Module Directory

This module is dedicated to the theoretical reflection on aesthetic practices and objects and their history (from artworks to the aesthetic strategies of protest movements). It will shed light on what it means to relate aesthetically to one's life, social world, or art. The module examines why the aesthetic plays a central role in continental thought from Kant and Hegel to Adorno and Rancière.

The module is trans-disciplinary in two senses: firstly, it focuses on theoretical approaches and phenomena that are (or could become) the object of philosophy as well art history (broadly construed) ; secondly, it draws on both disciplines to develop an adequate understanding of aesthetic phenomena. The content of the module changes from year to year. It may, for instance, be organised around a particular theme or themes.

The aims of this module are:

• To introduce students to key themes in philosophy and aesthetics.


• To be able to identify and critically reflect on the philosophical and political issues that are at stake in different accounts of the aesthetic.


• To be able to identify and critically reflect on the aesthetic dimensions of socio-political life and artistic practices.

By the end of this module the student will be expected to be able to:

1. Summarise in their own words and critically assess the principal theories and aesthetic perspectives examined in this course.


2. Compare and evaluate conflicting accounts of the aesthetics.


3. Offer detailed philosophical analysis and critique of journal articles published in the field.


4. Demonstrate an understanding of the relation between aesthetics and political life.
   
   

Skills for your Professional Life (Transferable Skills)

By the end of the module, students should also have acquired a set of transferable skills, and in particular be able to:

1. Define the task in which they are engaged and exclude what is irrelevant.


2. Seek and organise the most relevant discussions and sources of information.


3. Process a large volume of diverse and sometimes conflicting arguments.


4. Compare and evaluate different arguments and assess the limitations of their own position or procedure.


5. Write and present verbally a succinct and precise account of positions, arguments, and their presuppositions and implications.


6. Be sensitive to the positions of others and communicate their own views in ways that are accessible to them.


7. Think 'laterally' and creatively - see interesting connections and possibilities and present these clearly rather than as vague hunches.


8. Maintain intellectual flexibility and revise their own position if shown wrong.


9. Think critically and constructively.

This module will be delivered via:

• One 2-hour seminar per week.
• One Reading Week with no seminars.

Discussion will be encouraged throughout.