City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works All Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects 2012 The Metaphysics of Improvisation Tobyn C. DeMarco Graduate Center, City University of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/1679 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact:
[email protected] THE METAPHYSICS OF IMPROVISATION by TOBYN C. DEMARCO A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty in Philosophy in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, The City University of New York 2012 ii © 2012 TOBYN C. DEMARCO All Rights Reserved iii This manuscript has been read and accepted for the Graduate Faculty in Philosophy in satisfaction of the dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Barbara Gail Montero __________________________________________ _______________ __________________________________________ Date Chair of Examining Committee John Greenwood __________________________________________ _______________ __________________________________________ Date Executive Officer Nickolas Pappas __________________________________________ Steven Ross __________________________________________ Noël Carroll __________________________________________ Supervisory Committee The City University of New York iv Abstract THE METAPHYSICS OF IMPROVISATION by Tobyn C. DeMarco Adviser: Professor Nickolas Pappas In “The Metaphysics of Improvisation,” I criticize wrongheaded metaphysical views of, and theories about, improvisation, and put forward a cogent metaphysical theory of improvisation, which includes action theory, an analysis of the relevant genetic and aesthetic properties, and ontology (work-hood). The dissertation has two Parts. Part I is a survey of the history of many improvisational practices, and of the concept of improvisation.