Ryan Swanson

 Ryan Swanson Search for Beauty TR 6:00-7:15  *Topic of Choosing 4*      Wilderness     In class we discussed a paper written by Dr. Redick titled Wilderness as Art. This reminded me of walking through the Nolan Trail a few days ago. As the cool wind blew on my face I walked through the sunlit forest, off trail of course. I picked up a leaf and began crumbling it in my hand. Funny how everything is like that, can be molded, lives a little, dies a little. Walking through those woods clears my mind more than anything I've done and it is always my first option to cool off or clear my head. I wonder what it is about nature that gives me this feeling? Is it everyone or do some people innately dislike nature? 

 Ryan Swanson Search for Beauty TR 6:00-7:15     *Topic of Choosing 3* Extrasensory Perception in Relationships     Have you ever been having a conversation with your partner and both of you simultaneously recognize the same feeling each other are having? What king of perception does this involve? I believe that this connection is the very thing that makes relationships have that "spark" depicted in romantic films and movies. The aestheticism felt between the pair gravitates them toward one another and eventually forms a close, loving relationship that is extremely difficult to find. The reason I thought of this is our discussion of Kant and the fact that I had recently felt this way about someone. 

 Ryan Swanson Search for Beauty TR 6:00-7:15 *Topic of Choosing 2* Objectivity in Art     What makes a piece of art beautiful? From contemporary art to minimalism, art draws  diverse crowds to a variety of different pieces. Can art be beautiful? Beauty seems to be a relative phenomena, but is there something that is universally beautiful? I believe that even if the majority of the world agrees on one thing that is undoubtedly considered a beautiful piece of art, there would still be at least one person that does not think the piece is all that. But does one person really change how objective a thing can be? For example, if everyone in a room of 1,000 people agree that when someone drops an apple, it hits the ground, does that entail that if one person disagrees, the fact is subjective? Do statistics decide objectivity? All of these questions are imbedded in the original one: is beauty objective in art?

 Ryan Swanson Search for Beauty TR 6:00-7:15 *Topic of choosing 1* Aestheticism     Just what is the feeling of aestheticism? One views simplistic yet interactive imagery and it is a feeling of being drawn in and pushed out at the same time. Just about anything can be considered aesthetic. Due to the objects subjective nature, anyone can be drawn to anything that causes a warm, joyful, and altogether pleasing experience. To perceive something aesthetically involves an aspect of mystery in the eyes of the gazer. This interaction between the object and the perceiver is one that is odd yet fascinating. It is not the simple view from the summit and feeling of beauty that follows. It is more of a reception of beauty from the unknown, almost randomly encountering these average things. One must draw the emotion from the details of the object and appreciate them interacting with one another to form a perception of beauty. Aestheticism is a mystery of subjective detail that is spe...

Ryan Swanson Search for Beauty TR 6:00-7:15 *Assigned class book entry 1* Self-Emptying    In today's class, we examined quotes for the text involving the interaction between rituals and myths. Dance was existent before myth, and myth is the projection of ritual. I think it is interesting how dance has a certain power to increase the involvement of stories. Myth is something that many throughout time have used to guide their morals, desires, and lives. Showing myth through dance creates an interactive story that grabs the bystander and turns them into participants. Even if one does not take an active role in the motion and dance of the ritual, the experience itself is impossible not to be emotionally invested in on any level.     We also looked at a video of three women with makeup on making them look ghostly in white robes making very methodical, stiff movements. I feel that these women almost looked like they were attached to strings like a puppet or raised fr...