Philosophy
One of the most difficult topics to explore and think about in philosophy has to do with questions of aesthetics. If we ignore boring and annoying platitudes like 'beauty is in the eye of the beholder' (and I swear I'll strangle the next time person who recites this tired cliché), the question of what beauty is turns out to be exceedingly difficult to explain/define. Personally, I've done my best to avoid pretending I have anything interesting to say about the subject...
Philosopher Denis Dutton, however, thinks that he has found a possible answer: the Darwinian mechanisms of natural and sexual selection can offer the promise of guiding us in the direction of a general theory of beauty: where it comes from, why we experience it the way we do, as well as what kinds of things we could predict to have aesthetic value. He spells out some of these ideas in the following animated TEDTalk presentation:
Man, these animations are getting better and better :)
- Is Beauty An Ethical Notion?
Beauty enhances life. A life lived surrounded by beauty is a better life than one not. Does this mean that beauty is a moral concept? Do we have an obligation to make the world more beautiful if we can? Do we have a moral duty to create beauty?...
- Richard Feynman - Ode To A Flower
A common misconception regarding disciplines that require abstract and rigorous thinking (math, philosophy, science, etc.) is that their cold and rational nature strips the world (and our experience of it) of its natural beauty and the awe it can inspire...
- The Richard Feynman Series - Beauty
Beauty is one of those tricky concepts to define because although most of us have an intuitive sense of instances of beauty, and can usually recognize it when we see it, we can't come up with an overarching theory about why all the things we consider...
- Miss Usa Contestants On Evolution
Let's be honest: beauty pageants are about how hot the contestants are. I won't pass judgment on whether this is morally acceptable or reprehensible, but since I once dated a beauty pageant contestant, I may be a bit biased anyway :) What I do...
- What Darwin Didn't Know
Darwin has become an icon of scientific virtue, not only because he sought naturalistic explanations for the biological phenomena around him, as well as the mechanisms through which nature, unaided by some supernatural force or agency, would gradually...
Philosophy
Denis Dutton - A Darwinian Theory of Beauty
One of the most difficult topics to explore and think about in philosophy has to do with questions of aesthetics. If we ignore boring and annoying platitudes like 'beauty is in the eye of the beholder' (and I swear I'll strangle the next time person who recites this tired cliché), the question of what beauty is turns out to be exceedingly difficult to explain/define. Personally, I've done my best to avoid pretending I have anything interesting to say about the subject...Philosopher Denis Dutton, however, thinks that he has found a possible answer: the Darwinian mechanisms of natural and sexual selection can offer the promise of guiding us in the direction of a general theory of beauty: where it comes from, why we experience it the way we do, as well as what kinds of things we could predict to have aesthetic value. He spells out some of these ideas in the following animated TEDTalk presentation:
Man, these animations are getting better and better :)
Although it sounds appealing in some respects, I can't be sure that Dutton's theory is any more than one of those 'just-so-stories' that one can conjure up to 'explain' some range of phenomena.
While I'm skeptical of it, I however, I do find it interesting and worth exploring further. I might just have to read his book...
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- Is Beauty An Ethical Notion?
Beauty enhances life. A life lived surrounded by beauty is a better life than one not. Does this mean that beauty is a moral concept? Do we have an obligation to make the world more beautiful if we can? Do we have a moral duty to create beauty?...
- Richard Feynman - Ode To A Flower
A common misconception regarding disciplines that require abstract and rigorous thinking (math, philosophy, science, etc.) is that their cold and rational nature strips the world (and our experience of it) of its natural beauty and the awe it can inspire...
- The Richard Feynman Series - Beauty
Beauty is one of those tricky concepts to define because although most of us have an intuitive sense of instances of beauty, and can usually recognize it when we see it, we can't come up with an overarching theory about why all the things we consider...
- Miss Usa Contestants On Evolution
Let's be honest: beauty pageants are about how hot the contestants are. I won't pass judgment on whether this is morally acceptable or reprehensible, but since I once dated a beauty pageant contestant, I may be a bit biased anyway :) What I do...
- What Darwin Didn't Know
Darwin has become an icon of scientific virtue, not only because he sought naturalistic explanations for the biological phenomena around him, as well as the mechanisms through which nature, unaided by some supernatural force or agency, would gradually...