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Aesthetic Play As Ethical Practice: Rethinking Moral Life

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Aesthetic Play As Ethical Practice: Rethinking Moral Life AESTHETIC PLAY AS ETHICAL PRACTICE: RETHINKING MORAL LIFE THROUGH KANT, SCHILLER, GADAMER, AND PRISON THEATER A Dissertation by KAREN ELEANOR DAVIS Submitted to the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Chair of Committee, Kristi Sweet Committee Members, Theodore George Daniel Conway Marian Eide Head of Department, Theodore George August 2017 Major Subject: Philosophy Copyright 2017 Karen Eleanor Davis ABSTRACT This dissertation investigates how aesthetic play supports moral life, with the Shakespeare Behind Bars (SBB) prison theater program as its centerpiece. This project responds to the ascendancy of instrumental rationality and technological thinking in ethical reasoning, as diagnosed by Kant, Hegel, Heidegger, and others. I argue that moral life patterned after aesthetic play rehabilitates practical wisdom and interpretation in our age while also cultivating our capacity to make contextualized moral judgments. I understand aesthetic play through the heritage of Kant’s aesthetics and suggest that play between reason and imagination teaches us to accommodate both universality and particularity in moral judgments. The ethical potential of Kant’s third Critique is unfolded in my analysis of Schiller and Gadamer, followed by a turn to theater studies and field research into the SBB program. For Kant, aesthetic judging is analogous to moral judging, and so aesthetic experience is preparatory for moral life. For Schiller, aesthetic play unifies the rational and sensuous aspects of human being, allowing us to realize the highest expressions of morality and freedom. For Gadamer, aesthetic play models the way we engage with others in all contexts. Play means engaging with others, letting them ask questions and make demands, and responding by playing along. I suggest that these characterizations of aesthetic play model a view of moral life that resists instrumentalization. Acting theory after Stanislavski emphasizes truthfulness on stage and integrity to the character. Furthermore, many theater theorists understand their work to be ethical, as ii theater helps us understand a broader range of possibilities for human experience. The role of play and improvisation in theater further develops our moral aptitude to adapt and exercise wisdom in our interactions with others. SBB demonstrates how the ethical aims of theater can be implemented. SBB boasts a recidivism rate 60 percentage points below the national average, suggesting that collaborative creative play might indeed transform our character. I conclude that aesthetic play helps us reimagine ethical life and cultivates our capacities for good judgment, interpretation, genuine listening, and practical wisdom in responding to a changing situation—the very moral aptitudes that calculative moral reasoning suppresses. iii DEDICATION For Grandmommy In Memoriam 1936-2016 iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I cannot hope to acknowledge every professor, colleague, friend, writing consultant, and barista who has played a role in the success of this dissertation project. I know now that the “solitary academic” is a myth (yes, even in the humanities), and this project is indebted to countless others who have helped and supported me on this journey. I must first thank my advisor, mentor, and friend, Dr. Kristi Sweet. Kristi has always encouraged me to follow my own convictions (and even to indulge my love of Shakespeare) in my philosophical work, even when my stubborn convictions conflict with her own impeccable judgment. Thank you, Kristi, for everything you’ve taught me about philosophy, writing, professionalization, and life as an academic. With your guidance, I am growing into the kind of philosopher I want to be, and my work has improved astronomically thanks to your direction. I would also like to thank the rest of my committee, Dr. Ted George and Dr. Dan Conway in Philosophy and Dr. Marian Eide in English. You should all recognize your fingerprints throughout this dissertation. I am grateful for every class, comment, and question that helped shape the project, develop my thinking, and improve my writing. The next band of supporters who deserve recognition are all of the individuals, departments, and programs that made my research trips to Luther Luckett possible. I am thankful for the travel assistance from the Department of Philosophy, the Department of English, the Women’s and Gender Studies Program, the Melbern G. Glasscock Center v for Humanities Research, and the Fasken Graduate Student Teaching Award; for Texas A&M’s Research Compliance office staff for helping me design and then approving my study even with the complication of working with prisoners; and for the whole crew in Kentucky (primarily Matt Wallace, Carol Stewart, and Jerry Alter) who made my visits possible and productive. I am especially grateful to the men in the Shakespeare Behind Bars circle who talk with me and share their experiences with me, both in person and in their letters. None of this would have happened without your support of my project. The writing of this dissertation seemed to take a village, and I would be remiss if I didn’t also recognize all of the writing partners, readers, and University Writing Center employees who kept me going. I cannot praise highly enough the Writing Center’s Dissertation and Thesis Assistance program and their newly redesigned graduate writing group. Thank you to the other dissertation writers and graduate students who sipped lattes with me, made me respect timers, and kept me accountable day after day. Thank you, M, for your wisdom and compassion when I was really struggling, and for making time to read my work. Thank you to Andrea Haugen, who read and gently critiqued the embarrassing early drafts and stuck with me until the final citation was in place. And thank you to all of my old co-workers in the UWC—consultants, administrators, and staff—for all of the hugs, encouragement, solidarity, and advice. Finally, I am grateful for the unfailing support of family and friends near and far. I’m grateful to those who finished before me—my brother, my first college roommate, and two colleagues in particular whose work I admire. You proved that it was possible, and you gave me role models to follow. I’m grateful for the close friends outside vi academia who remind me who I am and insist on helping me catch my breath. I’m grateful to everyone who checked in on my progress, invited me out for coffee, agreed to listen to a paragraph (or four), or just commented on a griping Facebook post when I needed support. Most of all, I must thank my family—my parents, my brothers, my husband, Tommy, and all of the in-laws—for their enduring patience and love. I would not, could not, have done this without you. vii CONTRIBUTORS AND FUNDING SOURCES Contributors Part 1, faculty committee recognition This work was directed by Dr. Kristi Sweet in the Department of Philosophy and supervised by a dissertation committee consisting of Dr. Theodore George and Dr. Daniel Conway in the Department of Philosophy and Dr. Marian Eide in the Department of English. Part 2, student/collaborator contributions All work for the dissertation was completed independently by the student. Valuable direction and feedback were provided by Dr. Kristi Sweet, Dr. Marian Eide, and University Writing Center consultants Andrea Haugen and Thadeus Bowerman. Funding Sources Graduate study was supported by an assistantship from the Texas A&M University Department of Philosophy and a dissertation fellowship from the Texas A&M University Office of Graduate and Professional Studies. Dissertation research was made possible in part by research awards from the Department of Philosophy, the Department of English, the Women’s and Gender Studies Program, the Melbern G. Glasscock Center for Humanities Research, and the Fasken Graduate Student Teaching Award. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT .............................................................................................................. ii DEDICATION .......................................................................................................... iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...................................................................................... v CONTRIBUTORS AND FUNDING SOURCES ..................................................... viii TABLE OF CONTENTS .......................................................................................... ix CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION .......................................................................... 1 CHAPTER II FREE PLAY AND AESTHETIC UNIVERSALITY IN KANT’S THIRD CRITIQUE .................................................................................................. 23 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 23 Kant’s Aesthetics ................................................................................................ 25 The Relation Between Aesthetics and Ethics ..................................................... 33 Ethics in the Image of Play ................................................................................ 50 Conclusions about Play ....................................................................................... 55 CHAPTER III MORAL BEAUTY AND AESTHETIC FREEDOM: SCHILLER AND THE POWER OF PLAY ................................................................................. 59 Introduction .......................................................................................................
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