Allen Carlson
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- September 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780823254491
- eISBN:
- 9780823261185
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Fordham University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5422/fordham/9780823254491.003.0002
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
Allen Carlson provides an historical backdrop for this volume by outlining ten pivotal stages in the development of Western environmental aesthetics, briefly describing some of the main contributions ...
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Allen Carlson provides an historical backdrop for this volume by outlining ten pivotal stages in the development of Western environmental aesthetics, briefly describing some of the main contributions to the field that have been made at each stage. The chapter begins with Ronald Hepburn’s seminal 1966 essay ‘Contemporary Aesthetics and the Neglect of Natural Beauty,’ and ends with what Carlson calls the ‘Coming of Age’ of environmental aesthetics, which is marked by the proliferation of new monographs, anthologies, reference volume entries, and introductory textbooks that have been published in the field since the turn of the century. He then adds a coda concerning environmental aesthetics beyond the West.Less
Allen Carlson provides an historical backdrop for this volume by outlining ten pivotal stages in the development of Western environmental aesthetics, briefly describing some of the main contributions to the field that have been made at each stage. The chapter begins with Ronald Hepburn’s seminal 1966 essay ‘Contemporary Aesthetics and the Neglect of Natural Beauty,’ and ends with what Carlson calls the ‘Coming of Age’ of environmental aesthetics, which is marked by the proliferation of new monographs, anthologies, reference volume entries, and introductory textbooks that have been published in the field since the turn of the century. He then adds a coda concerning environmental aesthetics beyond the West.
Martin Drenthen and Jozef Keulartz (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- September 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780823254491
- eISBN:
- 9780823261185
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Fordham University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5422/fordham/9780823254491.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
Environmental aesthetics today harbors a wide range of perspectives, and crosses several commonly recognized divides: between analytic and continental philosophy, Eastern and Western traditions, ...
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Environmental aesthetics today harbors a wide range of perspectives, and crosses several commonly recognized divides: between analytic and continental philosophy, Eastern and Western traditions, universalizing and historicizing approaches, and theoretical and practical concerns. This volume sets out to show how these perspectives can be brought into conversation with one another. The first part gives a clear survey of the development of the field, and discusses some important future directions for environmental aesthetics. It points to new topics, such as the inclusion of everyday artifacts, human activities, and social relations. The second part explains how widening the scope of environmental aesthetics demands a continual rethinking of the relationship between aesthetics and other fields. How does environmental aesthetics relate to ethics? Does aesthetic appreciation of the environmental entail an attitude of respect? And what is the relationship between the theory and practice? The third part is devoted to the relationship between aesthetics of nature and aesthetics of art. To what extend can art help inform our “environmental imagination”? Can art help “save the earth”? The final part illustrates the emergence of practical applications from theoretical studies, and focus on concrete case studies. It shows how Kant’s and Dewey’s aesthetic can be used to defend the beauty of wind farms. And shouldn’t we, besides learning to “think like a mountain” (Aldo Leopold) also learn “to think like a mall”. And finally, how can an aesthetic appreciation for wild animals be understood?Less
Environmental aesthetics today harbors a wide range of perspectives, and crosses several commonly recognized divides: between analytic and continental philosophy, Eastern and Western traditions, universalizing and historicizing approaches, and theoretical and practical concerns. This volume sets out to show how these perspectives can be brought into conversation with one another. The first part gives a clear survey of the development of the field, and discusses some important future directions for environmental aesthetics. It points to new topics, such as the inclusion of everyday artifacts, human activities, and social relations. The second part explains how widening the scope of environmental aesthetics demands a continual rethinking of the relationship between aesthetics and other fields. How does environmental aesthetics relate to ethics? Does aesthetic appreciation of the environmental entail an attitude of respect? And what is the relationship between the theory and practice? The third part is devoted to the relationship between aesthetics of nature and aesthetics of art. To what extend can art help inform our “environmental imagination”? Can art help “save the earth”? The final part illustrates the emergence of practical applications from theoretical studies, and focus on concrete case studies. It shows how Kant’s and Dewey’s aesthetic can be used to defend the beauty of wind farms. And shouldn’t we, besides learning to “think like a mountain” (Aldo Leopold) also learn “to think like a mall”. And finally, how can an aesthetic appreciation for wild animals be understood?
