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Title: The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World (Vintage)
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Manufacturer: Vintage
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| The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World (Vintage) by Vintage Information about this edition | I may do an actual review later after some more reading, but some people may want to know, as I did, what relationship this book has to some other slightly differently named books by Lewis Hyde that were published under starting name "The Gift".
On the copyright page it states: Originally published in hardcover as "The Gift: Imagination and the Erotic Life of Property" in a slightly different form in the United States by Random House, Inc., New York, and published in paperback in a slightly different form in the United states by Vintage Books, a division of Random House, Inc., New York in 1983.
Update #1: This edition has a three page preface from 2007. It also has a 16 page chapter from 2007 entitled "On Being Good Ancestors: Afterword to the Twenty-fifth Anniversary Edition". | | The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World (Vintage) by Vintage A Classic | | The main notion of THE GIFT is that works of art must be permitted to flow through their own creative economy, affected by but not restricted by the world's market economy. The book itself has functioned this way, recommended by one writer or artist to another since it first appeared in the early 1980s. Twenty-five years later, it's as pertinent as ever. Hyde's wide range of references, from anthropological sources to lit-crit and biography of Whitman and Pound, is itself an amazing show -- not only of erudition, but of a kindled knowledge. THE GIFT is a variety show for artists, suggesting by way of all sorts of material how the writer and creator can survive in a mercantile world. There's an interesting perspective of the book at [...], and recently the major literary sections of UK publications, like The Guardian, have covered this new issue of THE GIFT. That's because the book has just now been released in the UK for the first time. | | The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World (Vintage) by Vintage splendidly thoughtful almost philosophical | well so far so good, I have not finished this book yet. it is a bit long for me, not being much of a book finisher. But it is a nice slow read if you keep with it. it makes me think alot and it takes me a while to apply some of his persectives to my life. Ah but when I do! it is a very rewarding experience and truly gets me far more excited about the digging through the rest of this book. It is a bit to filled with old world tales or obscure facts about the unusual scitzophrenic rate in scottland for my tastes. Yet these stories do work and I am reminded of my philosophy 101 teacher who said, "you can tell by how well someone can illustrate something, how well they understand what they are tallking about", so over illustration is not a bad thing to me, because I do sense and feel how deeply this author believes in what he is talking about. You get the feeling he spent his whole life thinking about it. The tone reminds me of listening to my beloved father inlaw who grew up driving tractors at 11 yrs old Nebraska. The authors heart like my Father inlaws heart is the real gem of this book. I did not major in philosophy, but this feels like my kind of philosophy. the book does stick to its promise to encourage bedroom musicians and artists struggling with their place in a capitalistic world.
If you need some wholesome optimism, I can say it is working for me.
"Freely you have recieved, Freely give" maybe easier than you think.
| | The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World (Vintage) by Vintage Product Description | | By now a modern classic, The Gift is a brilliantly orchestrated defense of the value of creativity and of its importance in a culture increasingly governed by money and overrun with commodities. Widely available again after twenty-five years, this book is even more necessary today than when it first appeared. An illuminating and transformative book, and completely original in its view of the world, The Gift is cherished by artists, writers, musicians, and thinkers. It is in itself a gift to all who discover the classic wisdom found in its pages. |
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