The Mind of the Maker Paperback – September 23, 1987

This books was challenging to read. Dorothy Sayers is clearly a very intelligent person with great writing skills, reasoning skills and an astounding vocabulary. This book is not a quick read. It is a book that requires a lot of thought and concentration; your mind will get a marathon workout. You will need access to a really good and extensive dictionary (your Kindle will not do the job, neither will most other dictionaries). However, this book is worth the time and attention required to read it. Her section on the pitfalls of using a problem-solving approach to the issues of life is revealing and insightful. Defining life issues as problems oversimplifies the issue and assumes that finding a solution is necessary and achievable.

There is so much food for thought here, and so much I feel that I did not quite grasp. That is what makes for good reading, however. Who needs to read about things they fully understand? And so, I stretch...Sayers contrasts the mind of the human maker with that of the divine Maker and observes how each has a trinitarian aspect. The more I read on the subject of the Trinity, the more I realize that it is a necessity of the character of a loving God who is able to distinguish between things. Far from illogical, it is the only logical explanation for reality.

The Mind of the Maker, by Dorothy Sayers is a fascinating book that can be read on multiple levels. She starts by arguing that various statements found in orthodox Christian creeds about God the Creator are not merely arbitrary formulations; rather they proceed from an understanding of the nature of the creative mind of man. She then takes the argument a step further and asserts, “the Trinitarian structure which can be shown to exist in the mind of man and in all his works is, in fact, the integral structure of the universe, and corresponds, not by pictorial imagery but by a necessary uniformity of substance, with the nature of God, in Whom all that is exists.” In other words, the creativity which we find in any artistic human endeavor (whether writing, painting, working a garden or whatever) is there because it reflects the basic structure of reality.In support of her arguments, Dorothy Sayers spends the remainder of the work discussing the three aspects of the creative process (Idea, Energy and Power) and how they reflect the created order and the Creator. In simplistic terms, the three aspects of the creative process are:1. Idea, which is the initial concept of the thing to be (or being) created2. Energy, which is the work, the activity, the process of bringing into being what the idea represents3. Power, which is how the work is communicated to the world and it is also what produces a corresponding response to the work by those who see it.She spends a good deal of time refining and clarifying the meaning of these terms, and along the way has some incredible insights into the world in which we live.The book can be read as Apologetics in defense of certain Christian creeds. But, it can also be read on a purely secular level as a highly insightful discussion of the creative process. In either case, if read with an open mind, it is filled with amazing reflections on creativity.

An endearing and lucid attempt, mostly successfully so, to explain the Christian Trinity. As a student in school, when asking a priest to explain the concept of the Trinity, he would fold his hands in prayer and explain, "Why that's a holy mystery, son!" A spiritual enigmatic answer, but one that still begs explanation. Dr. Sayers has done so magnificently with welcome wit and analogies, so that all one needs for firmly believing is faith - not a simple demand, but a fulfilling kernel once popped!

I'd been wanting to read this book for years, but was rather disappointed in the end. Sayers makes some interesting observations, but I didn't find her main thesis convincing: the Trinity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is found, metaphorically-speaking, in art, literature, and music. To whatever degree any member or members of the Trinity are over- or under-represented, the work of art will correspondingly be weakened. Only a work with all three members in balance will be completely satisfying.I also found some chapters far more compelling than others. Perhaps I'm at fault, not being clever enough for the subject, but only select sections kept my attention.

Fans of Chesterton and Lewis, particularly writers, will enjoy this exploration of the creative spirit by a master thinker. The style is consistently one of deep thought, though not obtuse.

Sayers starts with the orthodox concept of the Trinity and suggest that the mind of man as creator is analogous. By examining the mind of man as creator and the work he creates, we can acquire a better understanding of the Holy Trinity. While this might seem outlandish at first, it works! When you think about theological concepts just as concepts, they can be very hard to grasp. But Sayers uses concrete examples to illustrate theological concepts, and avoids the temptation to overextend her analogy. She concentrates mainly on the writer-creator, since she herself is a writer. Her insights on the creative process of writing are almost as interesting as the light they shed on the nature of God. These insights go well beyond the concept of the Trinity--she offers an interesting perspective on the existence of evil, free will, and much more. I've never read anything like this.

Read all of Dorothy Sayers books 30 ago, or so. They remain fresh, interesting, mysterious, and readable.

Beautifully written and makes a compelling and unusual argument, about both theology and the nature of creative intelligence. Dorothy Sayers writes in her usual brisk and witty and down to earth style but the ideas here are very profound and worth engaging with even if you don't eventually accept them. If you aren't interested in Christianity but are interested in the creative process, the book will still have a lot to say to you.

I don't know why this book was/is not required reading in literature and theology programs. The insight provided into the act of creating by humans and God (insofar as humans can understand God), the analogy with the Trinity, and the examples given from literature were stunning. Certainly there was more clarity in delivery and perception than I encountered in my course work over the years. This book is challenging but well worth the reading.

Needed as a text for a Systematic Theology course, it was the exact edition I needed and so does the job.

Questa sì che è una vera scrittrice. The Mind of the Maker è un libro che consiglio a tutti per capire veramente cosa succede nella testa di un creatore.

Mind of the Maker : please note and inform publisher that BOTH my copies ordered ( April 2016 and Aug 2016) have a printing error on page 39 of the book. Half the page is blank !