ABSTRACT
A number of colleges of education, schools and teachers set great store by the notion of developing creativity, and most of us are familiar with the idea of creative maths, creative English or, more generally, creativity hours and creative activity lessons. When it is suggested that creativity is important, the philosopher’s first reaction is to want to know what is meant by the term. An obvious enough reaction, one would have thought, since though the word is impressive – it would be pleasant to be described as a creative thinker, for example – it is nonetheless mysterious and vague. What do I actually have to do to show that I am a creative thinker? How can we set about promoting creativity, how can we even be sure that it is important, unless we have a precise idea of what we are talking about? It is worth briefly illustrating just how out of control discussion can become when this task of elucidating meaning (conceptual analysis, as it is sometimes called) is ignored or hastily and imperfectly carried out.
