I was reading through some of my lecture notes for a class I recently taught, and came across this definition of quality: how well something does what it’s supposed to do.
Of course, right next to that, I had noted Pirsig’s Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance to lend some confusion to that issue.
So it got me thinking – really, what is quality? There are so many attributes that point to it – how well something is made, the materials used in making it, how well it does what it’s supposed to do, how long it lasts. But in the end, I think a definition is elusive.
Dictionary.com lists a pretty large number of definitions, but many of them seem circular in reference, frequently referring to “being of high grade” or “excellence.”
Tying an item’s quality to pure function seems to miss a point. What if it only does that thing really well once? Is that a quality item?
I don’t have the answer to this one – I welcome your comments and suggestions.