Janelle B.

Donesa August 20, 2019

Reflection Paper on Stecker’s Article

Art—a three-letter word that has fascinated and frustrated the philosophical mind for centuries. It

is used to describe beautiful paintings, performances, and literature, but what is it exactly? Is it an outlet

for the emotions, a mode of communication, or a pleasurable experience? I honestly do not know. I have

used the term ‘art’ so often that defining it has seemed unnecessary. However, my perspective changed

after reading Stecker’s ‘Definition of Art’. I expected the article to be a mere formality, an introduction to

the real lesson. You could imagine my surprise when I discovered that even well-renowned intellectuals

could not arrive at a single, satisfying definition of art. At the end of my reading, I realized that I myself

could not define ‘art’. It is too broad a concept. This is not to say that it cannot be defined, but rather that

the meaning of art cannot be confined to one technical definition.

In his article, Stecker poses as an objective critic, going so far as to criticize his own definition of

art, but does not actually define it. From Plato to Stecker himself, the entire text simply presented a

chronological enumeration of their attempts. To be fair, they were not entirely incorrect. Nevertheless,

Stecker argues that the question of what art is differs from the question of what qualifies something as

‘art’. His reasoning renders their definitions as merely philosophical theories which give rise to more

questions and not enough answers. When I was halfway through the reading, it became clear to me that

Stecker had no intention of defining art in a single, encapsulating statement/s. In fact, he seemed

dedicated to pointing out the flaws and circularities of each attempt to do so. I found his zeal for

indefinability somewhat frustrating. In spite of that, I persevered and am glad that I did.

Although confusing, Stecker’s article helped me realize that the essence of art cannot be fully

contained by a stagnant, dictionary definition. Restricting it to just one might not capture its entirety. In

the final section of the article, Stecker writes “Anything can be art…”. I agree with him. While there is no

official consensus of what art truly means, I believe that appreciating what we all agree to be art will be a

better use of our time. At the end of the day, the spirit of the word is more important than the letter.