The British were trying to increase the value of their exports! That's why they were interested in crafts. They wanted to colonize authenticity, and part of that was appropriation of crafts aesthetics. This extended to broad educational efforts by people like Henry Cole to cultivate public taste.

Sure, the ornamentation is nice, I understand the allure because it's a lost art. But Morris is so often diminished as just a decorator, and there is no historical context given of the larger movements of socialism and British medeivalism in which he was involved.

The author mentions Morris' press published 23 of his own works but mentions nothing about the content of those works. Instead, the focus is on the craftsmanship of the Chaucer book, which was the work of several different artists and experts.

No, you don't need a PhD in ethics, but your utterances should indicate at least a cursory critical exploration of the contradictions present in design.