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Lecture Literary criticism - Lecture 26: Arnold’s Cannons of Criticism

Arnold defined criticism as “a disinterested endeavored to learn and propagate the best that is known and thought in the world.”The first principle of criticism ,according to Mathew Arnold ,is disinterestedness,which is to be attained by,keeping aloof from what is called the practical view of things”.The practical view so called ,id the view distorted by irrelevant considerations-political,social or religious. | Arnold’s Cannons of Criticism Arnold defined criticism as “a disinterested endeavored to learn and propagate the best that is known and thought in the world.”The first principle of criticism ,according to Mathew Arnold ,is disinterestedness,which is to be attained by,keeping aloof from what is called the practical view of things”.The practical view so called ,id the view distorted by irrelevant considerations-political,social or religious. Arnold lamented: “Our organs of criticism are organs of men and parties having practical ends to serve , and with them those practical ends are the first thing and the play of the mind the second;so much play of mind as is compatible with the prosecution of those practical ends is all that is ended” The critic must therefore ,be free from all prejudices.He should not favor this or that opinion,this or that form of art.He must be the same to all men.To be self-centered or self-willed is absolutely incompatible with useful criticism. The true ideal of | Arnold’s Cannons of Criticism Arnold defined criticism as “a disinterested endeavored to learn and propagate the best that is known and thought in the world.”The first principle of criticism ,according to Mathew Arnold ,is disinterestedness,which is to be attained by,keeping aloof from what is called the practical view of things”.The practical view so called ,id the view distorted by irrelevant considerations-political,social or religious. Arnold lamented: “Our organs of criticism are organs of men and parties having practical ends to serve , and with them those practical ends are the first thing and the play of the mind the second;so much play of mind as is compatible with the prosecution of those practical ends is all that is ended” The critic must therefore ,be free from all prejudices.He should not favor this or that opinion,this or that form of art.He must be the same to all men.To be self-centered or self-willed is absolutely incompatible with useful criticism. The true ideal of criticism is “disinterested objectivity”.The critic should have no strong bent in religion ,no special view in politics,no art of his own ,and no philosophy of his own,and no philosophic system to propagate,for all these things hinder ‘a free disinterested play of mind’ which alone can enable the critic to ‘dwell upon that is excellent in itself,and the absolute beauty and fitness of things.’To put it in the words of Scott James a critic”must be tolerant,dispassionate,balanced,curious,aware that “everything is possible and nothing certain”. Arnold recommends the study of the ancient Greek masters because they possess this quality of “disinterested objectivity” in an absolute degree. Disinterestedness ,then is the first and the greatest rule of criticism .With this goes knowledge.A critic cannot be disinterested unless he is well-equipped with knowledge-knowledge of the best that has been thought and said in the world- the best not from the stand point of a personal estimate or from .