Carolyn Korsmeyer
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Carolyn Korsmeyer (born 1950) is an author and Professor of Philosophy at the
University of Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo, commonly called the University at Buffalo (UB) and sometimes called SUNY Buffalo, is a public research university with campuses in Buffalo and Amherst, New York. The university was founded in 18 ...
in New York. She is generally recognized for her study and research on
aesthetics Aesthetics, or esthetics, is a branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of beauty and taste, as well as the philosophy of art (its own area of philosophy that comes out of aesthetics). It examines aesthetic values, often expressed t ...
,
feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
, and emotion theory.


Career

Carolyn received her Ph.D. from Brown University in 1972. In 1978, she began working as a professor of Philosophy at the University of Buffalo where she continues to work today as the Head of the Philosophy Department. Since beginning her career at the University of Buffalo, Korsmeyer has been recognized multiple times for her outstanding performance and continued achievements for her work both in and away from Philosophy. During her long career, Korsmeyer has published multiple acclaimed articles and books on feminism and aesthetics.


Overview of major work

After receiving her PhD in 1972, Korsmeyer began to focus her research on feminist philosophy and the field of aesthetics. Feminist perspectives in aesthetics has long been major work of Korsmeyer. Fine art, genius, beauty, taste, and aesthetic perception are gendered issues that she has studied and researched.


Philosophy of taste

The philosophy of taste is a relatively new subject in the field of philosophy, however Korsmeyer's study of "bad taste" is well known. Her consideration of taste in philosophy explores why pungent food like soured milk, fried bugs, extremely hot peppers, and game meat are seen as strong and complex to our palettes. A theoretical understanding of taste of food is compared to the philosophy and interpretation of art in that both deem the similar qualities that entail discriminating perception and also that food and art are both considered 'artistic in creation.' The argument Korsmeyer presents is that these "cosmopolitan foods" are so complex that they lie on a nearly transparent line straddling between the sublime and disgusting and, when the brain is given the choice, usually the positive reaction wins. Thus, these seemingly disgusting foods give a positive aesthetic response.
Her publications on the subject include: *''Savoring Disgust: The Foul and the Fair in Aesthetics'' (Oxford University Press, 2011) *''The Taste Culture Reader: Experiencing Food and Drink (ed.)'' (Oxford: Berg Publishers 2005) *''Making Sense of Taste: Food and Philosophy'' (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1999)


Feminist perspectives in aesthetics

Feminist aesthetics refers to the idea that in their basic form, classic concepts such as genius, beauty, fine art, aesthetic perception cradle social roles are qualities that are presumed as gender related. In her most notorious book titled ''Gender and Aesthetics: An Introduction to Understanding Feminist Philosophy'' (London: Routledge, 2004) Korsmeyer uses these "classic concepts" to identify their qualities and goes on to explain the weight of gender as the abiding attribute. Genius, for example, is said to be 'superior in mind' which has long been associated with masculinity while '
beauty Beauty is commonly described as a feature of objects that makes these objects pleasurable to perceive. Such objects include landscapes, sunsets, humans and works of art. Beauty, together with art and taste, is the main subject of aesthetics, o ...
' has long been described as small, soft curvatures that "catch a man's eye" and thus, is defined as female.
Much of her work revolves around the parameters of feminist presence in art, music, and literature. In her book ''Aesthetics in Feminist Perspective'' Korsemeyer compares theories of art and the varying interpretations based on gender bias. Her publications on the subject include: *''Gender and Aesthetics: An Introduction'' (London: Routledge, 2004) *"Feminist Aesthetics", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2012 Edition) *''Feminism and Tradition in Aesthetics'', edited with Peggy Zeglin Brand(Indiana University Press, 1993)


Honors and achievements

University at Buffalo Research Recognition Program awarded Korsmeyer their Sustained Achievement Exceptional Scholar Award to awknowledge her outstanding performance over a several-year period in her body of work. In 2001, she won the Buffalo and Erie County Public Library's Mark Twain Creative Writing Competition by writing a chapter that concluded Twain's unpublished short story, ''A Murder, a Mystery and a Marriage.''


References


External links


Carolyn Korsmeyer Papers
€”Pembroke Center Archives, Brown University {{DEFAULTSORT:Korsmeyer, Carolyn 1950 births Living people American women philosophers American feminists 20th-century American philosophers 21st-century American philosophers 20th-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers Feminist philosophers Philosophers of art University at Buffalo faculty