Only the Lover Sings: Art and Contemplation

by Josef Pieper

The popular and highly regarded Pieper speaks of the necessity for human persons to be able to contemplate and appreciate beauty to develop their full humanity. Pieper expresses succinctly that the foundation of the human person in society is leisure, free time in which one can contemplate, be receptive to being and its beauty.

"Joy is more profound than sadness, and our capacity to delight in what is mostly determines what we are. Josef Pieper's welcome guidance on leisure, festivity, and contemplation is the most secure and most exciting way to arrive at, and to delight in, the truth in things. Pieper teaches us through music, sculpture, and poetry to see the luminous beauty that reflects an origin deeper than themselves." - James V. Schall, S.J., Georgetown University

Table of Contents: Preface Work, Spare Time, and Leisure Learning How to See Again Thoughts about Music Music and Silence Three Talks in a Sculptor's Studio    Remembrance: Mother of the Muses    Those "Guests at the Festival"    Vita Contemplativa - the Comtemplative Life

Genres: Philosophy, Art, Nonfiction, Theology, Catholic, Spirituality, Christianity

76 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1990

About the author

Josef Pieper was a German Catholic philosopher and an important figure in the resurgence of interest in the thought of Thomas Aquinas in early-to-mid 20th-century philosophy. Among his most notable works are The Four Cardinal Virtues: Prudence, Justice, Fortitude, Temperance; Leisure, the Basis of Culture; and Guide to Thomas Aquinas (published in England as Introduction to Thomas Aquinas).

Reviews

[David Haines · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not sure how many times I have read this book (I have recorded reading it three times on Goodreads, but have read it so many more times). It gets better every time I read it, and the importance of this book is anchored more and more in my mind with every reading. This is a book to be read over and over again. Pieper reminds us that we have to open our eyes to see, and of the importance of really looking.

[Josh Bauder · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read this book nearly once a year ever since a friend gifted it to me at my high school graduation. Admittedly, that sounds more impressive than it is: Only the Lover Sings is actually five little talks and essays compiled into a thin volume with comfortable print and thick pages. It's a quick read, easily devoured in an afternoon (and maybe in an hour).

In addition to his knack for brevity, Pieper has, even in translation, all the clarity of CSL. In my view this is an essential read for anyone in the arts, and especially for Christians artists interested in avoiding both the ugliness of the radical avant-garde and the kitschiness of pop culture. In the first essay ("Work, Spare Time, and Leisure"), Pieper argues that human leisure, properly understood, is devoted to those activities that can serve as ends in themselves, including religious contemplation and feast-celebration (feasting is one of Pieper's favorite analogies for artistic experience, whether as a creator or an onlooker). The following essays are devoted to specific worthwhile artistic pursuits: visual art ("Learning How to See Again"), music ("Thoughts About Music" and "Music and Silence"), and sculpture ("Three Talks in a Sculptor's Studio"). The latter is a particularly effective closing essay, as it describes how art, when successfully executed, enables us to remember otherwise hidden aspects of reality. Pieper concludes by returning to his metaphor of art as the celebration of a feast, an act inseparable from both love and jubilation, and an act which affirms the goodness of the world, the self, and the divine order.

[Corbin Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a quick read with deep insights. It has stirred up deep contemplation in me.

A couple quotes I loved:
“Man’s true existential lack would be his inability to celebrate a feast in a truly festive fashion.”

“ubi amor, ibi oculus — the eyes see better when guided by love; a new dimension of ‘seeing’ is opened up by love alone!”

[Jeremy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent. Hope to use it in connection with a colloquium discussion on Pieper's Leisure: The Basis of Culture.

[Jake · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is easy to become fearful raising children in this current epoch of immense technological progress, when human nature seems up for grabs, or at least distorted. Little works like this are a balm for the soul when those fears arise. Pieper helps direct the attention back where it belongs. Not towards progress and advance for its own sake, but to a beautiful reality as it is now and as it will be.

"Contemplation will not be satisfied until blinded by the object of its ultimate desires."

