Poiesis and Experience

Dewey objects to the characterization of his study of Art as 'Aesthetics', because that term primarily applies to receptive processes, whereas his concept is of Art as interactivity. While 'Aesthetics' is suitable for most modern treatments, with their emphases on the perception of a work, Dewey's approach is more in line with Aristotle's seminal treatment. The latter is called 'Poetics', from 'poiesis', meaning 'making', and while Aristotle does explicitly state that his theory is meant to apply to all forms of Art, his focus is on the linguistic arts, of which the modern notion of 'Poetry' is a further narrowing. Still, the literal term 'Poiesis' is available to characterize Dewey's conception of Artistic activity, and, likewise, 'Poietic' can describe his conception of experiences, insofar as they entail Artistic elements. His Poieticization of Experience is, furthermore, a Poieticization of Pragmatism, bringing to light the conspicuous absence in Peirce's System of any explicit study of Art, one which might explain why Peirce falls short of noting that the inculcation of a habit is also a Poiesis of character. So, Dewey's development refines Kant's Practical turn, especially given the latter's reliance on the notion of Form, as a Poieticization of Humanity, a redefinition of Homo Sapiens as Homo Faber. Evolvementalism, continues that development, with a concept of Experience in which the Formal Principle is a fundamental component.