Richard Sennet's new book, The Craftsman, is getting a lot of media coverage, in the Guardian and the Telegraph, for a start. The quote comes from the Guardian's review, and is one of the "problems" with craftsmanship - the selfish pursuit of excellence, with disregard for market forces.His notion of craft is more than the 19th century idea of working with your hands - it's the desire to do something well for its own sake, to become skilled, to develop competence. The book starts with the example of a Linux programmer, not a carpenter among wood shavings. It's a different way of understanding things - going over and over them - practising.
Another problem with craftsmanship is the class divide - being a "worker" has long been seen as demeaning. The competence that craftsmen aim for and exemplify is invisible to people at the top; workmanship isn't valued. Sennet says (paid) work should be structured so that workers build up competence -- good idea!
"Competence and engagement - the craftsman's ethos - appear to be the most solid source of adult self-respect, according to many studies conducted in Britain and the US." Let's get practising.
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Richard Sennett gave a talk at the RSA in London last Monday.
The podcast of his lecture is on their web site (www.rsa.org.uk).
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