|
1.6 Existence of Beauty: AestheticsVersion 1.2 June 2017                                  (Previous Version) These are the questions we ask in the introduction (Section 0.1.6 – paragraph 6): Is anything really beautiful? Can there be objective beauty? Or is beauty just in the eye of the beholder? What makes something beautiful? Is something beautiful more valuable than something that is ugly? What is art? Should we specially value indigenous art or art from other cultures? Is the post-modernist rubbish we see in art galleries really art, or is it just fashion? Is modern art really the gormless and greedy beguiling the gullible? The next big question is: Is beauty really real?  Or is beauty just a social construct of no real value? This Chapter is a general discussion of what might be called aesthetics, considering whether things like sunsets or sculptures can be innately beautiful, and what criteria we can use to distinguish between beauty and ugliness. The question really is whether beauty is a core value. Do we make choices to seek out beautiful things, people, environments, situations or experiences? Do we put in the effort? If we do then we really do value beauty: our choices reflect our values. There are probably no generally agreed but specific answers about what is beautiful. Many people who have no appreciation at all of high art (such as classical eastern or western music) still enjoy physical activities in natural environments, skiing, fishing, bushwalking or gardening, and a relaxing drink and meal at the end of the day. Many surfers feel that surfing is a kind of spiritual experience that brings them in touch with the world and themselves: it's a beautiful experience. We are not here discussing art, media and culture, which is addressed in Part 5. There we consider the application of core values (such as truth, diversity and perhaps beauty) rather than whether beauty is a core value. Nor are we in this chapter discussing natural spirituality, which can be distinguished from a sense of beauty and appreciation of beautiful things, and which we discuss eg in Chapter 6.6. We plan to consider the sources, nature and value of beauty under the following topic headings:
This is the current summary of our conclusions in this area: Beauty, art, music, literature and culture in general, arises from our shared human nature, our sense of wonder at the universe, our innate desires for self-expression and to communicate with others, shaped by our environment, our geography, families and histories; and we can debate endlessly about what is good or bad art. Â more (later)Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Statement 6
MnCom2a: Start comments detail, page '1_6.php', access page 'TRUE'. MnCom2b: Included db and common. MnCom2b: Comments relate to page '1_6'. Members can tell us (publicly) what they think of this page. How can we improve it? Enter your comments.
MnCom: End comments overall, page '1_6.php', access page 'TRUE'. MnFtr0: Start expansion, page '1_6.php', device 'Dtop', access page 'TRUE', Done expansion 'False'. * * * * * * *
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
We acknowledge the traditional owners and custodians of Country, throughout all colonised lands, and their connections to land, waters and community. We pay respect by giving voice to truth, values and social justice, acknowledging our shared history, and valuing the cultures of first nations peoples.
Copyright © 2008 - 2025 Trevor J Rogers, care of the address shown on this page. All rights reserved. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright Act, no part may be reproduced by any process without written permission from the copyright owner. Any approved reproduction is permitted only with full attribution of the source, referring to this site and this copyright notice. The moral right of the author is asserted.
Top