The critic as anti-philosopher: Essays & papers

by F. R.; Singh Leavis

"I believe in the critic?s business," Leavis remarks with some irony. His concerns here are with the problems and predicaments of contemporary civilization, the idea of the university as a creative center for an educated public, and the nature of thought as it occurs and operates in creative writing.

222 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 1998

Reviews

[Matt Sautman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leavis belongs to an age of literary criticism wherein academic authority commonly expresses itself as deeply opinionated and uncompromisable. While this may be mildly to deeply agitating to the more pluralistically minded reader, this does not mean that Leavis does not relay some interesting points throughout this collection. Were one to politicize Leavis, he would come across as deeply conservative, holding the view that only 4 authors in all of literature truly matter as "greats," that incredibly few people have the natural capacity to become highly intelligent, and that the "great books" and liberal education are academic failures. As biting as these and other criticisms may be, Leavis also situates himself within a view that stresses the importance of an interdisciplinary co-presence and that literary critics function not as someone who seeks to understand the entirety of truth, but who recognizes not all truth may be attained. The book serves well for those interested in more traditional variants of literary theory and those who seek an intelligent text to argue against.