PHIL 212 01: PHILOSOPHY OF ART
M/W 3:00-4:22
Instructor
Darren Hudson Hick
www.typetoken.com
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Office: Coleman 67
Office Hours: M/W/F 1:00-2:00 or by appointment.
Course Description
This course aims to assist students in developing a thorough understanding of what it means to adopt a philosophical perspective on art and aesthetics, cultivating an appreciation of both philosophy and the arts, and improving the skills necessary for critically evaluating and developing arguments.
Required Texts
Murray, Penelope and T.S. Dorsch (trans). Classical Literary Criticism.
Penguin: 2001. (ISBN-10: 0140446516 / ISBN-13: 9780140446517)
Kant, Immanuel. Critique of Judgment. Werner S. Pluhar (trans).
Hackett Publishing: 1987. (ISBN-10: 0872200256 / ISBN-13: 9780872200258)
Hegel, G.W.F. Introductory Lectures on Aesthetics. Bernard Bosanquet (trans).
Penguin: 1994 (ISBN-10: 014043335X / ISBN-13: 9780140433357)
Hutcheson, Francis. An Inquiry into the Original of Our Ideas of Beauty and Virtue.
Liberty Fund: 2004 (ISBN-10: 0865974284 / ISBN-13: 9780865974289)
Bell, Clive. Art.
Dodo Press: 2007 (ISBN-10: 1406547522 / ISBN-13: 9781406547528)
Bender, John W. and H. Gene Blocker (eds). Contemporary Philosophy of Art: Readings in Analytic Aesthetics.
Prentice Hall: 1993 (ISBN-10: 0130180866 / ISBN-13: 9780130180865)
(Additional readings will be available in PDF format on my website, www.typetoken.com. These are indicated under the course schedule below as “[WEB]”.)
Course Requirements
Your final grade will depend on the percentage you earn of the total points possible in the class: A: 94-100; A-: 90-93; B+: 87-89; B: 84-86; B-: 80-83; C+: 77-79; C: 74-76; C-: 70-73; D+: 67-69; D: 64-66; D-: 60-63.
Papers
There are two papers assigned during the course of this term. The first paper will be worth 20% of your final grade and will be returned to you with comments. The second paper will be worth 25% of your grade, but will not be returned to you unless specifically requested by you.
· First paper assigned Wednesday, October 1, and due Monday, October 20.
· Second paper assigned Wednesday, November 19, and due Monday, December 8.
Assignments submitted late without explicit extensions or authorized excuses will receive a penalty of one letter grade (10%) per class since the due date. (If the paper is submitted late but before the following class, it will be considered one class late.)
Papers will not be accepted via e-mail or fax.
Exams
There will be two exams for this class, with the midterm held on Wednesday, October 8, and the final held during the December 11-18 exam period (specific time TBD). The midterm is worth 20% of your final grade; the final is worth 25%.
Participation
The final 10% of your grade is your participation grade. Participation includes doing the assigned readings before the class in which the reading shall be discussed, taking active part in class discussion, and putting serious effort into your papers. Participation also includes attendance. Not including the midterm exam, we meet 27 times this term, but for every class you miss without authorized excuse, your participation grade will be deducted 1 point (that is, 1% of your final grade, up to the 10% encompassed by the participation grade).
Special Accommodations
· Students with disabilities that require special class or exam accommodations must present a form from the university specifying the details as soon as possible.
· You will not be penalized for any absences due to religious observances. However, it is your responsibility to inform me in advance of any intended absences for religious observance as soon as possible so that we can make other arrangements. As well, it remains your responsibility to have read the material assigned for that day and to obtain any notes from one of your classmates for classes missed.
Classroom Courtesy
Please be courteous to your fellow students and avoid unnecessary disruptions. Arrive on time, leave on time, and turn off your cell phone during class. Note that if your cell phone rings during class, I will answer it. Laptops are permitted in class, but please do not abuse this privilege.
Academic Integrity and Irresponsibility
I take incidents of academic dishonesty very seriously. These include but are not restricted to cheating, fabrication, facilitating academic dishonesty, and plagiarism. Penalties pursuant to a board of review range from an “F” on the assignment in question to permanent dismissal from the university. If you have a concern about what constitutes plagiarism or fabrication prior to turning in an assignment, please see me, and I will be happy to help you.
Course Schedule
Date / ReadingsWed, Aug 27 / Introduction
Mon, Sep 1 / Plato: Ion
Wed, Sep 3 / Plato: Republic, Bk II-III
Mon, Sep 8 / Plato: Republic, Bk X
Wed, Sep 10 / Aristotle: Poetics, Introduction through Ch 18
Mon, Sep 15 / Aristotle: Poetics, Ch 19-26
Wed, Sep 17 / Immanuel Kant: Critique of Judgment, “Analytic of the Beautiful”
Mon, Sep 22 / Immanuel Kant: Critique of Judgment, “Analytic of the Sublime”
Wed, Sep 24 / Immanuel Kant: Critique of Judgment, “Deduction of Pure Aesthetic Judgments”
Mon, Sep 29 / Immanuel Kant: Critique of Judgment, “Dialectic of Aesthetic Judgment”
Wed, Oct 1 / G.W.F. Hegel: Introductory Lectures on Aesthetics, Ch I-III (Part I)
Mon, Oct 6 / G.W.F. Hegel: Introductory Lectures on Aesthetics, Ch III (Part II)-Ch V
Wed, Oct 8 / Mid-Term Examination
[Fall Break]
Date / ReadingsWed, Oct 15 / Francis Hutcheson: An Inquiry into the Original of Our Ideas of Beauty and Virtue, Preface and Treatise I (Sections I-IV)
Mon, Oct 20 / Francis Hutcheson: Treatise I (Sections V-VII)
Wed, Oct 22 / David Hume: “Of the Standards of Taste” [WEB]
Mon, Oct 27 / David Hume: “Of Tragedy” [WEB]
Wed, Oct 29 / Clive Bell: Art, “What is Art?”
Mon, Nov 3 / Clive Bell: Art, “Art and Life”
Wed, Nov 5 / Monroe C. Beardsley: “Regional Qualities” in CPA 239-243
Mon, Nov 10 / Frank N. Sibley: “Aesthetic Concepts” in CPA 243-259
Wed, Nov 12 / Guy Sircello: “Expressive Properties of Art” in CPA 268-282
Mon, Nov 17 / Kendall L. Walton: “Categories of Art” in CPA 282-299
Wed, Nov 19 / Richard Wollheim: “From Art and Its Objects” in CPA 309-317
Mon, Nov 24 / Joseph Margolis: “The Ontological Peculiarity of Works of Art” in CPA 317-321
[Thanksgiving Break]
Date / ReadingsMon, Dec 1 / Nicholas Wolterstorff: “Toward an Ontology of Art Works” in CPA 322-338
Wed, Dec 3 / Jerrold Levinson: “What a Musical Work Is” in CPA 338-354
Mon, Dec 8 / Final Exam Review
[Final Exam: Date TBD]
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