Hearing, seeing, touching, smelling, tasting - human and non-human beings access the world through perception. Without appropriately differentiated perceptual abilities, meaningful behaviour that meets the requirements of the respective environment would not possible. The extent to which life goes beyond environmentally adapted perception and behaviour depends on the type of organism and its sensory, affective, and cognitive abilities. Human beings have a rich potential of abilities. For them, too, environmentally sensitive perception ensures survival. In addition, it provides the experiential basis for interpreting a variety of human activities, forms of expression, interactions, sensitivities, and vulnerabilities.
Social conflicts are often sparked by differing opinions and judgements. Being together in a situation of perception and reflecting on the content of experience can help to resolve conflicts. The same applies to aesthetic, moral, and ideological differences of opinion: there needs to be a tangible sensory basis for everyone involved in order to be able to decide whether something is beautiful or ugly, disgusting or bizarre, generous or boastful; whether someone is ambitious and competitive, or lacking in empathy and envious; whether someone is convinced and committed to their cause; or acting fanatically and recklessly. As these examples show, perception is indispensable as a basis for experience. It is equally obvious that perception is linked to other, non-sensory abilities and activities: to remembering, feeling, fantasising, and judging; to comprehending ideas and values. If we want to understand how social, aesthetic, moral, and other types of dissent and conflict arise, and if we also want to understand how such conflicts can be overcome, we must first and foremost examine the cognitive power of human perception, including its deceptions, errors, and blind spots.
Against this background, the faculty's core research area - Perception: Episteme, Aesthetics, Politics - explores perceptual performances and (dys)functions on the basis of an expanded concept of perception. The spectrum of related research interests is spread across philosophical, (art) historical, musicological, literary, and linguistic research approaches. Questions on social change from the perspective of ageing and care research, as well as the digital humanities are also discussed. These research interests address the transformation and hybridisation of human perception in increasingly technologised environments.
What can the humanities, with their theorising, reconstructions, descriptions, and analyses contribute to the understanding of perception? What is the significance of perception in different scientific contexts, in the shaping and criticism of our society, and in the everyday experience of people in different historical epochs and cultures?