Density and Differentiation

Goodman's distinction between dense and differentiated symbol systems identifies the structural property that makes aesthetic cognition qualitatively different from non-aesthetic. A symbol system is syntactically dense when between any two characters there is always a third—a continuum with no gaps. A mercury thermometer is syntactically dense: between any two temperature readings there is an intermediate reading. A symbol system is syntactically differentiated (or articulate) when characters are separated by gaps—for any mark, it is theoretically possible to determine which character it belongs to. The printed alphabet is syntactically differentiated: 'a' and 'b' are distinct, with no intermediate letters between them. Goodman argued that aesthetic symbol systems are characteristically dense—painting, analog photography, the subtle gradations of poetic language—while scientific and logical systems are characteristically differentiated. Density demands a specific kind of attention: alertness to minute differences, sensitivity to infinitesimal variation, readiness to find significance in features so fine that a differentiated system would collapse them into the same category. This attentional demand is what gives aesthetic symbol systems their cognitive function—they yield understanding that