Aesthetics For Life - W5: Aesthetics and Philosophy I · 3.3 Class Discussion: Beauty/Art, Morality and Politics Aesthetics and MORALITY: Plato and ART Pappas (2015) Q:Can ART/AESTHETICS

1 Introduction2 Aesthetics and TRUTH

3 Aesthetics and MORALITY and POLITICS

Aristotle-Lysippus, c.330 BCE

Aesthetics For LifeW5: Aesthetics and Philosophy I

Dr. Meagan Louie

The poet speaks more of theuniversal, while the historianspeaks of particulars.

-Aristotle (Poetics)

Dr. Meagan Louie



Debates on Kant’s Critique of Aesthetic Judgements

Next Week’s Class: 30-min Debates

1. Divide into teams of 8-10 people

2. Next class each team will be assigned

(i) One of Kant’s Criteria, and(ii) a side to argue: i.e., Affirmative or Negative

3. 15 minutes for each team to prepare

4. 3 speakers for each side (Opener, Rebuttal, Conclusion)

5. 5 minutes for each speaker

Dr. Meagan Louie



1.1 Other Branches of Philosophy1.2 Aesthetics as a Window into other Branches of Philosophy

Aesthetics and Other Branches of Philosophy

. Recall: Aesthetics is a subfield of philosophy

METAPHYSICS: What is? Or what is real?. What things exist? How do they relate?.. → the study of existence

LOGIC: What is true?. How do I know what is true?. . → The study of valid reasoning

EPISTEMOLOGY: How do we know anything?. How do I know what I know?. . → the study of knowledge

Dr. Meagan Louie






ETHICS: What is good/moral for an individual?. How do I know how which actions to take?.. → the study of morality/conduct

POLITICS: What is good/moral for society?. How should we be behave as a society?. How should we be governed?.. → the study of government/policy

Dr. Meagan Louie






AESTHETICS: What is sublime/beautiful?. How do I know what is is beautiful?

Question: Who cares about beauty/sublimity compared to issues of

truthexistenceknowledgemorality andgovernment???

Dr. Meagan Louie





. QUESTION:

. . Can aesthetics and its subject matter

. . can give us insight into these

. . other branches of philosophy?

Today: Plato and Aristotle

Dr. Meagan Louie



2.1 Plato on ART and REPRESENTATION2.2 Aristotle on ART and REPRESENTATION2.3 Plato on BEAUTY and TRUTH

Aesthetics and Truth: Plato and ART Kraut (2015)

Q: Can ART/AESTHETICS provide insight into. what exists and what’s true?

Plato’s Theory of Forms:. Reality consists of two realms:

(i) The material world that we perceivethrough our senses:→ Objects are transient, defective

(ii) A realm that contains true, eternaland perfect FORMS→ These forms possess the highestlevel of truth

Dr. Meagan Louie




Aesthetics and Truth: Plato and ART Pappas (2015)


Plato’s ”Allegory of the Cave”, drawing by Markus Maurer

The objects we perceive areimitations/shadows of the ”true forms”

Art, as an imitation of imitations, iseven further removed from trutha

I.e., Plato’s answer: ’No.’

aPlato was talking about dramas/tragedies

Dr. Meagan Louie




Aesthetics and Truth: Aristotle and ART Shields (2015)


Aristotle also believed in a division between thematerial world and true forms...

...but he believed that elements in the material worldall contain some essence of the true form.

So what did he think about art?

Dr. Meagan Louie






...poetry is more philosophical and moremomentous than history. The poet speaks moreof the universal, while the historian speaks ofparticulars. It is universal that when certainthings turn out a certain way someone will in alllikelihood or of necessity act or speak in a certainway—which is what the poet, though attachingparticular names to the situation, strives for.(Poet. 1451a38–1451b10)

Dr. Meagan Louie






Poetry, at least, is not an ”imitation ofimitations” to Aristotle

It expresses universal truths andthemes about human nature

We can interpret all art in this way -i.e., as expressing universal truths andthemes

Dr. Meagan Louie






Aristotle’s answer is yes!

