Kinaesthetic Empathy, Ethics and Care
A Phenomenology of Dance
Christine Leroy author Anna Pakes translator
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Taylor & Francis Ltd
Published:25th Jun '25
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
Kinaesthetic Empathy, Ethics and Care develops a philosophy of dance that highlights the psychological, aesthetic and ethical significance of dancer-viewer interaction in the moment of performance.
Leroy draws on phenomenology, psychoanalysis, dance studies and care ethics to analyse kinaesthetic empathy as a form of intersubjective performance. She shows how, in the contagion or interweaving between corporealities of dancer and viewer, each party supports or upholds the other in a process of mutual care. Dance movement involves a play with gravity which alleviates the weight of repressed desire and redefines the contours of the body-image, facilitating psychological self-repair. Through projection into the body of another, we can develop our independence and autonomy as subjects, even in the midst of relational being. Richly illustrated with theatre dance examples, Leroy’s argument develops a corporeal basis for ethics and reveals how a return to the moving body through dance helps lay the foundations for a more humane society.
This book will interest philosophers, dance researchers, care ethicists and care practitioners, as well as advanced students in these fields and general readers curious about the aesthetic and ethical potency of theatre dance.
"This is a text that resonates beyond the specificities of dance performance and has relevance for understanding all kinds of aesthetic encounters, and their ethical implications. Whether or not one ends by agreeing with the author’s central argument, this is a book that will challenge the reader to review their basic assumptions about the nature of care, and at the same time will certainly deepen understanding of the process of giving and receiving care. Leroy’s book makes a major contribution to the growing literature on care aesthetics, and the appearance of this translation should mean that her work assumes its rightful place at the centre of international debates in this fascinating field."
Martin Robb, Professor of Care Ethics and Culture at The Open University, UK, and host of the Careful Thinking podcast
ISBN: 9781032878560
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 250g
110 pages