Smoky Mountain Bible Institute
(Est. 2009) Lesson #65
Philosophy: what is it, and why does it matter? More
importantly, as this is a Bible institute, why does it or even should it matter
to a Christian? Well, we took apart epistemology
last month, so let’s look at aesthetics this month. Aesthetics, you may remember, deals with beauty, art, enjoyment,
sensory-emotional values, perception, and matters of taste and sentiment. So,
the proverbial disagreement over the color of the church carpet falls under
this topic of discussion.
One might consider aesthetics to be a simple matter of
personal taste, however while beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, that
does not mean that there are not clear measurable scientific reasons why the
beholder beholds beauty. You only need to look at cars as an example; we each
have in our minds what a great car looks like, but that perception is
influenced by many things. First, there are certain shapes and forms that are
naturally pleasing to the human eye and brain, and there are certain colors
that evoke different emotional responses as well. Those who design cars learn
these things as part of their education, and through a relentless analysis of
what customers like, are always trying to design something new and fresh while
incorporating those trigger elements so that your impulse to purchase is firing
on all cylinders, so to speak. And after the design process is complete, the
marketing department goes into high gear to help you to covet what they have
designed. None of this is a big conspiracy; rather, it’s simple above-board
business practice in a free enterprise economy. We know that they are seeking
to manipulate our aesthetic sensibilities and we like them to compete for our
hard-earned money.
The word aesthetic is derived from the Greek word meaning
“sensitive” or “sentient”. At its root, the word means to perceive,
feel, or sense. The term "aesthetics" was first coined in German by Alexander
Baumgarten in 1735. This branch of philosophy dealing with the nature of art,
beauty, and taste, is more scientifically defined as the study of sensory or
sensori-emotional values, sometimes called judgments of sentiment and taste. More
broadly, scholars in the field define aesthetics as "critical reflection
on art, culture and nature."
More specifically, aesthetic theory has practical
implications, relating to any specific branch of the arts such as literature, film,
music, painting, theater, landscape, sculpture, and any number of broad or
narrow categories of art. Each of these areas of art theory have certain principles
of aesthetics underlying the analysis of any work of a particular artist or
artistic movement. These are agreed-upon principals upon which those who
critique in a given area base their analyses. Of course, over time these
principals can and do change, just like our taste in what a good car looks like
changes or why I think
the things we wore in the 1970s should never be worn by any later
generation.
Someone who works in this field might be called an esthetician, that is, a person who is
versed in aesthetics, and seeks to establish meaning and validity upon which to
base critical judgments concerning works of art, and the principles underlying
or justifying such judgments. However, the term tends to be more commonly used
to refer to a person trained to administer facials, or to advise customers
concerning makeup or the care of skin and hair.
You probably know more now than you ever wanted to
about aesthetics, but keep this in mind the next time you find a face or a
flower or a sunset particularly beautiful: your creator loves beauty, order,
and even symmetry, and he placed in each of us the ability to appreciate and
enjoy his beautiful creation. He also gave us different tastes and different
preferences, which can be helpful in the sense that we do not all want the same
thing. If we did, it might lead to fighting over who should have it. Because
God gives us so many various preferences, this is an area in which there is no
right or wrong, so it is more important that we get along than it is for
everyone to get their favorite carpet color. So enjoy every gift God gives you: your life,
trees, flowers, family, your spouse, music, food, drink, or whatever part of
his glorious creation you particularly enjoy. As you enjoy them, thank and
praise him for creating it and creating in you the ability to enjoy and
appreciate it. (Aesthetically speaking, that is.)
In
Christ,
Pastor Portier