[Kayleigh DiGiacomo · Rating 5 out of 5]

The discourses contained in this collection work together, unexpectedly. Each piece builds upon the next, culminating in the startlingly beautiful final section – “Three Talks in a Sculptor’s Studio” – which then reaches back to the first, leaving the reader with a nearly tidy (yet not simplistic) understanding of how leisure, feasting, silence, art, and contemplation are in conversation.

I’m beginning to recognize that a recurring and significant theme for Pieper is feasting, something that can exist only when we accept and affirm what is true. But before any of us can fully partake of affirming festivities, Pieper urges us to practice contemplation, which is to say – see, intensely.

While this act of seeing is especially important for artists as they labor to make visible what is invisible, Pieper seems to have had a much broader audience in mind when writing/speaking. As we contemplate what is before us, we arrive at a “sharper and more discerning understanding, a more patient openness for all things quiet and inconspicuous, an eye for things previously overlooked” (36). In a way, our eyes dig below surfaces to find that true, archetypal thing that is more transcendent than temporal.

But in beholding the transcendent, we are not to abandon the physical. Contemplation yields a “loving acceptance” and “an affectionate affirmation” of the whole person (75). Pieper’s point, I think, is we bring dignity to the earthy and broken by seeing with eyes that have been elevated, yet remain attentive to the present.

So, as we engage in loving contemplation, and as we affirm the truth, we feast. Indulging in something that is grander than the here and now, the soul billows.

[Michael Beck · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some interesting thoughts in seed form but too underdeveloped to be of help.

[Rachel N · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first dipping of my toe into Pieper did not disappoint. He requires a fully alert brain in a quiet environment, and only in small chunks. Just a few sentences hit with profundity and, admittedly, some of it requires another reading (or two or three) to really sink it. I'm officially a Josef Pieper fan and look forward to delving into more of his wisdom.

Read and discussed with my local homeschool mama friends - the best way to read Pieper.

[Joseph R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This slim volume of essays considers art from the perspective of the artist and the consumer of art. Pieper covers some of the same ground from his Leisure the Basis of Culture, where he distinguishes between work, which is always for some other purpose (e.g. to feed your family or to help your community), and leisure, which is an end in itself. Art is a quintessential leisure activity, or at least it should be. The artist contemplates the world and reflects that back in the works he or she produces. Thus the art is not just a copy of the real world but an interpretive understanding. The artist needs to see the world in an affirmative way in order to have great art. Perceiving the world negatively results in, at best, parody.

For consumers of art, the same is true. To appreciate the value and meaning of a work of art, the consumer needs to see the world in more than just a passing glance. Pieper talks about a trans-Atlantic voyage where he told other passengers about sea creatures only visible in the wake of the boat at night. The passengers reported the next day that they saw nothing the night before. They had only looked for a few minutes, not enough time for their eyes to adapt to let them see. Leisure, in a seeming paradox, requires some effort. The effort is well rewarded.

The book is very short (76 pages) but very full of wisdom and is well worth reading and re-reading slowly.

[Anne White]

Short, beautiful, profound.

[Isabella Leake · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit of a disappointment, to be honest. I was expecting more of a sustained discussion of music, but although all of the (brief) essays in this book have to do at least tangentially with art, only one of them focuses on music—and that discussion (asking the question What is music?) isn't all that remarkable.

One of the essays ("Learning How to See Again") offered some profound and exciting ideas. The rest were familiar fare from the much more dazzling and penetrating Leisure the Basis of Culture and In Tune with the World.

Pieper is incredibly insightful in discussing the need for art and transcendence of artistic experience, but I'm not sure he has much to say about the artforms themselves.

[Noah Scherer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fantastic little book. It focuses on what leisure is, what it is to truly see, and the importance of a contemplative lifestyle.
The first chapter is one of the most profound. It explains how leisure, defined as an activity that is meaningful in and of itself, is an activity that allows us to reach out in contemplation to experience what is really real. As a Christian, we understand that deepest reality to be God Himself. And we get to experience the presence of God in those moments when we take part in contemplating the realities of His great world—especially through art.
He explains it better than I do. Go read his little book rather than listen to me. Read it slow. Reread a sentence or two if you need to. It’s well worth the time.

