Aesthetics Syllabus

PHL 254, AMT 254
Spring 2009
Ellen Grabiner
egrabiner@wheelock.edu

In this course we will be inhabiting and exploring the interstices: between art and philosophy, between sense and thought, between high and low culture, between the beautiful and the sublime, between the artist and the work of art, between the work of art and the audience. Mucking about in this space that has been traditionally understood as a boundary, through reading, looking, listening, doing and discussing, we will come to a deeper, wider, wiser understanding of the aesthetic experience.

Required readings:

  • Aesthetics, The Big Questions, by Caroline Korsmeyer
  • Art As Experience, by John Dewey
  • Art, by Yasmina Reza
  • But Is It Art? by Cynthia Freeland
  • The Creative Process: Reflections on Invention in the Arts and Sciencesedited by Brewster Ghiselin

    • and other assorted hand outs.

    Assignments
    You will be responsible for completing all the readings (on time!), posting on each reading on our class wiki before the start of the class in which the reading is due, and participating in
    class discussions. Your voice in class is critical to the success of this course!

    You will be expected to participate as well in our ‘extended classroom,’ using “WebCT,” discussions boards and class wiki.

    Grading
    Major assignments, 50 % of your grade, including but not limited to:

    Three papers (6-8 pages each)
    Final research project
    Class presentation

    Minor Assignments 15%

    Wiki posts
    Discussion board posts
    Miscellaneous assignments

    Attendance 25%
    Quizzes 10%

    Those other rules:
    Any assignment that is not completed will receive an “zero” for a grade. If you absolutely must miss a class, you are responsible for making up the material. This does not mean expecting a private lesson about what was covered. It does mean finding a student in the class who is willing to share notes and information with you, it does mean reviewing the class notes posted here or elsewhere, it does mean finding out if assignments, tests, readings were handed out and making sure you either get them on line or from me. You are responsible for all the material presented in class, in the readings and on the web, whether or not you are in attendance. The heart of this course is what happens in class. Yes, there are outside assignments and opportunities to participate in extending our classroom discussion outside of the classroom time. But what is truly important is the dialog, discussion,
    debate that occurs during class time.

    A Note on Plagiarism:
    Don’t. All the work you hand in must be your own. Your very own. If you cite other
    sources, and you certainly should, it gives credence to your assertions, and strengthens your arguments, use quotation marks if copying verbatim or just cite the source if you are paraphrasing. I will know it if you use other’s words and don’t give them credit. I will know it if you steal other’s work from the web. I will know it if you copy out of a book. Don’t do it.

    Class Calendar