Philosophy and the Arts

I propose to create a new subject on philosophy and the arts. Faculty from other sections, for example Literature and Music, will visit the class; the goal is to put different disciplines' perspectives on, for example, the constraints on interpreting literature, or the nature of the expression of emotion in music, in dialogue. The class will apply the philosophical ideas discussed to art seen in a museum visit, or heard in a musical performance. The subject will also aim to think through connections between art and technology, by asking how technology has changed how we appreciate art, and also whether a piece of technology like a computer can itself be a work of art.