Death of the Critic

Great little discussion of a new book, The Death of the Critic, by Ronan McDonald. (Thanks to Scott for alerting me to it over on Shocklines.)

http://www.salon.com/books/feature/2008/05/22/critics/index.html

As someone coming to fiction writing after a long career as an interpreter/critic, I definitely see the value of the critic, and would lament his death. I do think that the democratization of the process is a big obstacle to its continued success and relevance, but, like the discussants, I don't think it's insurmountable, and I do think there will always be readers, and all readers can be (not necessarily ARE, but CAN BECOME) intelligent, discerning readers.