Ted Nannicelli
- Published in print:
- 2020
- Published Online:
- June 2020
- ISBN:
- 9780197507247
- eISBN:
- 9780197507278
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197507247.003.0006
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Aesthetics
This chapter argues that (1) in contrast to the art forms already discussed, the ethical criticism of which sometimes invites the perspectivist approach and sometimes demands the production-oriented ...
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This chapter argues that (1) in contrast to the art forms already discussed, the ethical criticism of which sometimes invites the perspectivist approach and sometimes demands the production-oriented approach, the proper ethical criticism of environmental art requires the production-oriented approach; (2) the production-oriented approach to the ethical criticism of environmental artworks lends support to the moderate moralist’s claim about the interaction of ethical and aesthetic value: the presences of ethical defects in environmental artworks sometimes diminishes their aesthetic value; (3) because environmental artworks appropriate part of the natural environment as an aspect of their identity, an aesthetic flaw in an environmental artwork necessarily also creates aesthetic disvalue in the natural environment—disvalue that exists in virtue of the creation of the artwork. Insofar as the diminishment of the aesthetic value of the natural environment is ethically wrong, the aesthetic flaws of an environmental artwork necessarily constitute ethical flaws.Less
This chapter argues that (1) in contrast to the art forms already discussed, the ethical criticism of which sometimes invites the perspectivist approach and sometimes demands the production-oriented approach, the proper ethical criticism of environmental art requires the production-oriented approach; (2) the production-oriented approach to the ethical criticism of environmental artworks lends support to the moderate moralist’s claim about the interaction of ethical and aesthetic value: the presences of ethical defects in environmental artworks sometimes diminishes their aesthetic value; (3) because environmental artworks appropriate part of the natural environment as an aspect of their identity, an aesthetic flaw in an environmental artwork necessarily also creates aesthetic disvalue in the natural environment—disvalue that exists in virtue of the creation of the artwork. Insofar as the diminishment of the aesthetic value of the natural environment is ethically wrong, the aesthetic flaws of an environmental artwork necessarily constitute ethical flaws.
Yrjö Sepänmaa
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- September 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780823254491
- eISBN:
- 9780823261185
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Fordham University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5422/fordham/9780823254491.003.0007
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
Yrjö Sepänmaa discusses the relationship between the theory and practice of environmental aesthetics. He suggests that the future lies in moving outside the academy through a new kind of professional ...
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Yrjö Sepänmaa discusses the relationship between the theory and practice of environmental aesthetics. He suggests that the future lies in moving outside the academy through a new kind of professional aesthetic activity and through engagement with the public. Environmental aestheticians should combine or complement their role as analysts with the role of guides, acting as experts in beauty in cooperation with researchers from other disciplines, practical workers, policymakers, and the wider public. The need for a close cooperation between various parties as a consequence of the transition from theoretical to applied environmental aesthetics poses intricate problems of communication across boundaries between different and sometimes divergent disciplines and audiences. As an important way to tackle these problems, Sepänmaa points to a series of seven international congresses on environmental aesthetics that took place in Finland from 1994 to 2009. This series has been a major force in the unification of the discipline, in crossing borders between the natural sciences and the humanities, in finding a common language for exchanging information and ideas across boundaries, and in linking activities of players from different fields.Less
Yrjö Sepänmaa discusses the relationship between the theory and practice of environmental aesthetics. He suggests that the future lies in moving outside the academy through a new kind of professional aesthetic activity and through engagement with the public. Environmental aestheticians should combine or complement their role as analysts with the role of guides, acting as experts in beauty in cooperation with researchers from other disciplines, practical workers, policymakers, and the wider public. The need for a close cooperation between various parties as a consequence of the transition from theoretical to applied environmental aesthetics poses intricate problems of communication across boundaries between different and sometimes divergent disciplines and audiences. As an important way to tackle these problems, Sepänmaa points to a series of seven international congresses on environmental aesthetics that took place in Finland from 1994 to 2009. This series has been a major force in the unification of the discipline, in crossing borders between the natural sciences and the humanities, in finding a common language for exchanging information and ideas across boundaries, and in linking activities of players from different fields.
