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CHOICE Review

One of a series of user-friendly philosophy texts, Ground's book attempts to rescue British philosophy from the doldrums by addressing the general reader. Carl Andre's Equivalent VIII, a "Late Modern" sculpture purchased in 1972, is the point of departure. Ground argues that the concept "work of art" deserves more discriminate application. Aesthetic interest is not an adequate criterion. Intelligibility, the blending of object and intentionality, is the essence of a work of art, rather than either visual experience or intention alone. Shifting the axis of the debate from art versus craft to art versus bunk is appropriate; not so the latent and mild condemnation of Late Modernism. Insofar as Ground's argument succeeds, it does so too early to sustain the length of the text. The author's tone, which risks being patronizing, is more instructive than genuinely enquiring. As a result, the book is primarily of interest as a stylish document of its time. Considerably less cultural education is presumed than by Richard Wollheim's Art and Its Objects (1968). Annotation following the chapters is limited but helpful; the short bibliography admittedly favors books in print. No index. Level: college and general readers. -P. Emison, University of New Hampshire