The challenge is to meet the text with generosity
6 July 2024 at 03:58
Generosity, commensurability, conversationβhow calm, how dispassionate these words can seem. They do not, however, mean that the critic must be uncritical or mild-mannered. Far from it. It would be wrong to confuse generosity with approval, or commensurability with inattention. Being generous does not mean ignoring a friend's lapses. Nor does it mean maintaining a perfect equanimity, a composure so thoroughgoing that it shades into neutrality or indifference or, worse, into a laissez-faire injunction to simply let people enjoy things. from The Critic as Friend by Merve Emre [The Yale Review]