Robert Stecker
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- May 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780198789956
- eISBN:
- 9780191876271
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780198789956.003.0007
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Aesthetics, Moral Philosophy
The central issue in environmental aesthetics is whether there are norms that constrain aesthetic judgments about nature. This chapter will first explain why the search for constraints on aesthetic ...
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The central issue in environmental aesthetics is whether there are norms that constrain aesthetic judgments about nature. This chapter will first explain why the search for constraints on aesthetic judgments about natural objects plays such a central role in environmental aesthetics. It will then try to figure out what kinds of norms might be invoked, and what principles or assumptions explain the choice of norms. The chapter considers two aspects of aesthetic judgment about which one might attempt to lay down some norms. One concerns the objects of aesthetic judgment. The other covers the background knowledge one needs to make appropriate or correct judgments. The chapter concludes by considering what role, if any, imagination and emotion play in such judgments.Less
The central issue in environmental aesthetics is whether there are norms that constrain aesthetic judgments about nature. This chapter will first explain why the search for constraints on aesthetic judgments about natural objects plays such a central role in environmental aesthetics. It will then try to figure out what kinds of norms might be invoked, and what principles or assumptions explain the choice of norms. The chapter considers two aspects of aesthetic judgment about which one might attempt to lay down some norms. One concerns the objects of aesthetic judgment. The other covers the background knowledge one needs to make appropriate or correct judgments. The chapter concludes by considering what role, if any, imagination and emotion play in such judgments.
Angela Calcaterra
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- September 2019
- ISBN:
- 9781469646947
- eISBN:
- 9781469646961
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/northcarolina/9781469646947.003.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, American Colonial Literature
The introduction argues for recognition of specific Native American aesthetic and literary cultures prior to European arrival and highlights their ongoing influence and significance during the ...
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The introduction argues for recognition of specific Native American aesthetic and literary cultures prior to European arrival and highlights their ongoing influence and significance during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. During a period of American literary development known for white appropriation of Native American content, Native resistance to Euro-American settler colonialism involved aesthetic practices such as narrative mapping, visual art, storytelling, figurative representation, and adornment. These practices contributed to both Native and non-Native literary production, despite Euro-American authors’ assertions that sophisticated artistic traditions were a European import to the North American continent. Bringing the concepts “literary,” “aesthetic” and “representation” to bear on analysis of cross-cultural encounter, the introduction posits new modes of understanding points of connection or distance between Native and non-Native aesthetic practice.Less
The introduction argues for recognition of specific Native American aesthetic and literary cultures prior to European arrival and highlights their ongoing influence and significance during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. During a period of American literary development known for white appropriation of Native American content, Native resistance to Euro-American settler colonialism involved aesthetic practices such as narrative mapping, visual art, storytelling, figurative representation, and adornment. These practices contributed to both Native and non-Native literary production, despite Euro-American authors’ assertions that sophisticated artistic traditions were a European import to the North American continent. Bringing the concepts “literary,” “aesthetic” and “representation” to bear on analysis of cross-cultural encounter, the introduction posits new modes of understanding points of connection or distance between Native and non-Native aesthetic practice.
J. Baird Callicott and James McRae (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- June 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780190456320
- eISBN:
- 9780190456351
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190456320.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, General
Comparative environmental philosophy is valuable in many ways. Perhaps it is most valuable because it reveals some of the foundational assumptions that run so deep in the poles of comparison that ...