[Josiah Edwards · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though "Leisure: The Basis of Culture" is by far the superior work, Pieper's "Only The Lover Sings" only suffers by being a collection of talks and essays as opposed to a continuous thought building upon itself (which this still does but not to the same degree.) There are still so many things to consider and contemplate in this work, including contemplation itself: "...contemplation is visual perception [not "thinking"] prompted by loving acceptance!"

[Rachael Shipard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Was concise and to the point but only scratched the surface. True art can only be created and appreciated if the soul is directed towards contemplating the divine, enabling us to peer into the eyes of God and the goodness of our individuality. I think having read Leisure the Basis of Culture really helped me to jump straight back into Pieper’s philosophy. I would’ve loved to hear Pieper lecture on contemplation as ‘the art of seeing’. Loved the Plato Republic references, but as a German he keeps bringing up Thomas Mann so i guess that’s on the list now

[SK Smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too heady and ephemeral for me. When you start using the word “primordial” i am out. Sorry

[Drew Norwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good, though it felt too brief. Many of the same themes are treated more fully in In Tune with the World and Leisure: The Basis of Culture.

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

"…to contemplate means first of all to see - and not to think!" (p. 73)

"…to see in contemplation…is not limited only to the tangible surface reality; it certainly perceives more than mere appearances. Art flowing from contemplation does not so much attempt to copy reality as rather to capture the archetypes of all that is. Such art does not want to make visible what everybody already sees but to make visible what not everybody sees." (. 74)

"…contemplation is visual perception by loving acceptance!" (p. 75)

"Konrad Weiss once remarked, 'Contemplation will not be satisfied until blinded by the object of its ultimate desires.' Such a statement leads us beyond the confines of this world." (p. 76)

[Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Josef Pieper once again rocks my world and makes me want to look at beautiful art and listen to classical music all day.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

SO GOOD. READ IT. IT'S SO SHORT. READ IT.

[Jessi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This little book deserves, or maybe requires, a few reads for me to really behold its beauty.

It is mainly about contemplating or seeing, and about modern man's lost ability to see.

He writes in 1952(!) about "visual noise...making clear perception impossible." In 1952!

"One might perhaps presume that TV watchers, tabloid readers, and moviegoers exercise and sharpen their eyes. But the opposite is true. The ancient sages knew exactly why they called the 'concupiscence of the eyes' a 'destroyer.' The restoration of man's inner eyes can hardly be expected in this day and age—unless, first of all, one were willing and determined simply to exclude from one's realm of life all those inane and contrived but titillating illusions incessantly generated by the entertainment industry."

In addition to abstaining from these inordinate desires of the eyes, as found in entertainment, he recommends "to be active oneself in artistic creation, producing shapes and forms for the eye to see." And says that by practicing to see, in order to create, "The capacity to see increases."

(The whole first section reminded me of Charlotte Mason also. She places a big emphasis on seeing as exercise.)


The hardest section for me was "Thoughts About Music" because I am so undereducated in music, but I loved the very next short section called Music and Silence.

My favorite section was Three Talks in a Sculptor's Studio. All three talks were beautiful.

In the first talk, in 1975, he retells the account of Pindar (500 BC I think) "of how Muses were born: the greatest of the gods, Zeus, had ordered the chaos of the world into the harmony of the cosmos, and all the other gods beheld in admiration the splendor before their eyes. After some time Zeus asked them whether they could think of anything missing. A long silence ensues. Finally, they answer: yes, something is missing; an appropriate voice is missing to praise this creation. And for this very purpose the Muses are brought into being; it is their task to sing the praises of all creation."

Later in the third talk in the sculptor's studio given in 1985, he says of "art flowing from contemplation," that "Such art does not want to depict what everybody already sees but to make visible what not everybody sees."

And more:
"The eyes see better when guided by love; a new dimension of seeing is opened up by Love alone! And this means contemplation is visual perception prompted by loving acceptance!
"I hold that this is the specific mark of seeing things in contemplation: it is motivated by loving acceptance, by an affectionate affirmation."

