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Class 1: Introduction

Phil230-0401: Philosophy of the Arts

Darren Hudson Hick

Office: Skinner 1110AOffice Tel: (301) 405-4747Home Tel: (301) 439-4151E-mail: darrenhick@hotmail.com

Summer 2006, Session II: 07/17/06-08/06/06M/Tu/W/Th/F 1:00 – 3:40 pm Skinner 1112

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Class 1: Introduction

SyllabusCourse Requirements

• Regular class attendance and careful study of assigned readings. There will be a term paper (30%), a cumulative final exam (30%), and two short writing assignments (15% each). Class attendance and participation will make up the final 10%.

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Class 1: Introduction

Syllabus (cont’d)Grading and Late Assignments

• Your final grade will depend on the percentage you earn of the total points possible in the class:A+: 98-100; A: 94-97; 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.

• Assignments submitted late will receive a penalty of one letter grade (10%) per day late.

• Due to the compact schedule of the course, there will be no opportunities for extra-credit assignments.

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Class 1: Introduction

Syllabus (cont’d)Absences

• You need not e-mail me to let me know you will miss a class unless there is an assignment due or an exam on that day. In that case, you will need to provide a university-approved justification for your absence in order to be allowed to take a make-up exam or to hand in the assignment late.

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Class 1: Introduction

Syllabus (cont’d)Special Accommodations

• Students with disabilities that require special class or exam accommodations must present a form from Disabilities Services specifying their needs during the first week of classes.

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Class 1: Introduction

Syllabus (cont’d)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.

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Class 1: Introduction

Syllabus (cont’d)Class Schedule

Materials must be read before the day for which they are listed.

Writing assignments listed are due at the beginning of class.

Readings may be subject to change. Materials marked [JSTOR] can be accessed through

www.jstor.org using university computers, or via the research port on the university library website (www.lib.umd.edu).

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Class 1: Introduction

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Class 1: Introduction

Syllabus (cont’d)Class Schedule (cont’d)

Materials marked [Online Archives] can be accessed in the course reserves via the catalog on the university library website (www.lib.umd.edu).

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Class 1: Introduction

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Class 1: Introduction

Syllabus (cont’d)Class Schedule (cont’d)

Class 3: Aesthetic PropertiesClass 4: The Nature of Art

Class 2: Defining Art

Class 6: Interpreting ArtClass 7: Fiction

Class 5: High & Low Art

Class 9: LiteratureClass 10: Music

Class 8: Genres

Class 12: FilmClass 13: Dance

Class 11: Pictorial Art

Class 14: Theater

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Class 1: Introduction

Some Basic Concepts• “Aesthetics” vs. “Philosophy of Art”• Classification vs. Evaluation

- Art vs. Non-Art- Good Art vs. Bad Art

• Taste vs. Value

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Class 1: Introduction

Defining Art: Essentialist DefinitionsI. Mimeticism

• From the Greek: Imitation, Representation• Mimicry

- Likeness & Resemblance- Convention & Illusion

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Duccio di Buoninsegna , Maestà(1288-1300)

Class 1: Introduction

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Aquaman Cover(1963)

Class 1: Introduction

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Class 1: Introduction

Defining Art: Essentialist DefinitionsI. Mimeticism

• From the Greek: Imitation, Representation• Mimicry

- Likeness & Resemblance- Convention & Illusion- Trompe L’oeil

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Class 1: Introduction

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Class 1: Introduction

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Class 1: Introduction

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Class 1: Introduction

Defining Art: Essentialist DefinitionsI. Mimeticism

• From the Greek: Imitation, Representation• Mimicry

- Likeness & Resemblance- Convention & Illusion

- Photorealism- Trompe L’oeil

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Audrey Flack, Crayola(1972-3)

Class 1: Introduction

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Richard Estes, Park Row Looking Towards City Hall(1992)

Class 1: Introduction

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Class 1: Introduction

Defining Art: Essentialist DefinitionsI. Mimeticism

• From the Greek: Imitation, Representation• Mimicry

- Likeness & Resemblance- Convention & Illusion

- Photorealism- Trompe L’oeil

• Plato’s Republic• Problems

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Claude Monet, The Boat Studio(1876)

Class 1: Introduction

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Class 1: Introduction

Defining Art: Essentialist DefinitionsI. Mimeticism

• From the Greek: Imitation, Representation• Mimicry

- Likeness & Resemblance- Convention & Illusion

- Photorealism- Trompe L’oeil

• Plato’s Republic• Problems

- Direction of art changes- Counterintuitive

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Class 1: Introduction

Defining Art: Essentialist Definitions (cont’d)II. Expressionism

(i) Idealist Theory of Art• Beneditto Croce & R.G. Collingwood

- Collingwood: “Craft” vs. “Art”- Craft is physical; art is physical and mental- Art/Non-Art Distinction: What differentiates art is

the intention to express some inner state: if one is able to express oneself, one has produced art.

• Problems- Counterintuitive- No way to confirm if something is art or not.

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Class 1: Introduction

Defining Art: Essentialist Definitions (cont’d)II. Expressionism (cont’d)

(ii) Infection Theory of Art• Leo Tolstoy, What Is Art?

- Art is determined by communication- Communication is composed of two parts:

1. Expression (similar to Collingwood)2. Infection: What is expressed by the artist is

reproduced in, and understood by, the audience.• Problems

- Counterintuitive- No way to confirm if something is art or not.

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Class 1: Introduction

Marcel Duchamp, Fountain(1917)