Twelve Conceptions of Imagination

Author: L. Stevenson

Source: British Journal of Aesthetics, Volume 43, Number 3, July 2003 , pp. 238-259(22)

Buy & download fulltext article:

Price: $35.78 plus tax (Refund Policy)

Abstract:

(1) The ability to think of something not presently perceived, but spatio-temporally real. (2) The ability to think of whatever one acknowledges as possible in the spatio-temporal world. (3) The liability to think of something that the subject believes to be real, but which is not. (4) The ability to think of things that one conceives of as fictional. (5) The ability to entertain mental images. (6) The ability to think of anything at all. (7) The non-rational operations of the mind, that is, those explicable in terms of causes rather than reasons. (8) The ability to form perceptual beliefs about public objects in space and time. (9) The ability to sensuously appreciate works of art or objects of natural beauty without classifying them under concepts or thinking of them as useful. (10) The ability to create works of art that encourage such sensuous appreciation. (11) The ability to appreciate things that are expressive or revelatory of the meaning of human life. (12) The ability to create works of art that express something deep about the meaning of life.

Document Type: Regular paper

Affiliations: 1: School of Philosophy, University of St Andrews, Fife KY16 9AL, Scotland. Email: ls@st-andrews.ac.uk

Publication date: 2003-07-01

More about this publication?

Founded in 1960, The British Journal of Aesthetics is highly regarded as an international forum for debate in aesthetics and the philosophy of art. The Journal is published to promote the study, research, and discussion of the fine arts and related types of experience from a philosophical standpoint.