On the inductive structure of works of art

Abstract

The purpose of the dissertation is to specify the meaning and consequences of the following proposition: A great work of art is an inductive game. I consider three axioms: the first states that an accurate induction is; the second asserts that the essential activity of a human organism is making accurate inductions; and the third asserts that a work of art is an inductive game which exercises the deepest habitual responses of the organism. Since the meaning of the latter two axions depends upon the meaning of the first, I begin by constructing a formal logic of induction and illustrating its application to an inductive situation. I then specify the meaning of the latter two axioms. Lastly, I discuss and illustrate the stractural consequences of the axioms with respect to the traditional formal canons of the arts, distinguishing between narrative and non-narrative arts. [TRUNCATED]