Abstract
This chapter introduces the main themes of the text—aesthetics, the body, everyday and dress. The Aesthetics literature has been evolving for over three hundred years but overall the general assessment is that it is disappointing and often confusing. The literature seemingly lacks clarity and bases too many of its assumptions on normative and theoretical issues and almost zero empirically. Accordingly, the result is that it has become largely marginalised set of inwardly focused epistemological arguments. This chapter argues that the future for our understanding of aesthetics should appreciate that it is an everyday term, and one that demands to be understood. Not least, aesthetics needs to be accessible to all, regardless of background, skills, religion or political persuasion. Accordingly, this chapter calls for a body-centric approach to appreciating aesthetics; one that employs dress as its exemplar rather than continue to rely on fine art.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Audience Knowledge Digest (2006) Why people visit museums and galleries, and what can be done to attract them. Morris Hargreaves McIntyre
Barthes R (1967) Rhetoric of the image “Rhétorique de l’image,” Communications 4
Budd M (2008) Aesthetics Essays. Oxford University Press
Cazeaux C (2011) The continental aesthetics reader Routledge, Abingdon (Expanded, 2nd edn)
Crowther P (2015) The poetry of ‘Flesh’ or the Reality of Perception? Merleau-Ponty’s fundamental error. Int J Philos Stud 23(2):255–278
Cunningham M, Barbee A, Pike C (1990) What do women want? Facialmetric assessment of multiple motives in the perception of male facial physical attractiveness. J Pers Soc Psychol 59(1):61–72
Damasio A (1999) The feeling of what happens: body and emotion in the making of consciousness. Harcourt Brace, New York
Descartes R (1641) Meditations on First Philosophy, reprinted 1982 with Selections from the Objections and Replies: A Latin–English Edition (ed and trans) with Textual and Philosophical Introductions by John Cottingham
Fodor JA (1968) The appeal to tacit knowledge in psychological explanations. In: Fodor JA (ed) Representations. Harvester Press, Brighton
Goffman E (1959) The presentation of self in everyday life. Anchor Books, USA
Goodman N (1968) ‘Languages of Art: An Approach to a Theory of Symbols’. Indianapolis: The Bobbs-Merrill Company
Kant I (1952) The Critique of Judgement, (trans: Meredith J. C.). Oxford: Clarendon Press
Lipovetsky G (1987) The empire of fashion: dressing modern democracy (trans: Porter C). Princeton University Press, Princeton
Merleau-Ponty M (1962) Phenomenology of perception (trans: Smith C). The Humanities Press, New York
Simmel G (1904) ‘Fashion’ reprinted May 1957. Am J Sociol 62(6):541–558
Sheets-Johnstone M (1999) The primacy of movement. John Benjamins Publishing
Shusterman R (2006) The aesthetic. Theor Cult Society 23:237–252
Turner B (1984) The body and society: explorations in social theory. Sage, New York
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
King, I.W. (2017). Introduction. In: The Aesthetics of Dress. SpringerBriefs in Philosophy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-54322-2_1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-54322-2_1
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-54321-5
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-54322-2
eBook Packages: Religion and PhilosophyPhilosophy and Religion (R0)