My name is Jessica and it means the Lord Beholds. I've loved the idea that God beholds me for years. I also like this task of mine to behold the Lord and his good world, and to do so in love. I think that's why this complex book speaks to me, even if I barely understand it.

[Glenn Landstrom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent, short read.

"The intent here is to make one thing clear: that music, the fine arts, poetry -- anything that festively raises up human existence and thereby constitutes its true riches -- all derive their life from a hidden root, and this root is a contemplation which is turned toward God and the world so as to affirm them."

[Jeroen Edward Callaert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Te herlezen.

[Reagan Dricken · Rating 3 out of 5]

Life is too short for coozies. Naked cans only

[Erin Nugent]

Best line:

"For man, to 'be' means to 'be on the way' – he cannot be in any other form; man is intrinsically a pilgrim, 'not yet arrived', regardless of whether he is aware of this or not, whether he accepts it or not. The object of this dynamism, the destination of this journey, the aim, therefore, of this becoming and the moving forces underlying it all, is the good."

[Bryce Pellegrin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was incredible. WOW. Deep philosophical thought. Cannot wait to share with Alyssa (not Tori).

[M · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read Pieper's Only the Lover Sings two or three times, not so much because it is difficult to understand (Pieper writes clearly, if a bit meanderingly), but because I found its words so consoling.

In these pages (only 76 of them!), Pieper offers a vision of how one might resist the 'totalitarian work state' that so many of us are besieged by. His view is that through the arts/culture, festivity, and leisure properly understood (i.e. are imbued with a 'loving acceptance' of the world - the receptive openness of the artist), we might be able to contemplate and thus 'behold the very essence of reality', in which lies our fulfilment. In this way, performing activities meaningful in themselves frees one from being a 'totally passive consumer of mass-produced goods and a subservient follower beholden to every slogan the managers may proclaim'.

Not everyone will agree with Pieper's views, which are laden with a Platonic metaphysics and a Thomist naturalism. And he has a rather narrow conception of art as that which points to, or rather, exalts reality. I'm not sure how much of contemporary art aims at that now.

But, if you are willing to grant Pieper these, I believe you will find this a rewarding read. I certainly did, especially in his reordering of the goods we should pursue; indeed, that contemplating and celebrating reality is first among these. Only the lover sings — only in having this 'disposition of acceptance and love' to the world can there be art, and only in art or activities meaningful in themselves do we find our good.

[Chris (thebookaholic) Padgett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Josef Pieper is a respected philospher and a powerful writer. He is a deep thinking man who makes of his writing an artistic expression. The depth of Pieper has not gone unoticed, and I dare say that this book is one which needs to be read by any working within the arts. The importance of this work can be hinted at with a few quotes: “To serve some other purpose is the essential characteristic of work.” (19). “The restoration of man’s inner eyes can hardly be expected in this day and age-unless, first of all, one were willing and determined simply to exclude from one’s realm of life all those inane and contrived but titillating illusions incessantly generated by the entertainment industry.” (33) Or, “The deal concerns “art”, created with uncommon technical skill yet entirely without substance, thriving only on the surprise it elicits by being outrageously novel and therefore unable to radiate any deeper meaning.” (63)

[Nathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

At first blush, disappointingly slight, repetitive of earlier works (Leisure - The Basis of Culture) and seemingly hobbled together by a publisher's will to crank out one more title. This dissipates with the magnificent closing triptych of mini-essays given at a friend's studio. With breathtaking simplicity, clarity, and gentleness, Pieper's short musings on artistic inspiration reach their own summit of ecstasy.

[Jana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I came across this book when I was searching up and down in the library for another title I never found. The title fascinated me since music has been instrumental (no pun intended) in my spiritual life for the last few years. It is a more "philosophical" read, but helps to explain what beauty does to us and why the arts (and particularly music...or was that just what I read in it?) moves us so.

[Titus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great work. I highly recommend this short meditative piece as it lends tremendous perspective to one's life and how to perceive (or try to perceive) beauty. I read this for a philosophy course and it only took me a few hours. Read it.