"A work of art that contains theories is like an object on which the price tag has been left"

Alexander Pope’s simile comparing a theory-laden work of art to an object with its price tag left on suggests that explicit intellectual frameworks can impede the experience of art. The price tag is not part of the object’s essence; it is a functional appendage revealing transactional information, not intrinsic value. In art, overt theoretical content can serve a similar role, reducing the piece to a demonstration of ideas rather than a direct, immediate encounter.

Art’s power often lies in its enigmatic quality, its ability to evoke, suggest, and stimulate thought without dictating what must be seen or felt. Theories, by contrast, are systems of explanation and rationalization. When these frameworks are visibly embedded within a creative work, they mediate and sometimes diminish the raw sensuous or emotional impact, converting a potentially profound experience into an intellectual exercise. The audience is subtly guided, or even forced, toward particular interpretations, as if reading a price tag instead of feeling the weight, texture, and beauty of the object itself.

Just as a price tag reminds one of an object’s commodity status, theory in art turns attention away from the experience and toward a kind of meta-commentary. This distances the observer from the artwork, inserting a barrier between the beholder and the object’s aesthetic presence. Encountering art unmediated by theory is akin to unwrapping a gift, the joy lies in discovery, not anticipation shaped by a label.

Pope’s observation warns against didacticism in art, advocating for the mysterious and the ineffable as the domain in which true aesthetic appreciation thrives. Art is most potent when it is felt more than explained, when its meaning, like the true value of an object, is discovered internally rather than imposed externally. Removing the "price tag" of explicit theory honors both the integrity of the work and the intelligence of its audience.