I WANT to talk about the historical interpretation of literature — that is, about the interpretation of literature in its social, economic, and political aspects. To begin with, it will be worth while ...

J onathan Kramnick’s book Criticism and Truth is more modest than its title suggests. Essentially an apologia for the nuts-and-bolts work of literary studies, it is best described not as “ambitious” — ...

Of the character sketches that the English satirist Samuel Butler wrote in the mid-seventeenth century—among them “A Degenerate Noble,” “A Huffing Courtier,” “A Small Poet,” and “A Romance Writer”—the ...

THE value that men have set upon art and literature proves that these have ministered to some deep-seated and permanent human desire. What is this desire ? Or if there be more than one, which is the ...

What further guidelines can you derive from these examples of criticism versus feedback? Most people know not to give harsh criticism. We're dealing here with the subtle ways one can inadvertently ...

Constructive criticism can benefit professionals in every industry. Gaining a clearer perspective on their performance can help a person grow if they’re open to the input. However, there’s a ...

Many people struggle to handle criticism and perceive it as hurtful in many aspects of life — whether it’s coming from a partner, a parent, or even a boss at work — according to a PLOS One study, but ...

What is it about criticism that makes it so off-putting? Criticism and complaints convey a stance of what author Eric Berne used to call “I’m OK; You’re not OK.” No one wants to feel Not OK. So most ...