Emotions, Aesthetics, and Creativity
Shirley Terrell
ESL and Communication Studies
In the Big Rock Candy Mountains, all the cops have wooden legs
And the bulldogs all have rubber teeth and the hens lay soft-boiled
eggs
The farmer's trees are full of fruit and the barns are full of hay…
In the Big Rock Candy Mountains, you never change your socks
And little streams of alcohol a-trickling down the rocks…
There's a lake of stew and of whiskey too
You can paddle all around 'em in a big canoe
In the Big Rock Candy Mountains.
(Harry McClintock)
Imagine a semester during which students regularly arrive on time and are
prepared for class, voluntarily stow their cell phones and fully participate in class rather
than attempting to text or use their laptop to check e-mails and surf the web. Imagine a
classroom where both instructor and students pursue goals of enrichment, inspiration,
critical thinking, and creativity. In this era of the “millennial student”, these imaginings
resemble what might be education’s Big Rock Candy Mountains.
Researchers define millennial students as having been born between 1980-2000
and typically displaying the following characteristics. They
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exhibit high technological savvy – the first generation to grow up with computers
in their schools and homes;
stay connected 24/7 with family and friends via technology;
are diverse ethnically and are, therefore, sensitive to diversity – 34% Black,
Hispanic, Asian and Native American;
demonstrate inclusivity and tolerance of other cultures, religions, and sexual
orientations;
are accustomed to being supervised/watched;
are accustomed to being told what to do and what the best decision is;
are pushed by parents to excel in tests and all endeavors;
demand quick, if not instant, gratification.
With retention an important goal for Collin’s faculty, these students’ attributes create
both opportunities and obstacles for creating an environment conducive to optimal
learning and student success. Faculty members, including myself, often voice frustration
regarding dilemmas in working with millennial students. One possible answer to this
challenge is offered by Dr. Barry Gordon, neurologist at John Hopkins University School
of Medicine, who states that any type of learning is enhanced and reinforced if it involves
emotion and creativity. Because of demonstrated and documented correlation between
learning and emotion as well as between creativity and emotion, I am requesting a Study
Grant for Summer I or II, 2010, to study (1) new findings in brain research regarding
emotions, (2) aesthetics and the aesthetic experience, and (3) creativity.
Rationale
I chose this area of study, in part, to expand the knowledge I have gained in prior
readings on brain research as it relates to music and language. Studies in neuroscience
using functional mri’s now confirm the overarching effects of emotions in every aspect of
human life. Emotions are linked to creativity which is biologically, physically, and
psychologically an essential part of human nature, necessary for human-reproduction,
growth, and intellectual and cultural striving. As Immanuel Kant and Friedrich Schiller
realized centuries ago, creativity, with its accompanying emotions, has the capacity to
foster a particular kind of freedom essential to sustaining an alert, liberal, and questioning
mind (Canatella, 63). The information I acquire in my readings will enhance the
knowledge I gain while attending, in spring 2009, two professional conferences which
focus on creativity, the arts and learning. These are The Creative Brain: Using Creativity
and the Arts Research to Enhance Learning and Imagination and Language Learning
and Teaching. In addition, this research will augment my PhD. studies at UTD in Arts
and Humanities.
Areas of Inquiry
The purpose of this study is to:
1. examine recent brain research as it relates to emotions, creativity, and
learning;
2. study theories of Aesthetics and the aesthetic experience;
3. research creativity and how it is fostered.
Weekly Study Plan – Summer Session (5 Weeks)
Week 1 – The Brain and Emotions
Exciting breakthroughs in neuroscience research prove that the brain is not hardwired as was previously thought. Rather, its plasticity demonstrates the capacity to
modify the organization of the brain’s neuron networks and provide the ability to
reorganize by forming new neural connections which can lead to changed behaviors.
During this week, I will review Howard Gardner’s theory of Multiple Intelligences and
recent journal articles which discuss the brain’s function in emotions, creativity, and
learning.
Amen, Donald G. Change Your Brain, Change Your Life. NY: Three Rivers Press, 1998.
Efland, Arthur. “The Arts and the Creation of Mind: Eisner’s Contributions to the Arts in
Education.” The Journal of Aesthetic Education 38.4, 2004 (71-80).
