INQ-120 | Ethics, Emotion & Film Tragedy

Full Title: Ethics, Emotion & Film Tragedy

Topic Description:

Why do we go to the movies? The typical answer is “for entertainment” or “to be thrilled!” But some of us seek out movies, or entertainment more broadly, for other reasons, such as to feel inspired, for a good cry, or to experience some kind of catharsis. Could movies have an effect on our well-being after a cathartic experience? Further, could tragic films help us search for life’s meanings? And, thirdly, how does our sense of morality impact the pleasure we get from film art? This course will explore these questions about our use of media entertainment, particularly film, through the works of Aristotle, mainly Poetics and Nicomachean Ethics, and contemporary writings on the study of aesthetics and taste. Overall, this course makes a humanistic inquiry into the potential impact of popular art on individuals’ well-being and their pursuit of “the good life,” and the effects of moral judgments on the pleasure we take from art.

Counts as Global? No

Topic Approved: September 2014