James Joyce quote about art from A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man - Art . . . is the human disposition of sensible or intelligible matter for an esthetic end.
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Art . . . is the human disposition of sensible or intelligible matter for an esthetic end.
 James Joyce, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1916). copy citation

Context

“—That was the first definition I gave you, you sleepyheaded wretch, said Stephen, when I began to try to think out the matter for myself. Do you remember the night? Cranly lost his temper and began to talk about Wicklow bacon.
—I remember, said Lynch. He told us about them flaming fat devils of pigs.
—Art, said Stephen, is the human disposition of sensible or intelligible matter for an esthetic end. You remember the pigs and forget that. You are a distressing pair, you and Cranly.
Lynch made a grimace at the raw grey sky and said: —If I am to listen to your esthetic philosophy give me at least another cigarette.” source

Meaning and analysis

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