The values of craft

"It's certainly possible to get by in life without dedication, but the craftsman exemplifies the special human condition of being engaged."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.