Pragmatic Theories Flashcards
Burke & Kant
Subject
A subject is a conscious self that perceives.
An object
An object is an unconscious thing that does not
perceive but is, rather, perceived by a subject.
What epistemological concern do both Burke and Kant raise regarding art?
Both Burke and Kant raide the epistemological response to art, which is subjective,
concerned with the mental experience of the
subject.
How is judgment acquired and what process lead to its development?
Judgment is gained through an increase in
understanding brought about by a long, close
study of the object of sensation.
What is the relationship between judgment and reason?
Judgment is a higher critical faculty that is closely
linked to reason
What role does imagination play in relation to sense perceptions?
Imagination takes the raw material offered by sense
perceptions and recombines it in a new way.
What components contribute to the formation of the faculty of taste?
The faculty of taste is the mental product of
imagination plus judgment.
What direction does imagination typically lean towards?
Imagination tends toward synthesis.
In what direction does judgment typically incline?
Judgment tends toward analysis
What role does sensibility, or imagination, play in taste according to Burke, and what does he ultimately prioritize as the true foundation of good taste?
Sensibility (i.e. imagination) is essential to taste, but
Burke finally gives preference to judgment as the
true foundation of good taste.
How do Romantics diverge from Burke’s preference?
Romantics will shift this preference, privileging
imagination over judgment, synthesis over
analysis.
For Burke, what types of terms are “sublime” and “beautiful” considered to be?
Sublime and beautiful are epistemological terms
for Burke
Beauty and sublimity are not qualities of the
object.
Beauty and sublimity are faculties of perception
that can be categorised.
How is the sublime defined in terms of its effect on human emotions?
The sublime is that which inspires in us feelings of
awe.
Astonishment
Astonishment is that moment in which all motion
is suspended and our minds are filled totally by
an object or thought
How is the sublime experienced?
The sublime is experienced not only through eye
and ear, but through all the senses.
How is the sublime associated with terror, despite the absence of actual danger, as compared to Aristotle’s concept of catharsis?
The sublime is linked to terror, yet no actual danger
must be present (cf. Aristotle’s catharsis).
Kant wrote
Critique of Judgment (1790), it explores the
nature of aesthetic
perception.
How does Kant characterize the judgment of the beautiful
For Kant, the judgment of the beautiful is purely
subjective.
Judgments of beauty are..
Judgments of beauty are not cognitive (logical,
rational) but aesthetic
How does Kant conceptualize art as a manifestation of human freedom rooted in rational agency?
Kant understands art as a practice of human freedom
deriving from our rational agency. The creative drive is an elemental, primordial human
need.
Cognitive judgments
presuppose
fixed ideas and work to establish
fixed concepts.
Aesthetic judgments
work through
our feelings and neither rest on any
concepts nor seek to generate any.
What is the basis of aesthetic judgment
Aesthetic judgment rests in a non-conceptual
awareness of a harmony between imagination and
understanding.
