Author: Ben Lehman (---.136.228)
Date: 03-30-2004 00:28
JW> Looking at actual play, things become a bit more complicated. Is most roleplaying primarily intended, by the players involved in it, to serve as the object of aesthetic appreciation? I don't think do. Sure, there are plenty of aesthetic considerations that go into creating a session (colorful descriptions, appropriate plot twists, choosing themes, etc.), but they are usually not the primary focus of play. Additionally, since there's no outside audience in roleplaying, evaluating a session in terms of the second definition requires examining the experiences of the players themselves, varying and subjective as they are.
BL> I apologize if this sounds curt but: What universe is this paragraph from? If role-playing is not intended to serve as an object of aesthetic appreciation, by Anderson's definition, what function could it possibly be intended to serve? I find it impossible that something could function as entertainment and not be aesthetically appreciated.
Could you give an example of a role-playing game that is not being aesthetically appreciated by its participants, or is created without aesthetics in mind, but the definitions that Anderson gives?
I have no doubts in saying that exploration of a shared imagined space is pretty much the bedrock of the RPG. I would say that the act of this exploration is an act of aesthetic appreciation (again, as Anderson's definition), and that whatever perspective it comes from and whatever goal it drives to is totally moot.
So that would put every RPG -- not just "arty" RPGs -- solidly in the category of both type I and type II art.
It is my personal opinion that the only reason that is *any* concern with whether or not RPGs are a form of art is the awful social structures that have been built up around art, especially "fine art," and art criticism in the last 150 years. Which are responsible for the "art/fun" division and lots of other unpleasantness, and should be the subject of a whole nother rant.
yrs--
--Ben
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