Irene Martínez Marín: "On the Varieties of Aesthetic Autonomy"

Irene Martínez Marín, Uppsala University: "On the Varieties of Aesthetic Autonomy"

Abstract
What it means to be autonomous is somewhat ambiguous in the aesthetic domain. Aesthetic autonomy could refer to (i) experiencing first-hand a particular object, (ii) the ability to rationally support and report one’s aesthetic judgements to others, or (iii) the capacity to identify oneself with what one judges as aesthetically valuable. In this essay, I propose a way to disambiguate this elusive concept by distinguishing three different senses or varieties of autonomy in the aesthetic realm: experiential autonomy, competence-based autonomy and personal autonomy. This discussion will raise some important issues concerning the (non-)deliberate nature of aesthetic agency and the different stages involved in aesthetic appreciation.