Stephen Davies

Stephen John Davies is a philosopher associated with the University of Auckland in New Zealand, holding the position of Distinguished Professor of philosophy. His scholarly work is largely concentrated in the field of aesthetics, with a particular focus on the philosophy of music. However, his research interests also extend to political philosophy. Davies has held significant leadership roles within philosophical societies, including serving as president of the American Society for Aesthetics from 2007 to 2008 and leading the New Zealand division of the Australasian Association of Philosophy in 2001. His academic contributions were recognized in 2009 when he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand. Early in his career, Davies published influential work on the expression of emotion in music, developing a literalist theory that music expresses emotion through resemblance to human emotional expressions, drawing inspiration from observations of physical gesture and even animal expressions. He also maintains a research interest in ethnomusicology, with a specific focus on the aesthetics of Balinese music.