John Dewey's Theory of Art
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In his theory of art, John Dewey emphasizes the importance of continuity within the art object. In this regard, Dewey seems to be insisting that organic unity is the essence of all aesthetic experiences. According to Dewey, a work of art is an experience in which meanings or values "are expressed, or shown, rather than stated or said" (Bernstein, 1966, p. 156). As such, art stimulates an experience which can be said to be "qualitative" in nature (Pepper, 1939, p. 375). Dewey considers art to be a very special kind of experience, or consummatory experience. A consummatory experience can be defined as one which is both fulfilling and satisfying. In his 1934 book Art as Experience, Dewey claims: "Such an experience is a whole and carries with it its own individualizing quality and self-sufficiency" (p. 35). Bernstein relates the consummatory experience to art by describing consummations as "the direct aesthetic enjoyment of immediate qualities" (1966, p. 151). Dewey claims that such experiences are "intrinsically worthwhile" ("Art as Experience," 1934, p. 37). Rockefeller takes this perspective a step further by stating: "Such consummatory experiences are what make life worthwhile" (1991, p. 396). In Dewey's aesthetic philosophy, all consummatory experiences are distinguished by their sense of continuity. In order for an experience to be qualitative in nature, it must not include any of the breaks and distractions which are characteristic of most day-to-day interac
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53). Not only do means leads to ends; in addition, ends lead to new means. Another way of phrasing this is to say that an end, or consummation, "can function as a means in some further experience" (p. 153). According to Dewey's philosophy of art, whenever "genuine means" coexist with their ends, the result is an aesthetic quality known as "organic unity" (Tiles, 1988, p. 192). The flowing of one function into the other is what gives a work of art its unique rhythm. As Tiles points out, this type of rhythm is especially evident in works of music or literature, which possess an "organic unity over time." Thus, "a piece of music, the plot of a story, must have a temporal structure, must be unified by a temporal quality, which gives its episodes more coherence than simply one thing following another" (p. 192). It may be noted that works of art from other fields often have a sense of unity over space, as well. For example, paintings show rhythm in the artists' use of such elements as texture, line and composition. Architectural design is another artform in which spatial continuity is an important factor.
Dewey's view on the continuity between means and ends can be extended to show that a continuity likewise exists between t
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Approximate Word count = 1838
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page)
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