For your final paper for Introduction to Philosophy you will use what you have learned
about aesthetics to illustrate your beliefs about a kind of medium. I would like you to
consider either option as your prompt. You may choose, but you can only choose one.
You do have some leeway in what exactly you talk about in order to reach the page count.
In either choice you must do the following:
1.Have a well thought out paper between 3-4 pages in length, this is a hard limit,
papers above and below this limit will receive reduced grades. Please try to keep it
concise, it shows mastery of the material.
2.Illustrate an understanding of aesthetic theory in general.
3.Illustrate an understanding in specific. The prompt you choose will supply you with a
short reading. You will show how this reading influences the medium you have
chosen.
4.Included enough quotes to support your argument. How many is enough? That is for
you to decide. The manner in which you cite must be either MLA, APA, or Chicago.
5.Refrain from using additional sources.
6.State, clearly, your view on the matter. You can agree with,
or disagree with, any of the sources you are allowed to use.
To summarize: make a claim about a certain kind of medium (painting, music,
architecture, etc), then illustrate an aesthetic theory about said claim (meaning you ought
to claim whether this is or is not art, or put forth a claim about beauty),
develop an argument as to why a reader should believe you.
Formatting:
Times New Roman (or other standardized font), size 12
Double Spaced
Title Page with Title of Paper, Name, Class and Semester (title page does not count
toward page count)
For other formatting questions please ask.
PROMPTS ON FOLLOWING PAGE
Prompts Prompt 1: Art as Experience
In reading this abridged version of John Dewey’s Art as Experience, I want you to
consider the interactive nature of art, and life in general. Particularly, you may want to
look at how something such as theater is interactive, or something such as being part of a
choir. You may discuss any medium you wish, but in order to provide you with some
guidance, you can consider two sub-prompts in particular: Does the theater require an
audience to be art? Are Video Games art? These are just suggestions; feel free to do a
different medium.
Prompt 2: Inspiration
In reading the Platonic dialogue called the Ion, you will see some claims about
inspiration, and reproduction. For this prompt I want you to consider the nature of art in
relation to our ability to allude and reference other works of art. In other words, does
something have to be ‘original’ to be an art object? What does ‘original’ mean? To
provide some guidance, consider these subprompts (again, you can use these or any other idea you may have): Do types of cultural
architecture, i.e. Greco-roman, Arabesque, Gothic, exist solely in their respective regions/
times? Can we have new forms of these art today? Or are they ‘mere’ representations, or
interpretations of actual art? Alternatively, consider music: are remixes, and mashups
‘music’ in the sense of being original art works? Why or Why not are they to be
considered original; does this dictate their position as legitimate forms of art?
