Pain And Pleasure Representation On Burke Research

PAIN, PLEASURE, and art
A REPRESENTATION ON BURKE
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June 29, 2017
PAIN, PLEASURE, and art
A REPRESENTATION ON BURKE
Introduction: The States of Pain, Pleasure, and Indifference
In his work, Burke stated that in order for anyone to truly understand the nature of what we call as beautiful and sublime, the inquiry which has to be made should start from the examination of what we call as pain and pleasure (Burke 1998). Basically, he described that both of these are independent of each other, existing in different “realms” or “realities” where one could exist even in the absence of the other. In other words, even if the idea of pain may exist through the removal of one’s pleasure, it does not follow that the presence of the latter would mean the absence of the former, and vice versa. Another state that Burke has mentioned in his book is the state of Indifference.
The state of Indifference
The idea that pain and pleasure exist as different realities do not mean that there is no such state where either or both of these two would cease to exist. This state where pain or pleasure cease to exist is what Burke called as the state of Indifference. This state, unlike the previous two, is not in a different reality since its existence would mean the absence of both the other two states (Burke 1998). The state of indifference could exist both before and after the existence of both/either pain and pleasure, but not at the same time. Overall, the different configurations between these three results to different forms which affect how we think, feel, and perceive, which then relates to our idea of beauty and sublime.
Different Configurations
The different permutations and mixing of the aforementioned states relate to different ways of feeling, acting, and perceiving things. This is one of the reasons why understanding this was considered important and was even given different names by Burke. For one, he used the term delight for a form of pleasure which arises through the cessation of the state of pain. This state is very much comparable to Joy, which is also caused by pleasure, but not through the cessation of pain. An example of the first form of p...