Art provide an abstraction from theparticulars of real life that allows us toglimpse true underlying forms

In this way, the aesthetic experience(as triggered by art) teaches usimportant things about ourselves

Dr. Meagan Louie




Aesthetics and Truth: Plato and BEAUTY Pappas (2015)

Q: Can BEAUTY provide insight into what’s true?

Plato had a different opinion regardingBEAUTY (Greek kalon)

In Phaedrus (250d–256b) and Symposium,Plato observes that beautiful things triggerreflection on the part of the observer

As reflection is a key in the philosophicalpursuit of discovering truth, beauty is good

Dr. Meagan Louie




Immanuel Kant’s Theory of Aesthetics

Q: Is this compatible with Kant’sview of the AESTHETICjudgement?

1 is subjective (a felt judgement, not an intellectual calculation)

2 is universal (...not in the eye of the beholder)

3 is DISINTERESTED (valueindependent of usefulness/benefitto perceiver)

4 Engages imagination and intellect (in addition to the senses)

Dr. Meagan Louie




Plato and Kant on Beauty and USE/PURPOSE

Question: Is Plato’s view of beauty as a trigger for philosophicalreflection incompatible with Kant’s view of the aesthetic judgementas crucially disinterested?

Plato: Beauty triggers philosophical reflection and therefore is good

Kant: Beauty judgements must be disinterested, i.e., something isbeautiful if we judge it so independent of any purpose/usefulness

→Kant is making a claim about what makes something beautiful→ Plato is making a claim about whether beauty is good/bad

Dr. Meagan Louie




Plato and Kant on Beauty and USE/PURPOSE

Question: Is Plato’s view of beauty as a trigger for philosophicalreflection incompatible with Kant’s view of the aesthetic judgementas crucially disinterested?

Plato: Beauty triggers philosophical reflection and therefore is good

Kant: Beauty judgements must be disinterested, i.e., something isbeautiful if we judge it so independent of any purpose/usefulness

→ Kant is making a claim about what makes something beautiful→ Plato is making a claim about whether beauty is good/bad

Dr. Meagan Louie



3.1 Plato on ART, MORALITY and POLITICS3.2 Aristotle on ART, MORALITY and POLITICS3.3 Class Discussion: Beauty/Art, Morality and Politics

Aesthetics and MORALITY: Plato and ART Pappas (2015)

Q: Can ART/AESTHETICS provide guidance towards. how an individual should behave?

Plato: Art (in the form of poeticnarrative) strongly influences youths

Appreciation for beauty will make youngpeople prefer noble deeds over ”ugly,vulgar” deeds

....but artistic depictions of dishonesty,greed, and viciousness might foster thesesorts of strong emotions and badbehaviour in young people

Dr. Meagan Louie




Aesthetics and POLITICS: Plato and ART Pappas (2015)

Q: Can ART/AESTHETICS provide guidance towards. how an individual should behave?

Plato also considered ”the beauty ofpoetic lines” to be deceptive

i.e., the beauty of poetic language canmask the truth/moral value of theunderlying content

Question: Do you think beauty is good orbad? Deceptive or truthful?

Dr. Meagan Louie




Aesthetics and POLITICS: Plato and ART Pappas (2015)

Q: Can ART/AESTHETICS provide insight regarding. how society should structured?

Because of these possible negativeinfluences...

... Plato considered it better to ban theperformances of Greek tragedies in hisideal republic

Dr. Meagan Louie




Aesthetics and POLITICS: Aristotle and ART Pappas (2015)

Q: Can ART/AESTHETICS provide insight regarding. how society should structured?

