Awe and the Experience of the Sublime: A Complex Relationship
Awe seems to be a complex emotion or emotional construct characterized by a mix of positive (contentment, happiness), and negative affective components (fear and a sense of being smaller, humbler or insignificant). It is striking that the elicitors of awe correspond closely to what philosophical aes...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2020-06-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01340/full |
| _version_ | 1818038989172506624 |
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| author | Margherita Arcangeli Margherita Arcangeli Marco Sperduti Amélie Jacquot Pascale Piolino Jérôme Dokic Jérôme Dokic |
| author_facet | Margherita Arcangeli Margherita Arcangeli Marco Sperduti Amélie Jacquot Pascale Piolino Jérôme Dokic Jérôme Dokic |
| author_sort | Margherita Arcangeli |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Awe seems to be a complex emotion or emotional construct characterized by a mix of positive (contentment, happiness), and negative affective components (fear and a sense of being smaller, humbler or insignificant). It is striking that the elicitors of awe correspond closely to what philosophical aesthetics, and especially Burke and Kant, have called “the sublime.” As a matter of fact, awe is almost absent from the philosophical agenda, while there are very few studies on the experience of the sublime as such in the psychological literature. The aim of this paper is to throw light on the complex relationship between awe (as understood by psychologists) and the experience of the sublime (as discussed by philosophers). We distinguish seven ways of conceiving this relationship and highlight those that seem more promising to us. Once we have a clearer picture of how awe and the experience of the sublime are related, we can use it to enhance collaboration between these domains. We would be able to use empirical results about awe in a philosophical analysis of the experience of the sublime, which in turn can help us to design novel experimental hypotheses about the contexts in which we experience awe. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-10T07:51:30Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0de7812050bb4b0fa8c12effdaa164aa |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-10T07:51:30Z |
| publishDate | 2020-06-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-0de7812050bb4b0fa8c12effdaa164aa2022-12-22T01:57:00ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782020-06-011110.3389/fpsyg.2020.01340547599Awe and the Experience of the Sublime: A Complex RelationshipMargherita Arcangeli0Margherita Arcangeli1Marco Sperduti2Amélie Jacquot3Pascale Piolino4Jérôme Dokic5Jérôme Dokic6École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales, Paris, FranceInstitut Jean Nicod, UMR 8129, École Normale Supérieure, Paris, FranceLaboratoire Mémoire, Cerveau et Cognition, URP 7536, Institut de Psychologie, Université de Paris, Boulogne-Billancourt, FranceLaboratoire Mémoire, Cerveau et Cognition, URP 7536, Institut de Psychologie, Université de Paris, Boulogne-Billancourt, FranceLaboratoire Mémoire, Cerveau et Cognition, URP 7536, Institut de Psychologie, Université de Paris, Boulogne-Billancourt, FranceÉcole des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales, Paris, FranceInstitut Jean Nicod, UMR 8129, École Normale Supérieure, Paris, FranceAwe seems to be a complex emotion or emotional construct characterized by a mix of positive (contentment, happiness), and negative affective components (fear and a sense of being smaller, humbler or insignificant). It is striking that the elicitors of awe correspond closely to what philosophical aesthetics, and especially Burke and Kant, have called “the sublime.” As a matter of fact, awe is almost absent from the philosophical agenda, while there are very few studies on the experience of the sublime as such in the psychological literature. The aim of this paper is to throw light on the complex relationship between awe (as understood by psychologists) and the experience of the sublime (as discussed by philosophers). We distinguish seven ways of conceiving this relationship and highlight those that seem more promising to us. Once we have a clearer picture of how awe and the experience of the sublime are related, we can use it to enhance collaboration between these domains. We would be able to use empirical results about awe in a philosophical analysis of the experience of the sublime, which in turn can help us to design novel experimental hypotheses about the contexts in which we experience awe.https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01340/fullawepositive awethreat-based awesublimeaesthetic experiencefear |
| spellingShingle | Margherita Arcangeli Margherita Arcangeli Marco Sperduti Amélie Jacquot Pascale Piolino Jérôme Dokic Jérôme Dokic Awe and the Experience of the Sublime: A Complex Relationship Frontiers in Psychology awe positive awe threat-based awe sublime aesthetic experience fear |
| title | Awe and the Experience of the Sublime: A Complex Relationship |
| title_full | Awe and the Experience of the Sublime: A Complex Relationship |
| title_fullStr | Awe and the Experience of the Sublime: A Complex Relationship |
| title_full_unstemmed | Awe and the Experience of the Sublime: A Complex Relationship |
| title_short | Awe and the Experience of the Sublime: A Complex Relationship |
| title_sort | awe and the experience of the sublime a complex relationship |
| topic | awe positive awe threat-based awe sublime aesthetic experience fear |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01340/full |
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