--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In any period it is upon a very small…" description: "\"In any period it is upon a very small minority that the discerning appreciation of art and literature depends ... They are still a minority, though a l..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/f-r-leavis-49256_appreciation_in-any-period-it-is-upon-a-very-small-mi_3027750.jpg" --- # In any period it is upon a very small minority that the… ![“In any period it is upon a very small minority that the discerning appreciation of art and literature depends ... They are still a minority, though a larger one, who are capable of endorsing such first-hand judgement by genuine personal response.” quote by F. R. Leavis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/f-r-leavis-49256_appreciation_in-any-period-it-is-upon-a-very-small-mi_3027750.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/f-r-leavis-49256_appreciation_in-any-period-it-is-upon-a-very-small-mi_3027750.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/f-r-leavis-49256_appreciation_in-any-period-it-is-upon-a-very-small-mi_3027750.jpg) > “In any period it is upon a very small minority that the discerning appreciation of art and literature depends ... They are still a minority, though a larger one, who are capable of endorsing such first-hand judgement by genuine personal response.” [F. R. Leavis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-r-leavis/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Only a small, discerning minority truly appreciates art and literature, though this group is growing. **In simple terms:** Few truly appreciate art. Key Takeaway Cultivate deeper appreciation. Themes art appreciation elitism culture Mood introspective educational Type critical analytical When to use this quote - education - museum visits - reading groups - null Key Concepts aesthetic theory literary criticism Questions to Reflect On - How can you expand your appreciation? - What barriers limit broader understanding? A Different Perspective Not everyone can engage deeply. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Appreciation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appreciation/) [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art And Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-and-literature/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Capable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capable/) [Depends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/depends/) [Depends Minority](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/depends-minority-4931462/) [Discerning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discerning/) [Endorsing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/endorsing/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Genuine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genuine/) [Gratitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gratitude/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [Judgement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judgement/) [Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature/) [Literature Depends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature-depends-3574474/) [Minorities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minorities/) [Minority Discerning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minority-discerning-4931461/) [Minority Larger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minority-larger-2150867/) [Periods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/periods/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Response](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/response/) [Small Minority](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/small-minority-1098963/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) ## Related quotes > [One of the issues we face here in San Francisco and Silicon Valley is a sense that the people all around us are as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caterina-fake/one-of-the-issues-we-face-here-in-san-francisco-and-silicon-valley-is/) [Caterina Fake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caterina-fake/) > [I have been raised to believe in freedom of thought and speech. If a minority wishes to accept that position it's their right. What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/i-have-been-raised-to-believe-in-freedom-of-thought-and-speech-if-a/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) > [Well, they each seem to do one thing well enough, but fail to realize that literature depends on doing several things well at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/well-they-each-seem-to-do-one-thing-well-enough-but-fail-to-realize/) [Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/) > [...our enjoyment of the great works of literature depends more upon the depth of our sympathy than upon our understanding.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/our-enjoyment-of-the-great-works-of-literature-depends-more-upon-the/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [“Perhaps if by chance I was seen arranging the shop window in my underpants, some lady in need of strong literary emotions would be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/perhaps-if-by-chance-i-was-seen-arranging-the-shop-window-in-my/) [Carlos Ruiz Zafón](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/) > [“Many scholars forget, it seems to me, that our enjoyment of the great works of literature depends more upon the depth of our sympathy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/many-scholars-forget-it-seems-to-me-that-our-enjoyment-of-the-great/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [Those individuals who give moral considerations a much greater weight than considerations of expediency represent a comparatively small minority, five percent of the people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-szilard/those-individuals-who-give-moral-considerations-a-much-greater-weight/) [Leo Szilard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-szilard/) > [The society of organizations is new-only seventy years ago employees were a small minority in every society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/the-society-of-organizations-is-new-only-seventy-years-ago-employees/) [Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/) > [Persons of genius, it is true, are, and are always likely to be, a small minority; but in order to have them, it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-stuart-mill/persons-of-genius-it-is-true-are-and-are-always-likely-to-be-a-small/) [John Stuart Mill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-stuart-mill/) > [I am in a small minority as a black female with a disability. But I've shown that even with conditions like MS, it's not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kadeena-cox/i-am-in-a-small-minority-as-a-black-female-with-a-disability-but-i-ve/) [Kadeena Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kadeena-cox/) > [ We \[on the left\] have to be used to being a minority -- a small minority -- for some time to come. The odd… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/we-on-the-left-have-to-be-used-to-being-a-minority-a-small-minority/) [Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) > [Chess only appeals to quite a small minority. It does not have the cachet of a mainstream popular sport.