Aesthetics
Code: 100277Credits: 6
| Degree programme | Type | Course |
|---|---|---|
| Philosophy | OB | 2 |
Contact lecturer
- Name :
- Marta Tafalla Gonzalez
- Email :
- marta.tafalla@uab.cat
Teaching staff
- Marta Tafalla Gonzalez
Group languages
You can consult this information at the end of the document.
Prerequisites
There are no special prerequirements.
Objectives
The course aims to introduce some of the main aesthetic theories, their concepts, and arguments, as well as to guide students in reading some of the foundational texts in the history of aesthetics. Students will be encouraged to analyze these theories and read these classical texts with a reflective and critical perspective, and to relate and compare different theories with one another. Additionally, the course will seek to enable students to use these theories as frameworks for reflecting on the aesthetic appreciation of works of art and environments.
Learning outcomes
- CM16 (Apply the philosophical understanding of aesthetic experience as a fundamental dimension of human existence, analysing how power relations influence the perception, production and valuation of artistic manifestations.) Apply the philosophical understanding of aesthetic experience as a fundamental dimension of human existence, analysing how power relations influence the perception, production and valuation of artistic manifestations.
- KM17 (Identify the historical transformations of the notion of art, work of art and aesthetic experience from antiquity to the contemporary age.) Identify the historical transformations of the notion of art, work of art and aesthetic experience from antiquity to the contemporary age.
- KM18 (Recognise the main concepts, theories and problems of aesthetics as a philosophical discipline, as well as its social and cultural scope of application.) Recognise the main concepts, theories and problems of aesthetics as a philosophical discipline, as well as its social and cultural scope of application.
- KM19 (Understand the relationships between aesthetics, sensitivity, judgment, form, representation and artistic creation in the analysis of the reference texts of the discipline) Understand the relationships between aesthetics, sensitivity, judgment, form, representation and artistic creation in the analysis of the reference texts of the discipline
- SM17 (Critically analyse philosophical texts on aesthetics, art, and sensory experience.) Critically analyse philosophical texts on aesthetics, art, and sensory experience.
- SM18 (Relate aesthetic theory to contemporary debates about culture, media, production, politics, and technology.) Relate aesthetic theory to contemporary debates about culture, media, production, politics, and technology.
- SM19 (Apply aesthetic categories to the analysis of works of art, cultural discourses, and visual or sound phenomena.) Apply aesthetic categories to the analysis of works of art, cultural discourses, and visual or sound phenomena.
Contents
1.Introduction. Basic concepts
2.Kant
Immanuel Kant, Crítica del Juicio, (1790), Tecnos, 2007.
3.Schopenhauer
Arthur Schopenhauer, El mundo como voluntad y representación, (1819), Trotta, 2009.
4.Hegel
G. W. F. Hegel, Lecciones sobre la estética, (1842), Akal, 2007.
5.The Frankfurt School
Walter Benjamin, La obra de arte en la era de su reproductibilidad técnica, (1936), Alianza, 2021.
Theodor W. Adorno y Max Horkheimer, Dialéctica de la Ilustración, (1944), Trotta, 2018.
6.Gadamer
Hans-Georg Gadamer, Verdad y método, (1960), Sígueme, 2017.
Learning activities and methodology
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class sessions in the classroom | 60 | 2.4 | CM16, KM17, KM18, KM19, SM17, SM18, SM19 |
| Individual or in group tutorials in the office hours of the lecturer, group video essay elaboration | 30 | 1.2 | CM16, KM17, KM18, KM19, SM17, SM18, SM19 |
| Individual and group readings | 50 | 2 | CM16, KM17, KM18, KM19, SM17, SM18, SM19 |
The course methodology will combine lecture style classes, where the fundamental ideas of the various theories will be presented, with dialogue and debate about the theories studied and the course readings. Students are expected to read the assigned materials and actively participate in class, ensuring that the learning process is active, participatory, and collaborative.
Assessment
Continuous assessment activities
| Title | Weight | Hours | ECTS | Learning outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Second exam | 33,3% | 3 | 0.12 | CM16, KM17, KM18, KM19, SM17, SM18, SM19 |
| Video essay in group | 33,3% | 4 | 0.16 | CM16, KM17, KM18, KM19, SM17, SM18, SM19 |
| First exam | 33,3% | 3 | 0.12 | CM16, KM17, KM18, KM19, SM17, SM18, SM19 |
CONTINUOUS ASSESSMENT
a) First exam at mid-semester (33% of the final grade)
b) Second exam at the end of the semester (33% of the final grade)
c) Group video essay (33% of the final grade)
The final grade for the course is the average of the three assessments. However, it is necessary to pass each of the three assessments to pass the course.
Exam dates will be announced during the first days of class.
Instructions for the group video essay will also be provided during the first days of class.
SINGLE ASSESSMENT
a) First exam on the content of the first half of the course (33% of the final grade)
b) Second exam on the content of the second half of the course (33% of the final grade)
c) Individual video essay (33% of the final grade)
The final grade for the course is the average of the three assessments. However, it is necessary to pass each of the three assessments to pass the course.
REVIEW
At the time of each assessment activity, the lecturer will inform (moodle) students of the procedure and date for reviewing grades.
RECOVERY FOR CONTINUOUS ASSESSMENT
Students who have failed one, two, or all three assessments may take a recovery to recover the failed assessment(s).