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Comparative environmental philosophy is valuable in many ways. Perhaps it is most valuable because it reveals some of the foundational assumptions that run so deep in the poles of comparison that they might otherwise have gone unnoticed. These revelations may invite us to challenge those assumptions that have led to the kind of thinking responsible for much of the environmental degradation that we see today. Japanese Environmental Philosophy gathers papers focused on the environmental problems of the twenty-first century. Drawing from Japanese philosophical traditions they investigate our relationships with other humans, nonhuman animals, and the environment. The heart of the book consists of chapters written by fifteen top scholars from Japan, the United States, Europe, and Australia. The essays cover a broad range of topics drawn from various strains of Japanese thought—including Zen Buddhism, Shintoism, the Kyoto school, and Japanese philosophy of art and aesthetics—as well as from traditional Japanese culture and the contemporary science of planning for natural disasters. These articles demonstrate that Japanese scientific, philosophical, religious, and cultural traditions can provide meaningful insight to address the current global environmental crisis.Less
Comparative environmental philosophy is valuable in many ways. Perhaps it is most valuable because it reveals some of the foundational assumptions that run so deep in the poles of comparison that they might otherwise have gone unnoticed. These revelations may invite us to challenge those assumptions that have led to the kind of thinking responsible for much of the environmental degradation that we see today. Japanese Environmental Philosophy gathers papers focused on the environmental problems of the twenty-first century. Drawing from Japanese philosophical traditions they investigate our relationships with other humans, nonhuman animals, and the environment. The heart of the book consists of chapters written by fifteen top scholars from Japan, the United States, Europe, and Australia. The essays cover a broad range of topics drawn from various strains of Japanese thought—including Zen Buddhism, Shintoism, the Kyoto school, and Japanese philosophy of art and aesthetics—as well as from traditional Japanese culture and the contemporary science of planning for natural disasters. These articles demonstrate that Japanese scientific, philosophical, religious, and cultural traditions can provide meaningful insight to address the current global environmental crisis.
Robert Stecker
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- May 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780198789956
- eISBN:
- 9780191876271
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780198789956.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Aesthetics, Moral Philosophy
This book is about the universal human need to aesthetically experience the world around us. To this end, it examines three appreciative contexts where aesthetic value plays a central role: art, ...
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This book is about the universal human need to aesthetically experience the world around us. To this end, it examines three appreciative contexts where aesthetic value plays a central role: art, nature, and the everyday. The book concludes by asking: what is the place of the aesthetic in a good life? An equally important theme explores the way the aesthetic interacts with other values—broadly moral, cognitive, and functional ones. No important appreciative practice is completely centered on a single value and such practices can only be fully understood in terms of a plurality of intersecting values. Complementing the study of aesthetic appreciation are: (1) An analysis of the cognitive and ethical value of art; (2) an attempt to answer fundamental questions in environmental aesthetics, and an investigation of the interface between environmental ethics and aesthetics; and (3) an examination of the extent to which the aesthetic value of everyday artifacts derives from their basic practical functions. The book devotes special attention to art as an appreciative context because it is an especially rich arena where different values interact. Artistic value is complex and pluralistic, a value composed of other values. Aesthetic value is among these, but so are ethical, cognitive, and art-historical values.Less
This book is about the universal human need to aesthetically experience the world around us. To this end, it examines three appreciative contexts where aesthetic value plays a central role: art, nature, and the everyday. The book concludes by asking: what is the place of the aesthetic in a good life? An equally important theme explores the way the aesthetic interacts with other values—broadly moral, cognitive, and functional ones. No important appreciative practice is completely centered on a single value and such practices can only be fully understood in terms of a plurality of intersecting values. Complementing the study of aesthetic appreciation are: (1) An analysis of the cognitive and ethical value of art; (2) an attempt to answer fundamental questions in environmental aesthetics, and an investigation of the interface between environmental ethics and aesthetics; and (3) an examination of the extent to which the aesthetic value of everyday artifacts derives from their basic practical functions. The book devotes special attention to art as an appreciative context because it is an especially rich arena where different values interact. Artistic value is complex and pluralistic, a value composed of other values. Aesthetic value is among these, but so are ethical, cognitive, and art-historical values.
