These “shrewd, beautifully written, ‘tough-minded’ essays” (William Arrowsmith) by the author of The Banquet Years and Forbidden Knowledge focus on the often disputed contributions of modern art and literature to contemporary thought. Cutting across the lines of artistic, literary, political, and social culture, Shattuck engages such topics as the role of the individual artist, the dynamics of art movements, and the nature of consciousness. The essays range from his celebrated analyses of Dada and the 1935 International Writers’ Congress to fresh studies of Monet, Magritte, and the art writings of Meyer Schapiro.

“Enlightening and witty” (The Nation).