Music as an Apprenticeship for Life: John Dewey on the Art of Living

Abstract

As debate about arts education continues to intensify, arguments defending the intrinsic value of the arts are eclipsed by arguments defending the arts as instru- mentally valuable. This development is unsurprising if one considers the psycho- logical force of our practical interests and the usefulness of anything which contributes to their fulfillment. Thus, it is reasonable for individuals to favor the arts if it can be demonstrated that they advance such practical interests as academic achievement, democratic citizenship, and innovative design. My intention is to resist such a trend by offering a robust defense of the arts as intrinsically valuable, drawing upon John Dewey’s philosophy of art and, more specifically, music. Maxine Greene (2001), a preeminent interpreter of Dewey’s philosophy of art, stresses the role of aesthetic experience in initiating new ways of seeing, feeling,...