Does the Free Economy Stifle a Culture of Beauty?

Some critics of contemporary culture suggest that we cannot have a culture of beauty if we also have thriving capitalism, mass production and industrialization. Using many examples of art and architecture past and present, Clayton argues that it is man's understanding of the nature of the human person, of the cosmos and ultimately of God that are the most profound influences on the forms of the culture, for good or ill. Once we get these right, he suggests, far from stifling the growth of a culture of beauty, the free economy can be the most powerful instrument for its propagation.

Recommended Readings

• The Way of Beauty by David Clayton (Angelico Press)
• Centesimus annus by Pope St John Paul II
• further readings on page 2 of handout