Aesthetic Disinterestedness Revisited
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Thomas Hilgers
Abstract
In this article, I revisit the account of disinterestedness that I introduced and defended in my book Aesthetic Disinterestedness: Art, Experience, and the Self. After briefly spelling out some key features of this account, I address several objections to it that recently have been raised by commentators on my book. These objections force me to spell out further (a) the relationship between the world that an artwork presents and the world that its recipients occupy, (b) the specific nature of an artwork’s meta-perspective, and (c) the moral dimension of disinterestedness.
Abstract
In this article, I revisit the account of disinterestedness that I introduced and defended in my book Aesthetic Disinterestedness: Art, Experience, and the Self. After briefly spelling out some key features of this account, I address several objections to it that recently have been raised by commentators on my book. These objections force me to spell out further (a) the relationship between the world that an artwork presents and the world that its recipients occupy, (b) the specific nature of an artwork’s meta-perspective, and (c) the moral dimension of disinterestedness.
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Acknowledgments V
- Table of Contents VII
- Introduction 1
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Part I Disinterestedness in Kant
- Disinterestedness by Any Other Name: Kant and Mendelssohn 11
- What Is It Like to Feel Beauty? The Complex Meaning of Kant’s Thesis of Disinterestedness 31
- Disinterestedness: Analysis and Partial Defense 59
- Disinterestedness and Its Role in Kant’s Aesthetics 87
- Making Sense: Disinterestedness and Control 105
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Part II Disinterestedness With and Beyond Kant
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(a) Disinterest Advocates
- The Myth of the Absent Self: Disinterest, the Self, and Evaluative Self-Consciousness 135
- Aesthetic Disinterestedness Revisited 167
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(b) Something in Between
- The Playful Negotiation of Interests: Kant in Conversation with Fried and Winnicott 183
- Human Beauty, Attraction, and Disinterested Pleasure 211
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(c) Disinterest Critics
- Pleasure, Desire, and Beauty 233
- Beyond Hedonism about Aesthetic Value 257
- Author Index 275
- Subject Index 279
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Acknowledgments V
- Table of Contents VII
- Introduction 1
-
Part I Disinterestedness in Kant
- Disinterestedness by Any Other Name: Kant and Mendelssohn 11
- What Is It Like to Feel Beauty? The Complex Meaning of Kant’s Thesis of Disinterestedness 31
- Disinterestedness: Analysis and Partial Defense 59
- Disinterestedness and Its Role in Kant’s Aesthetics 87
- Making Sense: Disinterestedness and Control 105
-
Part II Disinterestedness With and Beyond Kant
-
(a) Disinterest Advocates
- The Myth of the Absent Self: Disinterest, the Self, and Evaluative Self-Consciousness 135
- Aesthetic Disinterestedness Revisited 167
-
(b) Something in Between
- The Playful Negotiation of Interests: Kant in Conversation with Fried and Winnicott 183
- Human Beauty, Attraction, and Disinterested Pleasure 211
-
(c) Disinterest Critics
- Pleasure, Desire, and Beauty 233
- Beyond Hedonism about Aesthetic Value 257
- Author Index 275
- Subject Index 279