Christine L. Marran
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- September 2018
- ISBN:
- 9781517901585
- eISBN:
- 9781452958781
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of Minnesota Press
- DOI:
- 10.5749/minnesota/9781517901585.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, Criticism/Theory
In Ecology without Culture, Christine L. Marran introduces biotropes—material and semiotic figures that exist for human perception—to navigate how and why the material world has proven to be an ...
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In Ecology without Culture, Christine L. Marran introduces biotropes—material and semiotic figures that exist for human perception—to navigate how and why the material world has proven to be an effective medium for representing culture. A bold and timely reconsideration of ecocriticism, this book insists on decentering questions of culture to highlight the materiality of poetry, film, and prose fiction.Less
In Ecology without Culture, Christine L. Marran introduces biotropes—material and semiotic figures that exist for human perception—to navigate how and why the material world has proven to be an effective medium for representing culture. A bold and timely reconsideration of ecocriticism, this book insists on decentering questions of culture to highlight the materiality of poetry, film, and prose fiction.
Yamauchi Tomosaburō
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- June 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780190456320
- eISBN:
- 9780190456351
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190456320.003.0010
- Subject:
- Philosophy, General
The aesthetic system of Japanese philosopher KUKI Shūzō exposes the value systems at the heart of our current environmental crisis. Kuki’s anthropology and aesthetics stand in sharp contrast to the ...
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The aesthetic system of Japanese philosopher KUKI Shūzō exposes the value systems at the heart of our current environmental crisis. Kuki’s anthropology and aesthetics stand in sharp contrast to the Platonic metaphysics that forms the historical basis of Western value schemes. By focusing on becoming and nothingness rather than the permanence of the forms, Kuki develops a philosophy in which the love of nature is the fundamental ground of value. This forms the basis of an environmental aesthetic and ethic in which human flourishing is ultimately tied to the good of the environment.Less
The aesthetic system of Japanese philosopher KUKI Shūzō exposes the value systems at the heart of our current environmental crisis. Kuki’s anthropology and aesthetics stand in sharp contrast to the Platonic metaphysics that forms the historical basis of Western value schemes. By focusing on becoming and nothingness rather than the permanence of the forms, Kuki develops a philosophy in which the love of nature is the fundamental ground of value. This forms the basis of an environmental aesthetic and ethic in which human flourishing is ultimately tied to the good of the environment.
Yuriko Saitō
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- June 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780190456320
- eISBN:
- 9780190456351
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190456320.003.0009
- Subject:
- Philosophy, General
In Japan, as in the west, gardens represent an idealized form of nature in which human beings reshape the natural world according to specific aesthetic paradigms. Unlike Western formal gardens, which ...
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In Japan, as in the west, gardens represent an idealized form of nature in which human beings reshape the natural world according to specific aesthetic paradigms. Unlike Western formal gardens, which are characterized by symmetry and rigid order, Japanese gardens present a more “natural” appearance by articulating the native characteristics of the materials, such as rocks and plants. The philosophy of Zen Buddhism, as well as the time-honored garden design principle of “following the request” show how Japanese garden designers are inspired by—and possibly improve upon—nature in their art and how a respectful attitude toward nature is expressed aesthetically in Japanese gardens.Less
In Japan, as in the west, gardens represent an idealized form of nature in which human beings reshape the natural world according to specific aesthetic paradigms. Unlike Western formal gardens, which are characterized by symmetry and rigid order, Japanese gardens present a more “natural” appearance by articulating the native characteristics of the materials, such as rocks and plants. The philosophy of Zen Buddhism, as well as the time-honored garden design principle of “following the request” show how Japanese garden designers are inspired by—and possibly improve upon—nature in their art and how a respectful attitude toward nature is expressed aesthetically in Japanese gardens.