Book Review: John Carey, What Good Are the Arts?

Authors

Hayden Ramsay, University of Notre Dame AustraliaFollow

Publication Details

Ramsay, H. (2006). Book Review: John Carey (2005), What Good Are the Arts? London: Faber and Faber. New Blackfriars, 87(1007), 103-105. doi: 10.1111/j.0028-4289.2006.0130e.x

Abstract

John Carey’s book is a marvelous read. It is beautifully written, the argument is lucid, it assembles some fascinating evidence and calls for debate on one of the few social topics on which practitioners and philosophical thinkers tend to speak the same language. I learned much from the book; I also disagreed with quite a bit of it. But Carey has provided such a useful service that criticism must be continuing the argument, not trying to undermine it.

Keywords

Peer-reviewed