Aristotle, in contrast, believed thatdramatic depictions of dishonesty, greedand violence were a good thing

By expressing these emotions to theaudience, dramas allow these sort ofnegative emotions to be purged withoutacting upon them

Greek katharsis

Dr. Meagan Louie




Beauty/Art, Morality and Politics

Q: Can ART/AESTHETICS provide insight

. (i) into what exists and what’s true?

. (ii) how an individual should behave?

. (iii) regarding how society should structured?

What do you think?

Dr. Meagan Louie




Class Instagram Assignment@SWU-LCI-AFL (password: Aesthetics4Lyfe)

HW: Instagram Assignment: Option 1

1. Find an example of something beautiful that you think either

(i) expresses a universal truth(ii) motivates noble/moral behaviour

2. Post it to the class instagram, and explain in a comment

3. Remember to identify with your student code in the comment!

Dr. Meagan Louie




Class Instagram Assignment@SWU-LCI-AFL (password: Aesthetics4Lyfe)

HW: Instagram Assignment: Option 2

1. Find an example of something beautiful that you think either

(i) is deceptive(ii) motivates ignoble/immoral behaviour

2. Post it to the class instagram, and explain in a comment

3. Remember to identify with your student code in the comment!

Dr. Meagan Louie

Debates and ArgumentationReferences

A1 Aristotle’s Modes of PersuasionA2 the A-R-E Method of DebateA3 Example of A-R-E Method

Debates Prep Time

Next Week’s Class: 30-min Debates

1. Divide into teams of 8-10 people

2. Next class each team will be assigned

(i) One of Kant’s Criteria, and(ii) a side to argue: i.e., Affirmative or Negative

3. 15 minutes for each team to prepare

4. 3 speakers for each side (Opener, Rebuttal, Conclusion)

5. 5 minutes for each speaker

Dr. Meagan Louie



Aristotle’s Modes of PersuasionAssessing Information

Why should I believe something?. What persuaded me to believe this?

1 Pathos - An appeal to emotion (eg., envy, fear, hatred, pity, pride)

2 Ethos - An appeal to authority (eg., president, majority, doctors)

3 Logos - An appeal to reason

Dr. Meagan Louie



Q: How can we appeal to reason?

→ We can appeal to reason by providing a. Logical Argument

A logical argument consists of

1 Premises (premise 1, premise 2, ..., premise n)2 A Conclusion

Two Kinds of Arguments:

1 Deductive Argument:The premises entail the conclusion (i.e., provide conclusive proof)

2 Inductive Argument:The premises are evidence, but not conclusive proof

Dr. Meagan Louie




A Deductive Argument can be a:

1 Valid Argument:The premises entail the conclusion

2 Sound Argument:The premises entail the conclusion, and the premises are true.

Dr. Meagan Louie




→ We can appeal to reason by presenting a. Logical Argument

Premise 1

Premise 2

...

Premise n

Conclusion

We can present the argument in this order. (a bottom-up approach)

Advantage: You can avoid your audience’spreconceptions re: the truth of the conclusion

Disadvantage: You might lose your audience beforeyou get to the conclusion!

Dr. Meagan Louie




→ We can appeal to reason by presenting a. Logical Argument

Premise 1

Premise 2

...

Premise n

Conclusion

Or you could take a top-down approach. eg. the A-R-E Method

Assertion: Assertion/conclusion

Reasoning: Premises and deduction

Evidence: Justification of premises

Dr. Meagan Louie




The A-R-E Method

Assertion: Assertion/conclusion

Reasoning: Premises and deduction to conclusion. → establish the validity of your argument

Evidence: Justification of premises. → establish the soundness of your argument

Dr. Meagan Louie



Controversial Claim

Safe-Injection Sites are good for society.

Dr. Meagan Louie



Example of the A-R-E Method

Assertion: Safe-Injection Sites are good for society.

