Don Mannison

Bio: Don Mannison is an academic researcher from University of Queensland. The author has contributed to research in topics: Lying & Western philosophy. The author has an hindex of 3, co-authored 5 publications receiving 150 citations.

On Being Moved by Fiction

Abstract: What are we moved to when we are moved by something? Sometimes to tears; other times to action; and, on other occasions, to quiet contemplation. When a member of the Sierra Club is moved by something, he or she may be moved to tears or to political activism; but ‘being moved by’ in such circumstances just might consist in feelings of awe. ‘Moved by’ carries an obvious suggestion of causality on its semantic face. What I am moved by is what brings it about that I feel or act the way I do. To be ‘unmoved’ is to be unresponsive; or, at times, to lack compassion. To be moved by something or someone often involves having care or concern for that which is found moving. A variety of this sort of concern just could be an essential ingredient in the stance of the environmental preservationist.

Believing and dreaming

Abstract: (1977). Believing and dreaming. Australasian Journal of Philosophy: Vol. 55, No. 1, pp. 76-81.

Causation A Unified Framework for the Social Sciences

Abstract: This paper offers four main arguments about the nature of causation in the social sciences. First, contrary to most recent work, I argue that there is a unitary conception of causation: a cause rai...

The Distancing–Embracing model of the enjoyment of negative emotions in art reception

Abstract: Why are negative emotions so central in art reception far beyond tragedy? Revisiting classical aesthetics in the light of recent psychological research, we present a novel model to explain this much discussed (apparent) paradox. We argue that negative emotions are an important resource for the arts in general, rather than a special license for exceptional art forms only. The underlying rationale is that negative emotions have been shown to be particularly powerful in securing attention, intense emotional involvement, and high memorability, and hence is precisely what artworks strive for. Two groups of processing mechanisms are identified that conjointly adopt the particular powers of negative emotions for art's purposes. The first group consists of psychological distancing mechanisms that are activated along with the cognitive schemata of art, representation, and fiction. These schemata imply personal safety and control over continuing or discontinuing exposure to artworks, thereby preventing negative emotions from becoming outright incompatible with expectations of enjoyment. This distancing sets the stage for a second group of processing components that allow art recipients to positively embrace the experiencing of negative emotions, thereby rendering art reception more intense, more interesting, more emotionally moving, more profound, and occasionally even more beautiful. These components include compositional interplays of positive and negative emotions, the effects of aesthetic virtues of using the media of (re)presentation (musical sound, words/language, color, shapes) on emotion perception, and meaning-making efforts. Moreover, our Distancing-Embracing model proposes that concomitant mixed emotions often help integrate negative emotions into altogether pleasurable trajectories.

Galileo and the Indispensability of Scientific Thought Experiment

Abstract: By carefully examining one of the most famous thought experiments in the history of science-that by which Galileo is said to have refuted the Aristotelian theory that heavier bodies fall faster than lighter ones-I attempt to show that thought experiments play a distinctive role in scientific inquiry. Reasoning about particular entities within the context of an imaginary scenario can lead to rationally justified conclusions that-given the same initial information-would not be rationally justifiable on the basis of a straightforward argument. 1 Argumentative reconstruction 1.1 The Elimination Thesis 1.2 Clarification of terminology 1.3 The negative argument and the positive argument 1.4 The Dispensability Thesis and the Derivativity Thesis 2 Galileo's thought experiment and its reconstruction 2.1 Galileo's thought experiment 2.2 Reconstruction of the Galileo case 2.3 Four ways out for the Aristotelian 2.4 What the reconstruction misses 3 Denying the Dispensability and Derivativity Theses 3.1 Rejecting reconstruction, what the thought experiment does 3.2 Rejecting the positive argument: what makes these beliefs new ? 3.3 Rejecting the negative argument, what makes these beliefs knowledge 3.4 Constructivism and the contrast with Norton and Brown 4 Conclusion

A companion to rhetoric and rhetorical criticism

Abstract: ion 326

Toward a general psychological model of tension and suspense

Abstract: Tension and suspense are powerful emotional experiences that occur in a wide variety of contexts (e.g., in music, film, literature, and everyday life). The omnipresence of tension and suspense suggests that they build on very basic cognitive and affective mechanisms. However, the psychological underpinnings of tension experiences remain largely unexplained, and tension and suspense are rarely discussed from a general, domain-independent perspective. In this paper, we argue that tension experiences in different contexts (e.g., musical tension or suspense in a movie) build on the same underlying psychological processes. We discuss key components of tension experiences and propose a domain-independent model of tension and suspense. According to this model, tension experiences originate from states of conflict, instability, dissonance, or uncertainty that trigger predictive processes directed at future events of emotional significance. We also discuss possible neural mechanisms underlying tension and suspense. The model provides a theoretical framework that can inform future empirical research on tension phenomena.