| Abstract |
This dissertation focuses on the narrative arts and aims at a critical discussion of modern philosophical views in support of the cognitive value of art. To address the scope of this dissertation cognitive approaches are developed in opposition to the arguments expressed by Jerome Stolnitz on anti-cognitivism. The structure of this dissertation is as follows: The first chapter presents Stolnitz’s skepticism that leads to the proclamation of the cognitive insignificance of art. The second chapter moves on to introduce the counterarguments of cognitivism. More specifically, it attempts to answer whether there is a method of enhancing our knowledge in art and if the work of art confirms its statements. The main stance of this dissertation is that art contributes to knowledge through the activation and proper guidance of our imagination rather than by offering the final conclusions of a methodical study of the world. With regard to the absence of evidence, this dissertation focuses on recognized and accepted cognitive actions for which there is no term of affirmation – that is, mental experiments, illuminating the aspects of their cognitive function shared by the narrative art. The third and fourth chapters discuss the issue of the banality of artistic knowledge and explore the ways in which art can promote knowledge or understanding. After examining the different forms that the cognitive contribution of art can take – conceptual knowledge and the deepening of moral understanding (chapter 3) and emotional education and phenomenological knowledge (chapter 4) - this work concludes that narrative art forms have the ability to broaden our cognitive horizons by refining concepts, educating emotions, and enhancing the experiential understanding of human experience.
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Η γνωστική αξία των αφηγηματικών τεχνών
