Rebecca Wallbank

I am Postdoctoral Researcher in Philosophy based in both the University of Geneva and Uppsala University, as the recipient of a Vetenskapsrådet International Postdoctoral Award for the Arts and Humanities.

My project, titled 'Affective Voluntarism and Affective Distance' examines the role of affective attitudes in the formation of aesthetic judgements.

I am also an Editorial Assistant for the British Journal of Aesthetics.

My research interests lie within aesthetics, normativity, social epistemology and the philosophy of emotions.

My research project is titled 'Affective Voluntarism and Affective Distance'. My project analyses the nature and role of certain affective responses in the formation of aesthetic judgements. I question whether normative claims might be appropriately made of such affective responses with respect to the formation of aesthetic judgements and what direction such claims would take.

The project draws from my PhD, 'Trust in Aesthetic testimony' (supervised by Elisabeth Schellekens and Andrew Reisner. Derek Matravers was my 'Opponent', and the defence was examined by Sarah Stroud, Anne Eaton, Folke Tersman and Paulina Remes).

My research on trust in aesthetic testimony centres on the way in which affective attitudes manipulate our relationship to evidence and the formation of beliefs. My work analyses the epistemic, practical and aesthetic implications of evidence-resistant trust in the testimony of purported epistemic authorities - both groups and individuals.

I have also written on the nature of our aesthetic engagements with literature.

Publications:

(forthcoming). Aesthetic Testimony, in Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy. Edited by Edward N. Zalta. Co-authored with Jon Robson.

(forthcoming). 'Evidence-resistance on Social Media', in Philosophy of Fame. Edited by Alfred Archer, Catherine Robb and Matthew Dennis. London: Bloomsbury.

2022. 'Appreciation is Overrated', in Perspectives on Taste, edited by Jeremy Wyatt, Dan Zeman and Julia Zakkou. Co-authored with Jon Robson.

2021. 'Trust, Testimony and Reasons for Belief', in Epistemic Duties. Scott Stapleford and Kevin McCain. Routledge. Co-authored with Andrew Reisner.

2020. 'The not-so-silent reading: literary aesthetic experience', in The Nature of Rhythm: Aesthetics, Music, Poetics. Andy Hamilton and Max Paddison (eds). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

2020. 'A Literary Aesthetic of Perfection and Imperfection', in The Aesthetics of Imperfection. Andy Hamilton and Lara Pearson (eds). London: Bloomsbury.