Beauty and the Brain: Biological Aspects of Aesthetics ed. by David Epstein, Barbara Herzberger, and Ingo Rentschler (review)

I. Book Reviews Book Review Panel: RudolJArnheim, Eva Belik,John Bowlt,John W. Gooper,ElmerDuncan, Robert S. Lansdan, Alan Ixe, Rimma I m a n ,JOJTurner Luke,John Mallinckrodt, David Parker, Cli@rd Pickover, Rosalinda Sartorti, David T W , Slepha Wilson. AESTHETICS AND THE GOOD LIFE by Marcia Muelder Eaton. Associated Univ. Presses, London, U.K., 1989. 209 pp. Trade, $34.50. ISBN:0-8386 3336-6. Reviewed by Elmer H. Duncan, Department o f Philosophy, Baylor Univprsity, Waco, TX 76798, U.S.A. In the “Preface”to her book, Marcia Eaton tells the reader what she means by ‘aesthetic’: ‘The aesthetic is characterized by delight taken in intrinsic features of objects or events that are traditionally considered worthy of sustained attention or reflection” (p. 9). One of the interesting features of Eaton’s work is that she does not insist that it be entirely new, as if no one had ever thought about such matters before. Thus, this word ‘delight’ is taken from the eighteenthcentury work of Edmund Burke. Her aesthetic theory is institutional like that of George Dickie, but with greater emphasis on the role of tradition. Finally, the emphasis on “intrinsic features of objects” seems to be related to the work of the late Monroe Beardsley. Much of the book is given over to the importance of tradition in aesthetics . In a chapter on “Measuring What Matters”, she writes, ‘The history of art and aesthetics cannot be separated from the history of society. Explanations of ‘art’and ‘aesthetic’ must reflect this social involvement” (p. 94). This is the sense in which art is institutional; art does not exist in a vacuum, or without a social context. But what does this mean in practice? Is itjust meant to refer to art galleries and museums? No. Eaton showswhy tradition is also important for what might be called ‘public’ art. There is a large statue in Minneapolis by Bruce Stillman. It has no name (“Untitled ”). But Eaton has learned “that Section Editor: Elizabeth Crumb the statue is in fact a Viking ship” (p. 125).And this information seems to produce favorable responses, whereas viewers were previously puzzled. Why? The answer seems to be that that type of ship is related to the tradition of the people of that area; Minnesota has a rich Scandinavian background, ‘Vikingships mean something to viewers in Minneapolis because of their traditions” (p. 125). In a chapter on “Applied Aesthetics ”,Eaton relates her views to such public matters as hydroelectric dams and their reservoirs. The question is often notjust what effect a new dam will have on the environment (e.g. will it destroy the nesting areas of certain species of birds?) but also how it will look. Eaton shows that governmental agencies in America and elsewhere are increasingly taking such matters into consideration. She tries to show that (and how) these decisions concerning public policy relating to aesthetics can be made with objective criteria. Many people think of art and the aesthetic as having relevance to those parts of their lives that are ‘off time’, i.e. those hours not given to work and not related to religious or our moral concerns. Moral decisions have to be made; aesthetic decisions do not. But Eaton takes a more ‘holistic’ view: “Thegood life is the kind of life led by a certain kind of person. It is what makes a rational person feel good” (p. 168).The ethical and the aesthetic must be more closely related than many of us have thought because they are both integral parts of the good life. In short, in this book, Marcia Eaton seeks to relate the aesthetic to all parts of the good life, because she sees such a life as a unity. Readers of Leonard0 may recall that Marcia Eaton’s Basic Issues in Aesthetics was reviewed in Vol. 22, No. 2 (1989) p. 269. BEAUTY AND THE BRAIN: BIOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF AESTHETICS David Epstein, Barbara Herzberger and Ingo Rentschler, eds. Birkhiiuser, Berlin, West Germany, 1989. 325 pp. Trade, SFr 68. ISBN: 3764319240. Reviewed by PeterErdi, Hungarian Academy oJSciences, CentralResearch Institutefor Physics, Group o f Biophysics, Hungaly. This book is the result of the cooperation of a group of...