Reasoning:1 Safe-Injection Sites reduce the harm to drug-users2 Safe-Injection Sites facilitate useful research on drug use3 Safe-Injection Sites do not increase drug-use4 Safe-Injection Sites are cost-effective for society

Dr. Meagan Louie






Evidence: Marshall et al. 20111 The provision of clean needles prevents transmission of dangerous

diseases like HIV, Hep-C2 Fatal overdoses nearby Vancouver’s Insite reduced by 35%, compared

to 9% in other areas of Vancouver

Dr. Meagan Louie






Evidence: Wood et al. 20061 Studies on correlation of Insite and (i) public injection drug use, (ii)

publicly discarded syringes, (iii) HIV and Hep-C transmission, (iv)drug-related crime, (v) use of drug treatment services

2 Studies on correlations between types of drug-users and consistentInsite users (eg., demographics)

Dr. Meagan Louie






Evidence: Wood et al. 20061 Rate of relapse into injection drug use did not significantly

increase/decrease

2 Only 1/1066 people reported their first injection at Insite

Dr. Meagan Louie





Reasoning:1 Safe-Injection Sites reduce the harm to drug-users2 Safe-Injection Sites facilitate useful research on drug use3 Safe-Injection Sites do not increase drug-use4 Safe-Injection Sites are cost-effective for society (≥$6 mill.

saved)

Evidence: Andresen & Boyd 20101 Per year, ≈ 35 new HIV cases; 3 deaths, avoided due to Insite2 Medical care for a new HIV infection: $50 000-200 0003 Deaths cost the government/tax-payers in terms of lost productivity

and medical costs (≈ $1.37 million/ person)

Dr. Meagan Louie



Controversial Claim

Safe-Injection Sites are good for society.

Dr. Meagan Louie


References I

Andresen, Martin A & Neil Boyd. 2010. A cost-benefit andcost-effectiveness analysis of vancouver’s supervised injection facility.International Journal of Drug Policy 21(1). 70–76.

Kraut, Richard. 2015. Plato. In Edward N. Zalta (ed.), The stanfordencyclopedia of philosophy, Spring 2015 edn.

Marshall, Brandon DL, Michael Jay Milloy, Evan Wood, Julio SGMontaner & Thomas Kerr. 2011. Reduction in overdose mortality afterthe opening of north america’s first medically supervised safer injectingfacility: a retrospective population-based study. The Lancet377(9775). 1429–1437.

Pappas, Nickolas. 2015. Plato’s aesthetics. In Edward N. Zalta (ed.),The stanford encyclopedia of philosophy, Summer 2015 edn.

Shields, Christopher. 2015. Aristotle. In Edward N. Zalta (ed.), Thestanford encyclopedia of philosophy, Fall 2015 edn.

Dr. Meagan Louie


References II

Wood, Evan, Mark W Tyndall, Julio S Montaner & Thomas Kerr. 2006.Summary of findings from the evaluation of a pilot medicallysupervised safer injecting facility. Canadian Medical AssociationJournal 175(11). 1399–1404.

Dr. Meagan Louie

1 Introduction1.1 Other Branches of Philosophy1.2 Aesthetics as a Window into other Branches of Philosophy

2 Aesthetics and TRUTH2.1 Plato on ART and REPRESENTATION2.2 Aristotle on ART and REPRESENTATION2.3 Plato on BEAUTY and TRUTH

3 Aesthetics and MORALITY and POLITICS3.1 Plato on ART, MORALITY and POLITICS3.2 Aristotle on ART, MORALITY and POLITICS3.3 Class Discussion: Beauty/Art, Morality and Politics

AppendixDebates and ArgumentationA1 Aristotle's Modes of PersuasionA2 the A-R-E Method of DebateA3 Example of A-R-E Method

Documents

Aesthetics For Life - W5: Aesthetics and Philosophy I · 3.3 Class Discussion: Beauty/Art, Morality and Politics Aesthetics and MORALITY: Plato and ART Pappas (2015) Q:Can ART/AESTHETICS