Abstract

Open peer commentary on the article “A Moving Boundary, a Plastic Core: A Contribution to the Third Wave of Extended-Mind Research” by Timotej Prosen. Abstract: I extend the conclusion of Prosen’s target article by sketching out what it could mean for an aesthetic object to constitute an extended mind. After providing two examples of a musically extended mind, I continue by closely investigating the classical form of the string quartet. I show that it acts as an external bound of viability by setting up a novel and specific kind of aesthetic experience of chamber music. By doing this I provide a clear example of what Prosen calls an “aesthetic catalyst.”