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/magnus-carlsen/chess-only-appeals-to-quite-a-small-minority-it-does-not-have-the/) [Magnus Carlsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/magnus-carlsen/) > [It is a very small minority point of view and I think, through continuing to set the tone of tolerance, acceptance, and diversity, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-clark/it-is-a-very-small-minority-point-of-view-and-i-think-through/) [Helen Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-clark/) > [The truly and deliberately evil men are a very small minority; it is the appeaser who unleashes them on mankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/the-truly-and-deliberately-evil-men-are-a-very-small-minority-it-is-2/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [The arts have only ever interested a small minority of people, which acted as a kind of nursery to support artists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivienne-westwood/the-arts-have-only-ever-interested-a-small-minority-of-people-which/) [Vivienne Westwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivienne-westwood/) ## More by F. R. Leavis > [The few really great-the major novelists ... are significant in terms of the human awareness they promote; awareness of the possibilities of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-r-leavis/the-few-really-great-the-major-novelists-are-significant-in-terms-of/) [F. R. Leavis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-r-leavis/) > [Poetry can communicate the actual quality of experience with a subtlety and precision unapproachable by any other means.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-r-leavis/poetry-can-communicate-the-actual-quality-of-experience-with-a/) [F. R. Leavis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-r-leavis/) > [It is well to start by distinguishing the few really great - the major novelists who count in the same way as the major…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-r-leavis/it-is-well-to-start-by-distinguishing-the-few-really-great-the-major/) [F. R. Leavis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-r-leavis/) > [The "great tradition" does not brook even the possibility of libidinal gratification between the pages as an end in itself, and FR Leavis's "eat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-r-leavis/the-great-tradition-does-not-brook-even-the-possibility-of-libidinal/) [F. R. Leavis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-r-leavis/) > [A good deal of Paradise Lost strikes one as being almost as mechanical as bricklaying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-r-leavis/a-good-deal-of-paradise-lost-strikes-one-as-being-almost-as/) [F. R. Leavis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-r-leavis/) > [The only way to escape misrepresentation is never to commit oneself to any critical judgement that makes an impact - that is, never to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-r-leavis/the-only-way-to-escape-misrepresentation-is-never-to-commit-oneself/) [F. R. Leavis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-r-leavis/) [Explore all 7 F. R. Leavis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-r-leavis/) ## More Appreciation quotes > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [Time can but make her beauty over again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/time-can-but-make-her-beauty-over-again/) [William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/) > [The writings of latter-day prophets clearly teach that the sorrows and sufferings endured by Adam and Eve upon their leaving the Garden of Eden…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-k-judd/the-writings-of-latter-day-prophets-clearly-teach-that-the-sorrows/) [Daniel K Judd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-k-judd/) > [Wine is one of the most civilized things in the world and one of the most natural things of the world that has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/wine-is-one-of-the-most-civilized-things-in-the-world-and-one-of-the/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [A very small percentage of the people in this world will actually experience and live today. So many people will be stuck on another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-maraboli/a-very-small-percentage-of-the-people-in-this-world-will-actually/) [Steve Maraboli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-maraboli/) > [Stop chasing the things you want and embrace all that you already have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/stop-chasing-the-things-you-want-and-embrace-all-that-you-already-have/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Appreciation is the purest vibration that exists on the planet today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-hicks/appreciation-is-the-purest-vibration-that-exists-on-the-planet-today/) [Esther Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-hicks/) > [“My thank-yous always come out rather labored. I often don't give them at all. People do what they're supposed to do and then wait…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/my-thank-yous-always-come-out-rather-labored-i-often-don-t-give-them/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“Like gratitude, authentic appreciation in the workplace is a realisation that can be nurtured and accessed with daily mindful practice. By and large, people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dines/like-gratitude-authentic-appreciation-in-the-workplace-is-a/) [Christopher Dines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dines/) > [Think of your mind, your emotions, and your spirit as the ultimate garden. The way to ensure a bountiful, nourishing harvest is to plant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/think-of-your-mind-your-emotions-and-your-spirit-as-the-ultimate/) [Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/) > [“Recognize and appreciate little things, and enjoy what Life has to offer”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-nikko-caharian-iii/recognize-and-appreciate-little-things-and-enjoy-what-life-has-to/) [Cesar Nikko Caharian III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-nikko-caharian-iii/) > [Men, when it comes to women, value diamonds and put no stock into copper. Diamonds are rare. You can find copper anywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enhance-dreams/men-when-it-comes-to-women-value-diamonds-and-put-no-stock-into/) [Enhance Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enhance-dreams/) > [“Everything we perceive to be solid and static is made up of almost entirely empty space.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-p-kauffman/everything-we-perceive-to-be-solid-and-static-is-made-up-of-almost/) [Joseph P. Kauffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-p-kauffman/) > [Be very slow to believe that you are wiser than all others; it is a fatal but common error. Where one has been saved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/be-very-slow-to-believe-that-you-are-wiser-than-all-others-it-is-a/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) [Browse all 2,528 Appreciation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appreciation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In any period it is upon a very small minority that the discerning appreciation of art and literature depends ... They are still a minority, though a larger one, who are capable of endorsing such first-hand judgement by genuine personal response.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "F. R. 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