Sean Murphy: "Aesthetic Vanity and the Individualizing Power of Art"

Sean Murphy, Southern Utah University: "Aesthetic Vanity and the Individualizing Power of Art"

Abstract
Sometimes we think an artwork is about us, or at least Carly Simon sings so: you’re so vain, you probably think this song is about you. Say we name the phenomenon Simon is singing about – the experience of thinking an artwork is about you – aesthetic vanity. Right away we have questions. Descriptively, we might ask: how are experiences of aesthetic vanity structured? In what sense of about could an artwork be ‘about’ me? Which parts of ‘me’ is the work supposed to be about? Where is my attention directed in such an experience: myself or the object? Normatively, we’re wondering: is this experience even valuable? If so, why? My aim here is to offer an illumination and defense of the phenomenon of aesthetic vanity that provisionally answers these questions. I will also say something about the neo-Romantic theory of aesthetic value lurking in the background. According to the neo-Romantic, aesthetic engagement is good because it is a special conduit of individualization; through engaging with artworks we ‘become who we are’ (in both a noetic and practical sense). And since the effects of this individualizing power of art often accompany occasions of aesthetic vanity, it turns out to be OK to be a little vain in your aesthetic life.