Carolyn Wells Quotes

Criticism is like many other things, it drags along after what has already been said and doesn't get out of its rut.

The practice of "reviewing"... in general has nothing in common with the art of criticism.

If people want to criticize a performance, that I understand. I think that's important.

Let us consider the critic, therefore, as a discoverer of discoveries.

I believe in criticism.

Your criticism may be worse than the conduct you are trying to correct.

A critic is a gong at a railroad crossing clanging loudly and vainly as the train goes by.

Criticism is like champagne, nothing more execrable if bad, nothing more excellent if good.

If you pay attention to good critics, you have to listen to the bad. So you have to ignore them all really. You can't just cherry pick the glowing ones.

But what is criticism? Criticism is purely destructive; anyone can destroy, but not everyone can build up.

My mother didn't raise me to be a critic, but I seem to have become one anyway.

Worship the spirit of criticism. If reduced to itself it is not an awakener of ideas or a stimulant to great things, but, without it, everything is fallible; it always has the last word.

Take heed of critics even when they are not fair; resist them even when they are.

The critic should describe, and not prescribe.

Don't just crit their siticising.

Good critical writing is measured by the perception and evaluation of the subject; bad critical writing by the necessity of maintaining the professional standing of the critic.

Critics have their purposes, and they're supposed to do what they do, but sometimes they get a little carried away with what they think someone should have done, rather than concerning themselves with what they did.

I don't delve too deep into reviews.

I don't read the critics.

The strength of criticism lies in the weakness of the thing criticized.

Those who do not read criticism will rarely merit to be criticised.

I am grateful for even the sharpest criticism as long as it addresses the point.

All criticism is constructive.

Criticism is fine and conversation is fine, but the person who's criticizing should know what they're saying and whom they're criticizing.

You have to accept the criticism but you also have to consider how much of what is said and written is actually true.