Aesthetic Value

Over the years, I have gradually developed a systematic theory of aesthetic value. This is most fully developed in my recent book.

The Aesthetic Value of the World (Oxford University Press, 2021) Amazon link

This book contains analyses of every major aesthetic value (beauty, sublimity, comedy, drama, tragedy) plus short entries on a bunch of others (the cute, the kitsch, the uncanny, the horrific, the erotic, the furious). There are two major ideas threaded through this book: a descriptive claim and an evaluative claim. The major descriptive claim is that aesthetic values are distal versions of practical values. A 'distal version' is a way in which we can get reward from things a distance- without having to practically own or consume the thing.  The idea is then that every practical value (e.g. power, knowledge, social attachment) has an accompanying distal aesthetic value (e.g. sublimity, beauty, aesthetic sympathy). This is, to my mind, a real advance in integrating aesthetic value with  the psychology of value as a whole in a way that makes sense from a naturalistic, evolutionary perspective. The evaluative claim, meanwhile, is that aesthetic values make the world worthwhile. That is, the entire world and everything in it can be positively aesthetically valued either individually or in combination with other things. This is, I believe, the only way in which we can have a plausibly positive vision of the universe as a whole. 

You can download a pre-publication excerpt from the book here (preface, introduction and chapter 7-  'In Defence of Aestheticicism')

Review by Shannon Brick for the British Journal of Aesthetics

"the argument of The Aesthetic Value of the World is set against a backdrop of a tradition that clearly divides values into distinct domains (i.e. the moral, aesthetic, and prudential). An important virtue of the book is that it challenges us to rethink the way we instinctively draw those distinctions, as well as our quickness to assume that only moral values are worth the attention of serious people. This is an important contribution, and Cochrane makes a convincing case (echoing everyday aestheticists such as Yuriko Saito) that aesthetic values animate more aspects of our life than one might immediately suspect. The final chapter’s discussion of inspiration and creativity, especially the description we are given of the aesthetic dimensions of philosophical theorizing, also struck me as deeply right."


Popularisations

I should note that I don't fully endorse the title given by the editor. I'd have much preferred 'When aesthetic value has priority'. I'm not a psychopath! Still, if the provocative title helps to get recognition for aesthetic value, then I'm ok with it. This article was given a commendation by the Australasian Association of Philosophy media prize. 

Other works in aesthetics and the philosophy of art (not including music & emotion)

This is a 1000 word summary of my theory of aesthetic value. I claim that value should be understood as an activity rather than a property, that aesthetic values are objectified final values, that they are distal versions of practical values, and that each one involves balancing a tension. This is for a symposium at the JAAC in which 11 philosophers outlined their positions on aesthetic value.

An interview about my work on aesthetics and the philosophy of art, covering issues such as the distinction between aesthetic value and beauty, and the role of aesthetic value in the good life, and the politics of art.

I present two necessary conditions for humour: 1) that the object be norm-violating 2) in a 'non-serious' manner (certain pragmatic responses are not called for). I then argue that these conditions imply that we cannot engage in significant learning on the basis of humour, because to do so would require taking the norm-violation seriously. So if satire aims to change peoples' minds while making them laugh, it will not be effective. My conditions for humour are further refined and declared sufficient for comic value in chapter 6 of my aesthetics book, but the argument about learning is found in more detail in this article.

I argue that engaging in narrative fictions play a positive role in the acquisition of character. It does this in three key respects: 1) Practicing the cognitive skills of organising episodes in our lives into character revealing narratives 2) providing a library of character models and 3) helping us to explore value conflicts. I respond to sceptical considerations about character and the cognitive value of fiction presented by Greg Currie and Peter Goldie.

This is a very short story illustrating the paradox of fiction and the paradox of tragedy.

Articles on the sublime:

The following articles all detail my theory of the sublime, which is that the negative aspect of the experience involves a sense of self-negation (either self-alienation, or fear of annihilation) while the positive aspect of the sublime is, most universally, due to imaginative recreation of qualities possessed by the sublime object that make us feel powerful. Chapter 3 of my aesthetics book is drawn from the Canadian Journal of Philosophy paper, with some additional refinements and references to more recent work in this area.

Book review

Giving Emotions Meaning (GEM) Talks

In 2019 I began an association with the GEM organisation,  which is a charity founded by Angé Weinrabe. Its mission is to mentor young people interested in the creative arts. I have given a number of talks for this group, and in 2022 I became a member of its board. 

One of the first collaborations with GEM was this talk I gave for the Biennale in Karachi on the value of art. I talk about how art plays a vital role in well-being, starting with some details from the life of British philosopher J.S. Mill.

Here is a seminar I gave on the nature and value of comedy in July 2020.

And here's another talk I gave for GEM on the connection between art and virtue. I argue that cultivating one's aesthetic values is a necessary component of virtue, and as a result, the way that artists specialise in articulating aesthetic virtues play an important role in society. Material from this seminar is drawn from the last chapter of my aesthetics book.