Gardner, Howard. Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences. NY: Basic
Books, 1983.
______________. Intelligence Reframed: Multiple Intelligences for the 21st Century.
NY: Basic Books, 1999.
Week 1 – continued
Journal articles which will provide the most up-to-date research information.
Weeks 2-3 – Aesthetic Theory and Aesthetic Experience
Aesthetics, the study of beauty, encompasses a broad range of perspectives. Lori
Custodero, Columbia University professor, writes, “To be ‘in the moment’ is to
encounter the aesthetic – fully engaged in an activity for which one’s individual
contributions are perceived as vital, aware of surprise relationships between seemingly
disparate phenomena, and enveloped by sensory messages…” Wolfgang von Goethe,
Ralph Waldo Emerson, and others, have described the sense of gratitude that
spontaneously flows from moments when goodness, beauty, and insight into things fuse
as one (Hansen 61). I have chosen these readings to investigate how teaching and
learning thrive in an aesthetically enriched environment.
Cooper, David E. (ed). Aesthetics: The Classic Readings. NY: Wiley, Blackwell, 1997.
Custodero, Lori A. “Being With: The Resonant Legacy of Childhood’s Creative
Aesthetic.” The Journal of Aesthetic Education 39.2, 2005, (36-57)
Danto, Arthur C. The Transfiguration of the Commonplace. Cambridge: Harvard
University Press, 1981.
Dewey, John. Art as Experience. NY: Minton, Balch and Company, c.1934.
Gaut, Berys and Dominic McIver Lopes (eds.) The Routledge Companion to Aesthetics,
2nd Edition. NY: Routledge.
Herwitz, Daniel. Aesthetics: Key Concepts in Philosophy. NY: Continuum, 2008.
Kerdeman, Deborah. “Aesthetic Experience and Education: Themes and Questions.” The
Journal of Aesthetic Education 39.2, 2005 (88-96).
McDermott, John J. (ed). The Philosophy of John Dewey. Chicago: The University of
Chicago Press, 1973.
Stravinsky, Igor.The Poetics of Music. Cambridge: Harvard College, 1942.
Weeks 4 -5 – Creativity
Dancer and choreographer Martha Graham asserts, “There is a vitality, a life
force, an energy…that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one
of you in all time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist
through any other medium and will be lost.” Every semester, I ask my students if they
are artists, singers, dancers, writers, musicians. Ninety-nine percent say they are not. I
then inquire, “What happened? Think back when you were a child; weren’t you all of
those things?” Students often seem perplexed with my question but will typically discuss
how and why their creativity became stifled. During these two weeks, I will read about
creativity and how to discover, and recover, the creative self.
Cannatella, Howard. “Embedding Creativity in Teaching and Learning.” The Journal of
Aesthetic Education 38.4, 2004. (59-70)
Cameron, Julia. The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity. NY: Penguin
Putnam, 1992.
Egri, Lajos. The Art of Dramatic Writing: Its Basis in the Creative Interpretation of
Human Motives. NY: Simon and Schuster, 1946.
Ghiselin, Brewster (ed). The Creative Process: Reflections on Invention in the Arts and
Sciences. Berkeley: Univ. of Calif. Press, 1952.
Hansen, David T. “Creativity in Teaching and Building a Meaningful Life as a Teacher.”
The Journal of Aesthetic Education 39.2, 2005, (57-68).
Runco, Mark A. Creativity: Theories and Themes, Research, Development and Practice.
NY: Academic Press, 2006.
Use of Results
Satisfaction of one’s curiosity is one of the greatest sources of happiness in life.
Linus Pauling
Emotions, aesthetics, and creativity form a fascinating area of inquiry which will
provide personal enrichment and enhance my ability to give learners the opportunity to
realize their potential. When students experience an environment that promotes creativity
and spontaneity, it allows them to cast a wider net in their endeavors. Thus, they are
more likely to learn and retain. Retention, then, will improve as student success
flourishes. Upon completion of the work I have proposed, I will share my findings with
colleagues at Collin and at conferences where I make formal presentations. Other
organizations, such as Seniors Active in Learning, will also benefit from learning the
results of my study. In addition, I will utilize knowledge gained in my readings in my
classes at UTD.