C.I. Lewis and the outlines of aesthetic experience
Document Type
Journal article
Source Publication
British Journal of Aesthetics
Publication Date
2004
Volume
44
Issue
4
First Page
378
Last Page
392
Publisher
Oxford University Press
Abstract
The current essay describes aspects of C. I. Lewis’s rarely cited contributions to aesthetics, focusing primarily on the conception of aesthetic experience developed in An Analysis of Knowledge and Valuation. Lewis characterized aesthetic value as a proper subset of inherent value, which he understood as the power to occasion intrinsically valued experiences. He distinguished aesthetic experiences from experiences more generally in terms of eight conditions. Roughly, he proposed that aesthetic experiences have a highly positive, preponderantly intrinsic value realized through contemplation, where the experience is indicative of the object’s reliable and characteristic inherent value. Objections to this account motivate a revised, neo-Lewisian proposal.
DOI
10.1093/bjaesthetics/44.4.378
Print ISSN
00070904
E-ISSN
14682842
Publisher Statement
Copyright © British Society of Aesthetics 2004
Access to external full text or publisher's version may require subscription.
Full-text Version
Publisher’s Version
Language
English
Recommended Citation
Livingston, P. (2004). C.I. Lewis and the outlines of aesthetic experience. British Journal of Aesthetics, 44(4), 378-392. doi: 10.1093/bjaesthetics/44.4.378