“[A critic] must hold on to the principle that the only reason for praising a work is that it pleases, and the way to develop his critical sense is to be more acutely aware of whether he is being pleased or not.”
— Philip Larkin
It sounds so simple, right? It sounds like a foregone conclusion. But it is surprisingly difficult for many critics to do this.
This reminds me of that Eve Babitz line you quoted, “So it turned out that power was the quality of knowing what you liked. An odd thing for power to be.”
And a line from Bryan Ferry
“You might as well know what is right for you,
And make the most of what you like to do,
For all the pleasure that’s surrounding you” (from The Thrill of It All)
I suspect that not knowing what pleases is an overlooked problem for lots of folks, not just critics.
Listening to some Harry Styles right now. I’m pretty sure he knows what he likes, critics be damned.