Since the beginning of the eighteenth century the philosophy of art has been engaged in the project of finding out what the fine arts might have in common, and thus how they might be defined. Peter Kivy's purpose in this very accessible and lucid book is to trace the history of that enterprise and then to argue that the definitional project has been unsuccessful, with absolute music as the continual stumbling block.

He offers what he believes is a fruitful change of strategy: instead of undertaking an obsessive quest for sameness, let us explore the differences among the arts. He presents five case studies of such differences, three from literature, two from music.

With its combination of historical and analytic approaches this book will appeal to a wide range of readers in philosophy, literary studies, and music, as well as to nonacademic readers with an interest in the arts. Its vivid style requires no technical knowledge of music on the part of the reader.