness a microcosm of the appreciation of art in its entirety. Some observers of art might simply glance at a piece of artwork and shrug it off for its unaesthetic appearance, others might try to delve deeper into what it’s standing for. Multiple factors would possibly come into play; the audiences’ reaction, the inquisition into the artist’s original intention, and perhaps the attempt to connect the artwork to another object based off parallel resemblances. Many of these actions derive from theories that were proposed long ago. Such philosophers as Plato, Aristotle, and Alexander Baumgarten toyed with philosophical theories including representationalism and aesthetic theory. In this paper, I hope to define the outward meaning of these theories and then delve into their similarities and contrasting ideologies. Though some specific parts of these theories might be outdated now, a strong portion of the basic foundations of these ideas appear and are still relevant today. Thus, by becoming versed with these philosophies, a viewer of art can become more appreciative and be given a better view into what the artist was originally trying to convey.
Noel Carroll begins his fourth chapter on “Art and aesthetic experience” by stating that the definition of aesthetics is three-fold; “one of these is very broad; another is narrow; and a third is tendentious.” The first explanation for aesthetics revolves around the idea that the term Aesthetics is synonymous with Philosophy of Art. Therefore, just as Carroll theorizes that our book might have been appropriately renamed Aesthetics of Art, it is just as reasonable that our entire course be aptly changed to the Aesthetics of Art. Besides aesthetics basing itself around this interchangeability, aesthetics has also come to stand for the “receptive side of things.” This sector of the meaning of
If one were to be provided a spectator’s view of visitors of an art museum, they would witness a microcosm of the appreciation of art in its entirety. Some observers of art might simply glance at a piece of artwork and shrug it off for its unaesthetic appearance, others might try to delve deeper into what it’s standing for. Multiple factors would possibly come into play; the audiences’ reaction, the inquisition into the artist’s original intention, and perhaps the attempt to connect the artwork to another object based off parallel resemblances. Many of these actions derive from theories that were proposed long ago. Such philosophers as Plato, Aristotle, and Alexander Baumgarten toyed with philosophical theories including representationalism and aesthetic theory. In this paper, I hope to define the outward meaning of these theories and then delve into their similarities and contrasting ideologies. Though some specific parts of these theories might be outdated now, a strong portion of the basic foundations of these ideas appear and are still relevant today. Thus, by becoming versed with these philosophies, a viewer of art can become more appreciative and be given a better view into what the artist was originally trying to convey.
Noel Carroll begins his fourth chapter on “Art and aesthetic experience” by stating that the definition of aesthetics is three-fold; “one of these is very broad; another is narrow; and a third is tendentious.” The first explanation for aesthetics revolves around the idea that the term Aesthetics is synonymous with Philosophy of Art. Therefore, just as Carroll theorizes that our book might have been appropriately renamed Aesthetics of Art, it is just as reasonable that our entire course be aptly changed to the Aesthetics of Art. Besides aesthetics basing itself around this interchangeability, aesthetics has also come to stand for the “receptive side of things.” This sector of the meaning of