Module description
This module introduces and examines a number of the key thinkers and the central debates within Aesthetics and the Philosophy of Art.
The first half of the course looks in detail at four influential, historical analyses of art - by Hume, Kant, Hegel, and Heidegger. Central questions addressed include the nature of beauty, whether all artistic preferences are equally valid, the relationship between art and art theory, and the role of artworks in enshrining, sustaining, or undermining, social institutions.
The second half of the course focuses on contemporary treatments of some of the core questions in aesthetics. The main topics considered include: Can a work of art be immoral? If so, would it be bad art?; Can I make something a work of art simply by saying so?; How do pictures represent, and to what degree is pictorial representation conventional?; Can pornography be art?; What, if anything, is wrong with kitsch? Does a work of art have a single ‘correct’ meaning? If so, what determines it?
Assessment details
Summative assessment: 1 x 3,500-word essay (100%)
Formative assessment: 1 x 2,000-3,000 word essay
Teaching pattern
One one-hour weekly lecture and one one-hour weekly seminar over ten weeks.