Aesthetic Reasons and the Demands They (Do Not) Make | Zendy

Daniel Whiting | Zendy

AI Assistant Blog Pricing

Home ZAIA Blog

Open Access

Aesthetic Reasons and the Demands They (Do Not) Make

Author(s) -

Daniel Whiting

Publication year - 2020

Publication title -

the philosophical quarterly

Language(s) - English

Resource type - Journals

SCImago Journal Rank - 1.095

H-Index - 45

eISSN - 1467-9213

pISSN - 0031-8094

DOI - 10.1093/pq/pqaa045

Subject(s) - corollary , aesthetics , feeling , aesthetic experience , psychology , philosophy , social psychology , mathematics , pure mathematics

What does the aesthetic ask of us? What claims do the aesthetic features of the objects and events in our environment make on us? My answer in this paper is: that depends. Aesthetic reasons can only justify feelings – they cannot demand them. A corollary of this is that there are no aesthetic obligations to feel, only permissions. However, I argue, aesthetic reasons can demand actions – they do not merely justify them. A corollary of this is that there are aesthetic obligations to act, not only permissions. So, I conclude, the aesthetic asks little of us as patients and much of as agents.

The content you want is available to Zendy users.

Already have an account? Click here to sign in.

Having issues? You can contact us here

Accelerating Research