Aesthetic cognitivism is a methodology in the
philosophy of art
Aesthetics, or esthetics, is a branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of beauty and taste, as well as the philosophy of art (its own area of philosophy that comes out of aesthetics). It examines aesthetic values, often expressed th ...
, particularly audience responses to art, that relies on research in
cognitive psychology. Although the term is used more in humanistic disciplines than scientific ones, the methodology is inherently interdisciplinary due to its reliance on both humanistic and scientific research.
Overview
Cognitivism is a departure from methodologies that have dominated studies of art in the past, particularly in
literary theory and
film theory, which have not employed scientific research. In some cases, particularly since the rise in the 1970s of psychoanalytic, ideological, semiotic, and Marxist approaches to theory in humanities research in Western academia, cognitivism has been explicitly rejected due to its reliance on science, which some scholars in those schools believe offers false claims to truth and objectivity.
Within
aesthetic research, cognitivism has been most successful in literary and film studies (in the forms of cognitive literary theory (as proposed by Mary Thomas Crane and Alan Richardson) and cognitive film theory (as proposed by
Noël Carroll
Noël Carroll (born 1947) is an American philosopher considered to be one of the leading figures in contemporary philosophy of art. Although Carroll is best known for his work in the philosophy of film (he is a proponent of cognitive film theo ...
) respectively, where it generally aims to explain audience comprehension, emotional elicitation, and aesthetic preference. Although some cognitivists, such as Torben Grodal, also employ ideas from evolutionary psychology in their work, there is no necessary connection between these approaches, and many cognitivists do not agree with conclusions made by evolutionary psychologists.
Cognitivism is considered to have been introduced to film studies by
David Bordwell's 1985 book ''Narration in the Fiction Film''. Cognitive film studies is now prominent enough in film studies to be included in textbooks that survey film theory.
[Stam, R. (2000). Film Theory: An Introduction. Wiley-Blackwell.]
Cognitivism is considered a naturalistic discipline in that it discusses concepts it believes are ultimately grounded in observable evidence.
Prominent cognitivists include
Murray Smith, Carl Plantinga, Patrick Colm Hogan, and Joseph Anderson.
See also
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Cognitive neuroscience of music The neuroscience of music is the scientific study of brain-based mechanisms involved in the cognitive processes underlying music. These behaviours include music listening, performing, composing, reading, writing, and ancillary activities. It also i ...
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Cognitive semiotics
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Darwinian literary studies
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Neuroesthetics
References
{{Filmstudies
Cognitive psychology
Film theory
Literary theory