What is the name (and ideally some further reading) for the Aesthetics theory that a thing is beautiful if it achieves its goal?

Question

I'm listening to a podcast lecture by Michael Grant on Aristotle's poetics. The current topic is interpretations of Aristotle's theory that pleasure is derived from 'pity and fear'. One such interpretation is Susan Feagin's, that we derive pleasure because we are pleased to know we are sympathetic enough to feel sympathy for the pain to the person on stage. So,if we feel pain in sympathy, this gives us pleasure. The lecturer (James Grant) goes on to question how this could apply to fear, essentially conceding that it can't and moving on (its a fairly minor point in the lecture). **However**. I think that the theory *can* fit, if one takes pleasure in the *successful outcome of the function of the tragedy*. So, I feel pleasure, because I am pleased that the tragedy has succeeded in its goal of making me piteous *or* (crucially) afraid. What is the name of this theory? I think it is a strain of Aesthetic Functionalism, but I'm not sure.

Answer 1

Yes. And, later, the "Art for art's sake"s movement rejected all thinking like this.