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Intentionalism and Anti-Intentionalism: Reformulating the Debate Focusing on the Concept of Intention

  • Journal of Humanities, Seoul National University
  • 2017, 74(4), pp.253-285
  • DOI : 10.17326/jhsnu.74.4.201711.253
  • Publisher : Institute of Humanities, Seoul National University
  • Research Area : Humanities > Other Humanities
  • Received : October 2, 2017
  • Accepted : November 10, 2017
  • Published : November 30, 2017

Hyun Joo Shin 1

1서울대학교

Accredited

ABSTRACT

One of the central topics in analytic aesthetics regarding interpretations of artworks is the debate between intentionalism and anti-intentionalism. The two sides are in conflict concerning the question of whether the meaning of an artwork is identical with the author’s intention. Intentionalists argue that it is, while anti-intentionalists deny it. The debate has been evolved to a complex situation where any resolution seems out of sight, due to the fact that both are reluctant to discuss their fundamental assumptions about ‘intention’, while their arguments are valid only with the assumptions of their own. Given this, I find it necessary to disclose different notions of intention in each side and discuss which will lead to a better theory of interpretation. With this aim in mind, I begin by reformulating the debate as centered on two problems raised by anti- intentionalists. Concerning the ‘epistemological problem’, I show that the problem only works within the Cartesian notion of intention and examine whether intentionalists can solve it by adopting alternative notions. Concerning the ‘irrelevance problem’, I show that the problem is dependent upon the realist notion of intention and examine whether intentionalists can avoid it by using the anti-realist notion. Finally, I argue that intentionalists can defeat anti-intentionalists regarding the first problem, while the debate is almost at a dead-end regarding the second, which then leads to my analysis on what should be examined further to achieve a breakthrough.

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