Mideterm 1 (Terms) Flashcards
Subjective vs Objective
A property X is subjective = df X has the power to enact/establish/manifest some sensory experience like psychological attitudes, response, but all that an observer has to some phenomenon.
X is Objective = df X is not subjective
Lexical definition
A lexical definition is the one which is encountered in the dictionary/ everyday language used.
Philosophical definition
Philosophical definitions aim to capture/display the sense or nature of some property
Descriptive definition
A descriptive definition aimed to capture meaning as it already used in our language. Seeks to understand how everyone already uses and understand the word in our everyday communication. Describes the world as it is.
Prescriptive definition
Prescriptive definition aim to reform or recommend/precisfy new definition of a word based on certain criteria, or linguistic norm. Compared to what is already being used in everyday communication
Extensionally adequate
Extensionally adequate: Its definition in a philosophical sens (essense-sepcifying definition), must then capture everything in its domain and nothing else that it is trying to define. E.g. Triangle = dF 3-sided polygon
Essence definition
An essence capture definition, should be explanatory , and it shouldaim to capture the nature of its defendium. Must be univocal and non-disjunctive.
Univocity
There are certain terms or concepts who do not have a fixed meaning, rather depending on context and use(domains of discourse), its meaning could change. However, if a word/concept is UNIVOCAL, it does have a singular, unambigious meaning across different contexts, it does not change regardless of situation.
Intentionally adequate
It can adequately capture a definition or theory its intended meaning/essence/concept, but I may not capture everything in its domain, nor can the definition capture all its possibilities. E.g “Birds can fly”
Normative
The normatice refers to the perspective that deals with standards that are set, norms that we go by, it focus on how things ought to be, how we ought to behave, perform, represent based on some standard. We can evaluate. and be prescriptive
Actual Intentionalism
Essentially that the meaning of an artwork a by artist S is precisely the meaning S intended, as that intention is expressed in A., The meaning that the author intended, is the actual meaning of the artwork. This assigns meaning to works of art, how we assign meaning to words and objects we interact with in our day to day lives.
OTHER: the CORRECT interpretation is that which reveals not only the interpreeation but also identifies and reveals the intention expressed in A
Hypothetical Intetionalism
Identification of artwork lies within the audience, and what the audience would take the intention of the creator to be. What the author could have meant/intended. Audience constracts then solely on what is on the artwork itself.
Intentional fallacy
Beardsalet and Wimsatt : The creator is not the authorative figure on the meaning of an artwork, rather, their intention is meant to server as a helpful piece of extrernal evidence that helps us find the meaning in the piece.
Hermeneutics
The branch of knowledge that deals with interpretation; human understanding of what people say and do, and why. The interpretation of language whether written or spoken
New Criticism
- Once a work of art is published, it belongs to the public domain. 2)Once the artwork is in this domain, it is functionally and hermeneutically beyond the authority of the creator. 3) Thus the intention of the artists are then irrelevant to its interpretation. 4) Thus the artwork is isolated from its creator. 5) if 4 then NC, 6) so NC
Taste
Per Hume’s Definition: Taste like Beauty is a secondary quality, a quality that is not in artects/things of themselves, rather it is a sentiment in the mind of the observer, in the mind of the contemplator. Per Kant, he thinks because taste is a mtter of pleasure,displeasure, it involves subjective feelings. But also speaks of a possible universal property since they all tend to seek a type of aesthetic harmony. he says that taste can be trained? And cultivated? Through its forms?
Aesthetic Value
The quality or merit that something posses based on the ability to evoke certain aesthetic experiences, responses or judgement. And by aesthetics we mean the sesnsory. It is a normative property
Naive Realism
It holds that there are two plausible assumptions about perception. It perceives the world exactly as it is. “As it is”. We all start as this.
Universal vs Particulars
Universals:
Universals are general or abstract properties, qualities, or concepts that can be predicated of multiple individual objects or entities.
They are often considered to exist independently of the individual instances in which they are instantiated.
Examples of universals include qualities such as color (e.g., redness), shape (e.g., roundness), and concepts such as justice or beauty.
Philosophers have debated the ontological status of universals, with some proposing that they exist as abstract entities in their own right (Platonic realism), while others argue that they are merely mental constructs or linguistic conventions (nominalism).
Particulars:
Particulars refer to individual objects, entities, or instances that possess specific properties or qualities.
Unlike universals, which are general or abstract, particulars are concrete and exist as distinct entities in space and time.
Examples of particulars include individual objects such as a specific red apple, a particular round table, or a unique human being.
Particulars are often seen as the basic building blocks of reality, with universals being the qualities or properties that they instantiate
Autographic
X is an autographic type iff even the most exact copy, or duplication of X cannot be considered a genuine instance of the work X. Like a sculpture, water colors, drawings, etc.
Allographic
X is allographic art type, iff every exact duplicate of X also vounts as the same work. Like poems, plays, music, operas, dance .etc.
Types and Tokens
Types:
Types refer to general categories, concepts, or classes that represent a set of similar or related entities.
They are abstract and serve as generalizations or templates for grouping together similar objects, ideas, or phenomena.
Types are often defined by shared characteristics, properties, or features that distinguish them from other types.
Examples of types include categories such as “mammals,” “birds,” “vehicles,” “colors,” “languages,” or “philosophical theories.”
Tokens:
Tokens, on the other hand, refer to specific instances or occurrences of a type.
They are concrete and represent individual examples or manifestations of a particular type.
Tokens are unique and exist as distinct entities in space and time.
Examples of tokens include specific objects such as “this particular cat,” “that specific car,” “the book you’re holding,” or “the word ‘apple’ written on this page.”
In practice:
Instantiation: Tokens are said to instantiate or exemplify types, meaning that they embody the characteristics or properties associated with a particular type.
Generalization: Types serve as generalizations that encompass multiple tokens sharing similar characteristics or properties.
Particularization: Tokens represent the individual instances or occurrences that fall within a particular type.
DescriptiveVs Aesthetic Relativism
This merely observes and describes work of art through its diversity of aesthetic values without making evaluation on their values or validity or meaning. Unlike normative who takes all judgements as equally valid. Observant , cultural variation, individual vraiaiton, and historical variation all stand .
Descriptive: different societies/sub-cultures/ individuals have different attitudes
regarding (i) the moral permissibility of the same sorts of acts; or (ii) the beauty of various works of art.
Aesthetic: : When societies/sub-cultures/individuals differ in their aesthetic
judgements, their disagreements are not even in principle resolvable.
