Date of Award
Fall 12-11-2012
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Philosophy
First Advisor
Dr. Jessica N. Berry
Second Advisor
Dr. Steve Jacobson
Third Advisor
Dr. Andrea Scarantino
Abstract
Within the past few decades the topic of musical meaning in the case of absolute music has received increasingly greater attention in the philosophical communities. One discussion is a debate between Constantijn Koopman and Stephen Davies, on the one side, and Peter Kivy, on the other. In this paper, I argue that many of the features of the musical encounter captured in terms of meaning by Koopman & Davies’ position are better addressed in terms of value. On Kivy’s suggestions, I contend we avoid use of the term ‘meaning’. To wit, I extend a conceptual framework for aesthetic value, advocated elsewhere by Thomas Kulka, to make the case that absolute music has the kinds of value that explain our tendency to ascribe ‘meaning’ to it, and that absolute music is valuable in multiple philosophically relevant ways, even if not meaningful in any.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.57709/3573941
Recommended Citation
Bittrich, Tyson J., "Extending Tomas Kulka's Aesthetic Dualism: Value, Not Meaning, in the Case of Absolute Music." Thesis, Georgia State University, 2012.
doi: https://doi.org/10.57709/3573941