Evolutionary Aesthetics

There are a set of theories around which suggest that our tendency to like or dislike certain entities and phenomena, a tendency formalised into the subject of 'aesthetics's, is grounded in our evolutionary history. The claim is that an ability to recognise those elements in the environment which conferred survival or reproductive advantage is accompanied by a felt (emotional) response such that the recognition of something positive, a food source or potential mate for example, would be accompanied by feelings of pleasure, providing the incentive to repeat this positive recognising. Conversely, the recognition of a negative stimulus such as a predator or something toxic would be accompanied by feelings of fear or disgust, encouraging avoidance behaviour. In humans, the claim goes, this basic evaluative sensory response is developed within complex cultures into the aesthetics of art, design, cuisine, fashion, cosmetic surgery, etc.

I am wondering if there is an additional evolutionarily-derived process at work alongside this aesthetics. It seems to me that whilst evolutionary aesthetics gives an account of why some things appear the way they do and why we feel the way we do about them, it says nothing about what processes lie behind the construction of those appearances. Given that our perception of the world is partial, and is highly constructed through the mechanisms of the sensorimotor system and the cognitive extensions of those systems, this partiality and construction must follow particular principles. Our ability to recognise this apple as attractively juicy is dependent upon our ability to interpret the buzzing cloud of atoms that is the apple tree into a coherent object called a 'tree'; to filter out those wavelengths of light beyond the visible spectrum; to bind some of those wavelengths together into 'colours', and attach those colours onto the 'objects' that we recognise as 'apples'. Presumably this process, which I am thinking of as 'poetic', has its own evolutionary history.

(Good reading list on evolutionary aesthetics at http://www.denisdutton.com/aesthetics_&_evolutionary_psychology.htm )

Category:

Education

Tags:

• history
• evolution
• aesthetics
• aesthetic
• Ramachandran
• Semir
• Zeki
• art
• attraction
• adaptation
• Dissanayake
• Denis
• Dutton

[itsmaxinthebox]

It might have taken a long time, but I think it was rather engaging and explained well. Great video, now I'm off to read the article you linked.

[conferencereport]

Many thanks

[YouknowItsLP]

I am still in awe from your thoughts and the way you describe them. You are a quite intriguing fellow, but defiantly a intellectual none the less.

[RichardRoy2]

I think this evolutionary process is something that developes. our estimates are formed from our experiences. I think we see the spectra that we do because it proved to be adequate to our survival. Our need to extend our capability beyond the "visible" spectrum came with our cognitive developement, it would seem. We seem to have adapted by finding ways to extend our sensory range; One could say nature fell short with our vision, or, nature offered the brain as an expansive tool. Interesting.

[hallcyon]

Yet another great video, am featuring it.

PS - Fix the link, its the ) at the end,