SOC461 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Immanuel Kant, Medieval Art, Mimesis
13 Dec 2016
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Soc 461 – September 6, 2016 : Lecture 1 and Kant
• Histoiall Geek idea of eaut that doiates. Thee is a etai udelig fo to atue,
and beauty can be found within that.
• Platos asi philosophial lai that pue Fos o Ideas ae oe fundamental and real, and
the material world we see is a degraded version of it.
• Miesis: Copig o epoduig eets o old dietl; iitatio, ii. Ties to e as
close to reality as possible.
• Greek ideas shaped western art for centureies: Medieval art often focused on
devotional/religious aspects.
• Implicit in this approach: Works of arts and other objects can have a definite effect on us
because of their own intrinsic qualities.
• 18th century philosophers start to question this, and focus on the problems of asthetics.
1. How we should respond to Art?
• Do these pitues sho soethig eautiful? Wh/h ot?
• What are you supposed to feel when looking at them, would everyone else share this feeling?
o Arguable, because how can one say that they weet
1a. Beauty and Happiness
• Beauty may be seen as something that pleases us in some basic sensuous way: it brings us
delight.
1b. Science of Perception
• 18th century philosophers move away from classical explanation of beauty as reflection of
underlying mathematics of nature, towards analysisng the effect beauty has on us when we
perceive it.
o What is it that produces this effect of joy on us?
. Kats Challege
• Immanuel Kant (german philosopher 1724-1804) applies his own thought to the question,
challenging Baumgarten.
o Critique of Pure Reason: Systematic study of our faculties of cognition.
o Critique of Practical Reason: How do we know the moral law?
o Critique of the Power of Judgement: How is the judgement of beauty different from the
judgements of truth or morality?
• What sort of relation do we have to works of art? What are we saying when we call something
eautiful?
1d. Defining beauty
• Agreeable vs Beautiful
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Document Summary
Soc 461 september 6, 2016 : lecture 1 and kant: histo(cid:396)i(cid:272)all(cid:455) g(cid:396)eek idea of (cid:862)(cid:271)eaut(cid:455)(cid:863) that do(cid:373)i(cid:374)ates. T(cid:396)ies to (cid:271)e as close to reality as possible: greek ideas shaped western art for centureies: medieval art often focused on devotional/religious aspects. Wh(cid:455)/(cid:449)h(cid:455) (cid:374)ot: what are you supposed to feel when looking at them, would everyone else share this feeling, arguable, because how can one say that they we(cid:396)e(cid:374)(cid:859)t. Beauty and happiness: beauty may be seen as something that pleases us in some basic sensuous way: it brings us delight. Linked to being universal, use is dependent on our personal means. This link between freedom and who we are will be better expressed on thurs. The impartial spectator: disinterestedness: detatching oneself from personal needs and appetites in judging art. Standing in front of art: aesthetic attitude: the stance of disinterested perception on the beautiful features of the work as such, separate from personal taste.
