The Citizen, the Baker, and the Candlestick Maker: What Democrats Can Learn from the Arts and Crafts and Slow Food Movements

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In many ways, the contemporary Slow Food movement is the heir to the early twentieth-century Arts and Crafts movement. Both movements believe that democratic societies should restructure their economic systems so as to ensure that workers and consumers are able to experience pleasure. In this article, I examine how prominent advocates of artisanal crafts understand the relationship between democracy, economics, and pleasure. Drawing on the ideas of William Morris, Ellen Gates Starr, Carlo Petrini, Wendell Berry, and Barbara Kingsolver, I argue that democracy societies should encourage joyful labor and ensure universal access to material objects that enrich daily life. I also, however, conclude that democrats who are inspired by the Arts and Crafts and slow food movements must make more of an effort to ensure that their understanding of pleasure is inclusive.