Abstract

In this dissertation, I take on the problem of the definition of art by suggesting a change of focus in the project itself. Rather than look for a theory that gives us criteria for determining whether something is a work of art, we should look at what follows once we do decide to call something art. The reasons for this change of focus are as follows: In reviewing traditional theories of art and their associated problems, it seems evident that art status cannot be identified with the possession of any particular group of properties. Rather, it must be identified with the filling of a particular role. Thus, whether something is a work of art is not always determinate. Often it is a matter for decision, where the decision rests on the success with which a work can take on the role of art. An analysis of this role gives us a deeper understanding of the nature of art than any attempt at definition in terms of necessary and sufficient conditions. ;By comparing the category of art with the closely related categories of decoration and entertainment, I establish that the categories distinguish the different roles that we assign to their member objects and the different expectations we have of them. We expect works of art to serve as objects of interpretation, but we don't have the same expectations of decorative objects or of entertainment. ;By comparing the interpretation of art with the interpretation of speech, of behavior, etc., I show that the former can be characterized as an interpretation which treats the work as about the conventions, history, and traditions of the medium in question and of art in general, and that it treats the work as one whose role it is to provoke and sustain such interpretation. The success of an artwork thus rests on its success in filling this role. ;Finally, through an analysis of particular works, I show that this account is flexible enough to account for a variety of styles and to admit of new media. Nevertheless, it allows us to say that not everything can fruitfully and sensibly be called a work of art--e.g. so called "participatory art" lacks the suitable goals