Abstract

This work examines the interdependence of embodied epistemology and aesthetic participation. A person's capacity to participate in an aesthetic event is dependent upon his ability to understand and interpret; therefore, an exploration of our understanding framework is essential for comprehending this interpretative process. Our understanding emerges from an intricate nexus comprised of our embodied experiences, our emotions, our internalized cultural values, our imagination, and our natural reason. Following the work of Mark Johnson and George Lakoff, I claim there are certain epistemic "tools" which enable us to structure our daily activities. We use other epistemic "tools" to extend our understanding framework. ;An aesthetic event is comprised of a shifting web of characteristics. However, an aesthetic occurrence, in order to be aesthetic, must have a liminal aspect which opens us up to the most profound levels of meaning-making. I define meaning in an extremely broad sense; not only is meaning an interpretation which we may arrive at upon reflection about a certain event---it also includes other forms of "significance." I discuss six major types of significances which may be garnered by participating in an aesthetic event. ;Not only are the aspects which constitute our embodied understanding at play in our aesthetic participation, we may create an aesthetic significance whose import shifts the content boundaries in our web of understanding. Or, in order to generate an aesthetic significance, we may need to use the tools of our understanding framework in a novel manner. Thus, given the above, the relationship between embodied epistemology and aesthetic participation is an interdependent one