CFP: Eidos. A Journal for Philosophy of Culture: Volume 7: no. 2/2023 - The Power of Taste [EXTENDED DEADLINE: June 30st, 2023]

There is no doubt the category of taste is among the most important categories for philosophical reflection on culture. As much as there is no doubt that culture as such is permeated by phenomena either articulated in, constituted, or simply recognized by taste. In the common, everyday language, “taste” is often treated as being synonymous with “preference,” “fashion,” and “style” even though these four categories clearly are not synonyms. Does the category of taste refers to a particular, clearly distinguished realm of phenomena and a semantic field correlated with the former? Or is it simply the most general of all mentioned above categories?

On the one hand, there is a tendency to limit the meaning of the concept of taste to a particular kind of sensations. In this way it becomes levelled down to a purely physiological category. As we know humans can distinguish five types of taste (i.e., bitter, salty, sour, sweet, umami) by using their taste buds. But can we say that the way taste buds work have autonomous character, working as if beyond or before culture and different nutritional customs? 

On the other hand, the category of taste gets a much broader and more fundamental sense – it becomes an axiological category related to all human activities. As we can read, for example, in Urban Dictionary: “Taste – an expression meaning something is excellent, cool or otherwise good.” In this sense it is identical with “the highest form of praise possible for an individual/object/activity.” However, it should not be identified with an arbitrary caprice (it seems that nowadays it is too hastily reduced either to ever more sophisticated sensations, or simply to fashion). Rather it should be based on a particular kind of axiological sensitivity, on a well-developed capacity to recognize the value of objects, persons, and their acts. As such – as we know already from Immanuel Kant – taste is always grounded in a certain (at least implicit) community of understanding. Thus understood it can be an effective tool for orientation in contemporary culture where all ethical frameworks appear as either too oppressive (as Nietzsche had already diagnosed) or too transient. Furthermore, taste has a magical power of connecting sensual and spiritual dimensions of ourselves.

In this issue of Eidos. A Journal for Philosophy of Culture we want to analyze the whole plurality of meanings of the category of taste, to point out all spheres where it is and/or should be operative – from physiology to axiology, from food to artistic creations, from fashion to intellectual activity and its effects. We want also reflect on the status of taste: is it purely subjective, objective, relational, or relative and always (culturally) contextualized? We invite submissions offering analysis of these and other topics.

As an academic journal we expect well-researched, in-depth analyses fulfilling the standards provided for academic contributions. In accordance with the profile of our journal we are open not only to purely philosophical essays but also to contributions from other cultural disciplines. Papers should be submitted by April 30, 2023 to: [email protected]

They have to be previously unpublished and they cannot be under consideration for publication elsewhere. They should be prepared for a double-blind review process. Please, make sure that your paper complies with our submission standards which are posted here: https://eidos.uw.edu.pl/submissions/

https://eidos.uw.edu.pl/