To be eligible for the retake, students must have taken at least two of the three assessments.
If a student has not taken any of the assessments, or has taken only one, they will be marked as "Not Evaluable".
To pass the course, all three assessments must be passed. The final grade will be the average of the three assessments.
RECOVERY FOR SINGLE ASSESSMENT
To be eligible for the recovery, it will be necessary to have submitted all three assessments.
Students who have failed one, two, or all three assessments may take the recovery to recover the assessment(s) they failed.
If a student has not taken any of the assessments, or has taken only one, they will be marked as "Not Evaluable".
All three assessments must be passed to pass the subject. The final grade will be the average of the three assessments.
EXCHANGE STUDENTS
Erasmus and exchange students who request to advance an exam must present a document from their home university justifying their request.
USE OF AI
This subject allows the use of AI technologies exclusively for support tasks such as bibliographic or content-based searches or translations.
The student must clearly (i) identify which parts have been generated using AI technology; (ii) specify the tools used; and (iii) include a critical reflection on how these have influenced the process and final outcome of the activity.
Lack of transparency regarding the use of AI in the assessed activity will be considered academic dishonesty; the corresponding grade may be lowered, or the work may even be awarded a zero. In cases of greater infringement, more serious action may be taken.
WARNING
In the event of a student committing any irregularity that may lead to a significant variation in the grade awarded to an assessment activity, the student will be given a zero for this activity, regardless of any disciplinary process that may take place. In the event of several irregularities in assessment activities of the same subject, the student will be given a zero as the final grade for this subject.
Bibliography
COURSE READINGS
Immanuel Kant, Crítica del Juicio, (1790), Tecnos, 2007.
Arthur Schopenhauer, El mundo como voluntad y representación, (1819), Trotta, 2009.
G. W. F. Hegel, Lecciones sobre la estética, (1842), Akal, 2007.
Walter Benjamin, La obra de arte en la era de su reproductibilidad técnica, (1936), Alianza, 2021.
Theodor W. Adorno y Max Horkheimer, Dialéctica de la Ilustración, (1944), Trotta, 2018.
Hans-Georg Gadamer, Verdad y método, (1960), Sígueme, 2017.
SECONDARY BIBLIOGRAPHY
Alcaraz, María José & Bertinetto, Alessandro (eds.), Las artes y la filosofía, UNAM, 2016.
Beruete, Santiago, Jardinosofía. Una historia filosófica de los jardines, Turner, 2016.
Bozal, Valeriano (ed.), Historia de las ideas estéticas y de las teorías artísticas contemporáneas, Visor, 1996.
Brady, Emily, Aesthetics of the Natural Environment, The University of Alabama Press, 2003.
Capdevila, Pol, Espectros del tiempo. Estética e historicidad en el arte contemporáneo, Gedisa, 2023.
Carroll, Noël, Philosophy of Art, Routledge, 1999.
Cooper, David E., A Philosophy of Gardens, Oxford University Press, 2006.
Davies, Stephen, The Philosophy of Art, Blackwell, 2006.
Davies, Stephen, The Artful Species, Oxford University Press, 2012.
Diaconu, Madalina, Aesthetics of Weather, Bloomsbury, 2024.
Dutton, Denis, El instinto del arte. Belleza, placer y evolución humana, (2009), Paidós, 2010.
Gaut, Berys & Lopes, Dominic McIver, (eds.), The Routledge Companion to Aesthetics, Routledge, 2005.
Gaut, Berys, Art, Emotion and Ethics, Oxford University Press, 2007.
Hepburn, Ronald, The Reach of the Aesthetic: Collected Essays on Art and Nature, Routledge, 2001.
John, Eileen & Lopes, Dominic McIver (eds.), Philosophy of Literature, Blackwell, 2006.
Marí, Antoni, L'home de geni, Edicions 62, 1984.
Nussbaum, Martha, Justicia poética, (1995), Andrés Bello, 1997.
Parsons, Glenn; Hettinger, Ned & Shapshay, Sandra (eds.), Routledge Handbook of Nature and Environmental Aesthetics, Routledge, 2025.
Pérez Carreño, Francisca (ed.), Estética, Tecnos, 2013.
Prum, Richard O., La evolución de la belleza, (2017), Ático de los libros, 2019.
Saito, Yuriko, Everyday Aesthetics, Oxford University Press, 2007.
Shiner, Larry, La invención del arte, (2003), Paidós, 2004.
Soto Calderón, Andrea, Imaginación material, Metales Pesados, 2022.
Tafalla, Marta, Ecoanimal. Una estética plurisensorial, ecologista y animalista, Plaza y Valdés, 2019.
Tolstói, Lev N., ¿Qué es el arte?, (1898), Eunsa, 2007.
Valverde, José María, Breve historia y antología de la estética, Ariel, 2011.
ON LINE RESOURCES
Herder Enciclopedia: https://encyclopaedia.herdereditorial.com/
Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: https://iep.utm.edu/
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: https://plato.stanford.edu/
Software
No especific software is needed.
Course groups and languages
The information provided is provisional until November 30. After this date, you will be able to consult the language of each group through this link. To access the information, you will need to enter the course CODE
| Type of teaching | Group | Language | Semester | Shift |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (TE) Theory | 1 | Spanish | second semester | morning-mixed |
| (PAUL) Classroom practices | 1 | Spanish | second semester | morning-mixed |