How does information influence the pleasure we derive from an experience?
In 2007, a scruffy guy in a baseball cap went down into a Washington, D.C., metro stop with a violin. He set up his case, put in a few coins and started to play. He fiddled for 45 minutes. Over 1,000 people passed him, and he earned 32 bucks. Not bad. That's about average for a subway musician.
But this guy was actually Joshua Bell, one of the best violinists in the world. A few nights before that subway performance, he had played Boston Symphony Hall, and you can bet he made a lot more than 32 bucks.
My next guest tells that story in his new book "How Pleasure Works," and he asks the question: why didn't people recognize his music as great art when Bell was playing in the subway? He says the reason why people enjoy things like music, art, sex and food are more perverse than we may think...
Dr. Paul Bloom is a professor of psychology at Yale University and author of the book "How Pleasure Works: The New Science of Why We Like What We Like."
click to listen to interview - Science Friday (National Public Radio)I've heard Joshua Bell play live and have spoken with him briefly, so I'd like to think I'd recognize his playing and his face, even while rushing to catch a subway train. But with the weird acoustics and all the noise on a subway platform, I might not recognize him or the quality of his playing. I might just think the violinist was a very good student. Would I enjoy the playing more if someone informed me that the violinist was Joshua Bell? Probably.
I'm pretty sure I'd recognize cellist Yo Yo Ma within seconds. His style is unique. His playing is magical. I think if anyone else could play that well, I'd enjoy the experience equally. But the fact that it was Yo Yo Ma himself playing would surely make the moment more magical.
In the interview, Dr. Bloom cites other examples of how the pleasure we derive from an experience is biased by information. For example, people are more aroused if a nude photographed through a telephoto lens is identified as some famous actor. A wine tastes better if we're told it's expensive.
This may not be surprising to anyone, but is it rational? Your thoughts?
