Why It's OK to Enjoy the Work of Immoral Artists

Mary Beth Willard

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2021
• Print ISBN: 9780367898656
• eBook ISBN: 9781000342857
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Philosophy
• Subtopic: Aesthetics in Philosophy

The #metoo movement has forced many fans to consider what they should do when they learn that a beloved artist has acted immorally. One natural thought is that fans ought to give up the artworks of immoral artists. In Why It's OK to Enjoy the Work of Immoral Artists, Mary Beth Willard argues for a more nuanced view. Enjoying art is part of a well-lived life, so we need good reasons to give it up.

And it turns out good reasons are hard to find. Willard shows that it's reasonable to believe that most boycotts of artists won't succeed, so most of the time there's no ethical reason to join in. Someone who manages to separate the art from the artist isn't making an ethical mistake by buying and enjoying their art. She then considers the ethical dimensions of canceling artists and the so-called "cancel culture," arguing that canceling is ethically risky because it encourages moral grandstanding. Willard concludes by arguing that the popular debate has overlooked the power of art to change our lives for the good.

It's of course OK to decide to give up the artwork of immoral artists, but – as Willard shows in this provocative little volume – it's OK to continue to enjoy their art as well.

Key Features

• Offers accessible discussions of complicated philosophical topics like aesthetic value, collective action problems, and epistemic justice
• Provides a unique perspective and underexplored argument on the popular issue of cancellation
• Explores the role of aesthetic value in our lives, including its relation to our ethical decisions and our well being

Index

1. aesthetic actions 18–20, 61, 134
2. aesthetic autonomy 20–22, 27
3. aesthetic experience 13, 15, 61, 62, 146, 148; uniqueness of 17, 23; viscerality of 13–14
4. aesthetic lives 5, 60, 79, 112, 147, 155; balanced with ethical life 142, 153; choice of 27; giving up 23; importance of artwork to 66; occur in public 29, 61; understanding 17
5. aesthetic projects 21, 66, 134, 139, 140, 141; aesthetic reasons derive from 19, 20, 22; autonomy in choosing 27, 28; developing virtues and 81; effects of 60, 82; ethical dimensions of 155; Harry Potter series as 150; part of well-lived life 30, 80; provide motivation 148, 151, 152; shared 61; transformation and 142, 145, 146, 149; value of 20, 154; weighing 23, 24; work of immoral artists in 25, 59
6. aesthetic reasons 111, 134, 139–40, 152; derive from aesthetic project 19, 20, 141, 149; ethical reasons weighed against 65; internalism 142, 148; as motivations for aesthetic actions 18
7. aesthetic reasons internalism 142, 148
8. aesthetic trust 102
9. aesthetic values 18, 22, 61, 87, 134, 149; aesthetic authenticity and 102, 103; aesthetic reaction and 106; of engaging with artwork 30; giving up 42; importance of 19; as mark of distinction 21; transformation and 145–46, 148; weighing 29–30, 33, 39
10. aesthetics...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half-Title
• Series
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• One Sorry! No Easy Answers Here
• Two Why Artists (Probably) Won’t Notice Your Boycott
• Three Epistemic Injustice, Jerks, Boycotts, and You
• Four When The Art Just Won’t Separate From the Artist
• Five #CancelEverything (We Should Probably Set Twitter on Fire Just to Be Safe)
• Six Aesthetic Lives as Ethical Lives
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index