11/9/07 Arnold, “The Function of Criticism at the Present Time,” “The Study of Poetry”• Today beginning the last thread: what should we read? Primarily I mean by this a morespecific question: what should be included in the literary canon? What are the principlesby which the canon should be formed, and should we have a canon at all? However, I’vephrased this more generally to give us license to digress—to talk about what texts areimportant to us as individuals, or as humans, or as a society.• What is the canon?[Canon: those works and authors accepted by critics, scholars and teachers as“major”; what gets studied in classes and written about in books an journals. (Maybethese are contradictory!)]• today, 3 parts: 1st, get out Arnold’s ideas most pertinent to the canon, 2nd, talk aboutwhat kind of canon these ideas would lead us to, and 3rd, talk about whether we agreewith him• Why Arnold? Impossible to overstate how important Arnold is in Anglo-Americancriticism. Especially influential for New Critics and their fellow travelers—by extension,where we live.• What ideas of Arnold’s are most pertinent to the question of the canon? “The Function of Criticism”—about criticism, not the canon per se, but with profoundimplications1: “to see the object as in itself it really is” (415, 416)2: “a disinterested endeavour to learn and propagate the best that is known andthought throughout the world, and thus to establish a current of fresh and trueideas” (421, 427)• 3 parts:“disinterested”(421)—method; removed from practical and politicalconsiderations. 420: curiosity: “disinterested love of a free play of the mindon all subjects, for its own sake”“best that is known…”—criteria for judgment; not merely national;“current of fresh and true ideas”—purpose of criticism (and literature) inlarger context• how do we know the “best”? 428: “relation to a central standard” “Study of Poetry”1: “the best poetry is what we want” (430)2: must avoid “historical estimate” and “personal estimate” (430)3: touchstone method (432)4: sketchy attempt at criteria (434): truth and seriousness in matter and substance;diction and movement in the style and manner• what would a canon based upon these principles look like? 432ff: Homer, Dante,Shakespeare, Milton. 417ff.: not Romantics• what is admirable in this view? what is problematic?• possible to be disinterested?• how know the “best that is known and thought”? does the touchstone methodwork?‘Function of Criticism”415 see the object as in itself it really is[416 exercise of creative power in art not possible in all epochs; grand work ofliterary genius one of synthesis and exposition417ff: Romantics not great]420 curiosity; know the best that is known and thought throughout the world,without intrusion of any other considerations whatever421 disinterestedness422-3 Wragg428 subject-matter that criticism should most seek; relation to a central standard;not much great English lit; every critic should possess at least one great lit besideshis own; knowledge of Greek, Roman and Eastern antiquity, and one other lit“Study of Poetry”429-30 (discussion of poetry’s value)430 poetry as criticism of life430 best poetry is what we want; must avoid historical estimate and personalestimate431 point is enjoyment of classic, not mere knowledge432ff. touchstones433 better to have concrete examples; refuses to define (but 434 truth andseriousness in matter and substance and diction and movement in style