Philosophy, Literature and Understanding: On Reading and Cognition

Jukka Mikkonen's Philosophy, Literature, and Understanding challenges traditional approaches to aesthetics by arguing that the cognitive value of reading fiction should be explained in terms of understanding rather than knowledge. He demonstrates the effects of literary works on their readers through academic critical analysis, responses of the reading public, and nonfictional writings that include autobiographical testimony. The book provides empirical evidence of the cognitive benefits of literature and how readers demonstrate the growth of their understanding.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 190 pages
Publication date: 20 October 2022
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Challenging existing methodological conceptions of the analytic approach to aesthetics,Jukka Mikkonen brings together philosophy,literary studies, and cognitive psychology to offer a novel theory on the cognitive value of reading fiction. Philosophy, Literature, and Understanding advocates for the epistemic significance of narratives, contending that it should be explained in terms of understanding rather than knowledge. Mikkonen conceptualizes understanding as a cognitive process, which he connects to narrative imagining, to assert that narrative is a central tool for communicating understanding. Through an examination of academic critical analysis, responses of the reading public, and nonfictional writings that include autobiographical testimony to their writers' influences and attitudes to life, Mikkonen demonstrates the effects that literary works have on their readers. By drawing on the written testimony of the reader, this book constitutes a significant intervention into debates on the value of literature that incorporates understanding in new and imaginative ways.

Challenging existing methodological conceptions of the analytic approach to aesthetics,Jukka Mikkonen brings together philosophy,literary studies, and cognitive psychology to offer a novel theory on the cognitive value of reading fiction. Philosophy, Literature, and Understanding advocates for the epistemic significance of narratives, contending that it should be explained in terms of understanding rather than knowledge. Mikkonen conceptualizes understanding as a cognitive process, which he connects to narrative imagining, to assert that narrative is a central tool for communicating understanding. Through an examination of academic critical analysis, responses of the reading public, and nonfictional writings that include autobiographical testimony to their writers' influences and attitudes to life, Mikkonen demonstrates the effects that literary works have on their readers. By drawing on the written testimony of the reader, this book constitutes a significant intervention into debates on the value of literature that incorporates understanding in new and imaginative ways.

Dimension: 216 x 138 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781350229013