--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Art for art's sake? I should think so…" description: "\"Art for art's sake? I should think so, and more so than ever at the present time. It is the one orderly product which our middling race has produced. I..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a46/e-m-forster-1118_art_art-for-art-s-sake-i-should-think-so-and_1107583.png" --- # Art for art's sake? I should think so, and more so than… ![“Art for art's sake? I should think so, and more so than ever at the present time. It is the one orderly product which our middling race has produced. It is the cry of a thousand sentinels, the echo from a thousand labyrinths, it is the lighthouse which cannot be hidden. It is the best evidence we…” quote by E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a46/e-m-forster-1118_art_art-for-art-s-sake-i-should-think-so-and_1107583.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a46/e-m-forster-1118_art_art-for-art-s-sake-i-should-think-so-and_1107583.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a46/e-m-forster-1118_art_art-for-art-s-sake-i-should-think-so-and_1107583.png) > “Art for art's sake? I should think so, and more so than ever at the present time. It is the one orderly product which our middling race has produced. It is the cry of a thousand sentinels, the echo from a thousand labyrinths, it is the lighthouse which cannot be hidden. It is the best evidence we can have of our dignity.” [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Art uniquely expresses humanity’s dignity and serves as an unhidden beacon of order. **In simple terms:** Art reveals human dignity. Key Takeaway Value and protect artistic expression. Themes art humanity dignity Mood inspirational thoughtful Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - education - public policy - personal growth Key Concepts aesthetics cultural identity Questions to Reflect On - How does art sustain dignity today? - What role does art play in societal order? A Different Perspective Art may be overlooked in modern chaos. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Cry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cry/) [Dignity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dignity/) [Labyrinth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/labyrinth/) [Lighthouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lighthouse/) [Present time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/present-time/) [Race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/race/) [Sentinels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sentinels/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Art for art's sake is dead, if it ever lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-steichen/art-for-art-s-sake-is-dead-if-it-ever-lived/) [Edward Steichen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-steichen/) > [I mean, art for art's sake is ridiculous. Art is for the sake of one's needs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/i-mean-art-for-art-s-sake-is-ridiculous-art-is-for-the-sake-of-one-s/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) > [There's no making art for art's sake. You've got to make the best art you can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gourley/there-s-no-making-art-for-art-s-sake-you-ve-got-to-make-the-best-art/) [John Gourley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gourley/) > [Art for art's sake is a philosophy of the well-fed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-lloyd-wright/art-for-art-s-sake-is-a-philosophy-of-the-well-fed/) [Frank Lloyd Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-lloyd-wright/) > [If an Artist love his Art for its own sake, he will delight in excellence wherever he meets it, as well in the work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-allston/if-an-artist-love-his-art-for-its-own-sake-he-will-delight-in/) [Washington Allston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-allston/) > [Although I do not care for the slogan "art for art's sake", there can be no question that what makes a work of fiction…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/although-i-do-not-care-for-the-slogan-art-for-art-s-sake-there-can-be/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [In art school we're always taught that art is an end in itself - art for art's sake, expressing yourself, and that that's enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-drooker/in-art-school-we-re-always-taught-that-art-is-an-end-in-itself-art/) [Eric Drooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-drooker/) > [It's not art for art's sake, it's art for my sake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-not-art-for-art-s-sake-it-s-art-for-my-sake/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The syllogism art for art's sake refers to that kind of painting which disregards, or is contrary to, public taste.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-j-phillips/the-syllogism-art-for-art-s-sake-refers-to-that-kind-of-painting/) [Walter J. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-j-phillips/) > [This idea of art for art's sake is a hoax.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/this-idea-of-art-for-art-s-sake-is-a-hoax/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [I know there are some labels that put out music for art's sake, but I don't know which ones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-know-there-are-some-labels-that-put-out-music-for-art-s-sake-but-i/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A public that tries to do without criticism, and asserts that it knows what it wants or likes, brutalizes the arts and loses its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/a-public-that-tries-to-do-without-criticism-and-asserts-that-it-knows/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [“Art for Art’s Sake is for the well fed. The well fed are all the babies in cradles and my kitty along with them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lara-biyuts/art-for-art-s-sake-is-for-the-well-fed-the-well-fed-are-all-the/) [Lara Biyuts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lara-biyuts/) > [The idea of "making art for art's sake" makes no sense for me. Each area of my life, all the roles I play, influences…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-sollee/the-idea-of-making-art-for-art-s-sake-makes-no-sense-for-me-each-area/) [Ben Sollee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-sollee/) > [Art for art's sake makes no more sense than gin for gin's sake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/art-for-art-s-sake-makes-no-more-sense-than-gin-for-gin-s-sake/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) ## More by E. M. Forster > [Do not be proud of your inconsistency. It is a pity, it is a pity that we should be equipped like this. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/do-not-be-proud-of-your-inconsistency-it-is-a-pity-it-is-a-pity-that/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Reverence is fatal to literature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/reverence-is-fatal-to-literature/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [This element of surprise or mystery - the detective element as it is sometimes rather emptily called - is of great importance in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/this-element-of-surprise-or-mystery-the-detective-element-as-it-is/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [It is so difficult - at least, I find it difficult - to understand people who speak the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/it-is-so-difficult-at-least-i-find-it-difficult-to-understand-people/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Railway termini are our gates to the glorious and the unknown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/railway-termini-are-our-gates-to-the-glorious-and-the-unknown/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Ah, but you see, I didn't want to be fair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/ah-but-you-see-i-didn-t-want-to-be-fair/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [The final test for a novel will be our affection for it, as it is the test of our friends, and of anything else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/the-final-test-for-a-novel-will-be-our-affection-for-it-as-it-is-the/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [America is rather like life. You can usually find in it what you look for It will probably be interesting, and it is sure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/america-is-rather-like-life-you-can-usually-find-in-it-what-you-look/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [A critic has no right to the narrowness which is the frequent prerogative of the creative artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/a-critic-has-no-right-to-the-narrowness-which-is-the-frequent/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [All men are equal — all men, that is to say, who possess umbrellas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/all-men-are-equal-all-men-that-is-to-say-who-possess-umbrellas/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Before the civil war, Pottibakia was a normal member of the Comity of Nations. She erected tariff walls, broke treaties, persecuted minorities, obstructed at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/before-the-civil-war-pottibakia-was-a-normal-member-of-the-comity-of/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Chess is a forcing house where the fruits of character can ripen more fully than in life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/chess-is-a-forcing-house-where-the-fruits-of-character-can-ripen-more/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [I distrust Great Men... I believe in aristocracy, though... Its members are to be found in all nations and classes, and all through the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/i-distrust-great-men-i-believe-in-aristocracy-though-its-members-are/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Liking one person is an extra reason for liking another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/liking-one-person-is-an-extra-reason-for-liking-another/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [We are not concerned with the very poor. They are unthinkable, and only to be approached by the statistician or the poet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/we-are-not-concerned-with-the-very-poor-they-are-unthinkable-and-only/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) [Explore all 287 E. M. Forster quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) Taf Teh > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Art for art's sake? 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