There is no virtue in being uncritical; nor is it a habit to which the young are given. But criticism is only the burying beetle that gets rid of what is dead and since the world lives by creative and constructive forces and not by negation and destruction it is better to grow up in the company of prophets than of critics.
There is no defense against reproach but obscurity; it is a kind of concomitant to greatness as satires and invectives were an essential part of a Roman triumph.
The legitimate aim of criticism is to direct attention to the excellent. The bad will dig its own grave and the imperfect may safely be left to that final neglect from which no amount of present undeserved popularity can rescue it.
To laugh often and much; To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; To earn the approbation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; To appreciate beauty; To find the best in others; To give of ones self; To leave the world a bit better whether by a healthy child a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; To have played and laughed with enthusiasm and sung with exultation; To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived This is to have succeeded.
We need very strong ears to hear ourselves judged frankly and because there are few who can endure frank criticism without being stung by it those who venture to criticize us perform a remarkable act of friendship for to undertake to wound or offend a man for his own good is to have a healthy love for him.
Our souls may lose their peace and even disturb other peoples if we are always criticizing trivial actions which often are not real defects at all but we construe them wrongly through our ignorance of their motives.
It is especially important to encourage unorthodox thinking when the situation is critical: At such moments every new word and fresh thought is more precious than gold. Indeed people must not be deprived of the right to think their own thoughts.
Let the refining and improving of your own life keep you so busy that you have little time to criticize others.
The pleasure of criticizing takes away from us the pleasure of being moved by some very fine things.
Your manuscript is both good and original; But the part that is good is not original And the part that is original is not good.
This is not a novel to be tossed aside lightly. It should be thrown with great force.
There is no virtue in being uncritical; nor is it a habit to which the young are given. But criticism is only the burying beetle that gets rid of what is dead and since the world lives by creative and constructive forces and not by negation and destruction it is better to grow up in the company of prophets than of critics.
You puff the poets of other days The living you deplore. Spare me the accolade: your praise Is not worth dying for.
There is no defense against reproach but obscurity; it is a kind of concomitant to greatness as satires and invectives were an essential part of a Roman triumph.
The public is wiser than the wisest critic.
Critics are like eunuchs in a harem; they know how its done theyve seen it done every day but theyre unable to do it themselves.
CRITIC n. A person who boasts himself hard to please because nobody tries to please him.
The legitimate aim of criticism is to direct attention to the excellent. The bad will dig its own grave and the imperfect may safely be left to that final neglect from which no amount of present undeserved popularity can rescue it.
Try to relax and enjoy the crisis.
Unjust criticism is usually disguised compliment. It often means that you have aroused jealously and envy. Remember that no one ever kicks a dead log.
I do not resent criticism even when for the sake of emphasis it parts for the time with reality.
I criticize by creation not by finding fault.
Criticism like rain should be gentle enough to nourish a mans growth without destroying his roots.
Never trust a man who speaks well of everybody.
You know who critics are?the men who have failed in literature and art.
To laugh often and much; To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; To earn the approbation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; To appreciate beauty; To find the best in others; To give of ones self; To leave the world a bit better whether by a healthy child a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; To have played and laughed with enthusiasm and sung with exultation; To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived This is to have succeeded.
So Two cheers for Democracy: one because it admits variety and two because it permits criticism.
Criticism is more effective when it sounds like praise.
Asking a working writer what he thinks about critics is like asking a lamp-post how it feels about dogs.
Dont abuse your friends and expect them to consider it criticism.
Honest criticism is hard to take particularly from a relative a friend an acquaintance or a stranger.
Persecution is the first law of society because it is always easier to suppress criticism than to meet it.
I saw this show under adverse circumstances–my seat was facing the stage. [On Three Guys Naked from the Waist Down.]
Few persons have sufficient wisdom to prefer censure which is useful to praise which deceives them.
People who like this sort of thing will find this the sort of thing they like.
A wise skepticism is the first attribute of a good critic.
A drama critic is a person who surprises the playwright by informing him what he meant.
We need very strong ears to hear ourselves judged frankly and because there are few who can endure frank criticism without being stung by it those who venture to criticize us perform a remarkable act of friendship for to undertake to wound or offend a man for his own good is to have a healthy love for him.
People who like this sort of thing will find this is the sort of thing they like.
A book reviewer is usually a barker before the door of a publishers circus.’08-02-2010
The trouble with most of us is that we would rather be ruined by praise than saved by criticism.
Answer them [critics] with silence and indifference. It works better I assure you than anger and argument… .
I must be cruel only to be kind.
Pay no attention to what the critics say. A statue has never been erected in honor of a critic.
A drama critic is a man who leaves no turn unstoned.
Censure is the tax a man pays to the public for being eminent.
Seeds of faith are always within us; sometimes it takes a crisis to nourish and encourage their growth.
Our souls may lose their peace and even disturb other peoples if we are always criticizing trivial actions which often are not real defects at all but we construe them wrongly through our ignorance of their motives.
Don?t criticize your wife?s judgment look whom she married.
Flatter me and I may not believe you. Criticize me and I may not like you. Ignore me and I may not forgive you. Encourage me and I may not forget you
It is especially important to encourage unorthodox thinking when the situation is critical: At such moments every new word and fresh thought is more precious than gold. Indeed people must not be deprived of the right to think their own thoughts.
Criticism comes easier than craftsmanship.
A bad workman quarrels with his tools.