Leeds Art Gallery, June 18 2014, 6-7:30pm
Can stories change the way you think? Since the times of Plato and Aristotle, many scholars in the humanities have contended that reading stories can change the way one thinks, for better or for worse. In recent years, there has also been increasing scientific attention to this question. For example, an article recently published in the journal Science controversially claims that reading high-brow fictions — but not low-brow ones — can improve one’s ability to understand other minds.
This interdisciplinary roundtable brings together a psychologist, a philosopher, and a literary theorist to discuss whether stories can change the way one thinks. Each scholar will give a brief presentation, drawing from his or her field of expertise. An open Q&A session will follow the presentations.
Raymond Mar (Department of Psychology, York University)
Diana Holmes (Department of French, University of Leeds)
Peter Lamarque (Department of Philosophy, University of York)
This public event is free and open to all. No advance registration required.
Part of the Experimental Philosophical Aesthetics and Human Nature project, supported by Marie Curie Action Grant PIIF-GA-2012-328977.
To learn more about the project, please go to http://xphiaesthetics.wordpress.com/. To join the project email list, please sign up at http://eepurl.com/Whgkv.