# A Theory of Virtual Worlds

LLMS index: [llms.txt](/dvw/en/llms.txt)

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It’s all very well for me to make these pompous assertions that serve to glorify my own position. Unfortunately for me, it takes

more than slapping a pretentious label on something to make it Art [^5]. Art may be expression, but it’s worthless unless it can be recognized as such. People don’t have to know what a piece of art “means,” but they do need to know how its meaning is conveyed. This requires the development of a critical aesthetic [^6].


[^5]: Exception: If an established artist slaps the label on, then it is art.
[^6]: I apologize unreservedly for the pretentiousness of this term. Regrettably, the alternatives are even worse, so we’re stuck with it.

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Section pages:

- [Motivation](/dvw/en/book/07-toward-a-critical-aesthetic/07-02-a-theory-of-virtual-worlds/07-03-motivation/)
- [Some Questions](/dvw/en/book/07-toward-a-critical-aesthetic/07-02-a-theory-of-virtual-worlds/07-04-some-questions/)
- [Template Theories](/dvw/en/book/07-toward-a-critical-aesthetic/07-02-a-theory-of-virtual-worlds/07-05-template-theories/)
- [Signs and Symbols](/dvw/en/book/07-toward-a-critical-aesthetic/07-02-a-theory-of-virtual-worlds/07-06-signs-and-symbols/)
- [Dimensions](/dvw/en/book/07-toward-a-critical-aesthetic/07-02-a-theory-of-virtual-worlds/07-07-dimensions/)
- [Whence the Symbols Come](/dvw/en/book/07-toward-a-critical-aesthetic/07-02-a-theory-of-virtual-worlds/07-08-whence-the-symbols-come/)
- [A Chemistry for Virtual Worlds](/dvw/en/book/07-toward-a-critical-aesthetic/07-02-a-theory-of-virtual-worlds/07-09-a-chemistry-for-virtual-worlds/)