--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If critics say your work stinks it's…" description: "\"If critics say your work stinks it's because they want it to stink and they can make it stink by scaring you into conformity with their comfortable lit..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/jack-kerouac-182_art_if-critics-say-your-work-stinks-it-s-bec_2633956.jpg" --- # If critics say your work stinks it's because they want it… ![“If critics say your work stinks it's because they want it to stink and they can make it stink by scaring you into conformity with their comfortable little standards. Standards so low that they can no longer be considered "dangerous" but set in place in their compartmental understandings.” quote by Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/jack-kerouac-182_art_if-critics-say-your-work-stinks-it-s-bec_2633956.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/jack-kerouac-182_art_if-critics-say-your-work-stinks-it-s-bec_2633956.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/jack-kerouac-182_art_if-critics-say-your-work-stinks-it-s-bec_2633956.jpg) > “If critics say your work stinks it's because they want it to stink and they can make it stink by scaring you into conformity with their comfortable little standards. Standards so low that they can no longer be considered "dangerous" but set in place in their compartmental understandings.” [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Critics enforce conformity, lowering standards to avoid danger, stifling creativity. **In simple terms:** Critics push for safe, low standards. Key Takeaway Resist conformist criticism. Themes art creativity conformity Mood defiant thoughtful Type artistic philosophical When to use this quote - writing workshops - artistic communities - media reviews Key Concepts cultural criticism creative freedom Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance originality with standards? - What motivates critics to enforce conformity? A Different Perspective Some standards protect quality and safety. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Conformity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conformity/) [Critic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/critic/) [Critics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/critics/) [Dangerous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dangerous/) [Inspiring writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspiring-writing/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [Lows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lows/) [Make Stink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make-stink-1121505/) [Powerful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/powerful/) [Standards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/standards/) [Stink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stink/) [Stinks Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stinks-want-2212662/) [Understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understanding/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Want Stink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want-stink-2212663/) [Wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wisdom/) [Work Stinks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work-stinks-2212661/) ## Related quotes > [I dont want to write a book; I dont want to go on T.V., because I stink at it. The only thing I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patti-hansen/i-dont-want-to-write-a-book-i-dont-want-to-go-on-t-v-because-i-stink/) [Patti Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patti-hansen/) > [I don't want to write a book; I don't want to go on T.V., because I stink at it. The only thing I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patti-hansen/i-don-t-want-to-write-a-book-i-don-t-want-to-go-on-t-v-because-i/) [Patti Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patti-hansen/) > [Mac D-R-ebonics dope as chronic put to a beat and make it stink like vomit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mac-dre/mac-d-r-ebonics-dope-as-chronic-put-to-a-beat-and-make-it-stink-like/) [Mac Dre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mac-dre/) > [The only power that exists is inside ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/the-only-power-that-exists-is-inside-ourselves/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) > [Let others determine your worth and you're already lost, because no one wants people worth more than themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-v-brett/let-others-determine-your-worth-and-you-re-already-lost-because-no/) [Peter V. Brett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-v-brett/) > [Writers don't retire. I will always be a writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/writers-don-t-retire-i-will-always-be-a-writer/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [“The grandest seduction of all is the myth that DOING EVERYTHING BETTER gets us where we want to be. It gets us somewhere, certainly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shauna-niequist/the-grandest-seduction-of-all-is-the-myth-that-doing-everything/) [Shauna Niequist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shauna-niequist/) > [If you show someone something you've written, you give them a sharpened stake, lie down in your coffin, and say, ‘When you’re ready’.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mitchell/if-you-show-someone-something-you-ve-written-you-give-them-a/) [David Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mitchell/) > [Read, read read. Read everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/read-read-read-read-everything/) [William Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-faulkner/) > [Being a writer means taking the leap from listening to saying 'Listen to me'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jhumpa-lahiri/being-a-writer-means-taking-the-leap-from-listening-to-saying-listen/) [Jhumpa Lahiri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jhumpa-lahiri/) > [The thing with Superman is that he's completely emotionally open to the reader. Meaning what he tells you is what he's feeling; there's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-snyder/the-thing-with-superman-is-that-he-s-completely-emotionally-open-to/) [Scott Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-snyder/) > [To acquire true self power you have to feel beneath no one, be immune to criticism and be fearless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/to-acquire-true-self-power-you-have-to-feel-beneath-no-one-be-immune/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Ignore all hatred and criticism. Live for what you create, and die protecting it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lady-gaga/ignore-all-hatred-and-criticism-live-for-what-you-create-and-die/) [Lady Gaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lady-gaga/) > [I would rather be attacked than unnoticed. For the worst thing you can do to an author is to be silent as to his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/i-would-rather-be-attacked-than-unnoticed-for-the-worst-thing-you-can/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [So the writer who breeds more words than he needs, is making a chore for the reader who reads.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-seuss/so-the-writer-who-breeds-more-words-than-he-needs-is-making-a-chore/) [Dr. Seuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-seuss/) ## More by Jack Kerouac > [Bein Crazy is the least of my worries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/bein-crazy-is-the-least-of-my-worries/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [I'm Catholic and I can't commit suicide, but I plan to drink myself to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/i-m-catholic-and-i-can-t-commit-suicide-but-i-plan-to-drink-myself-to/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [The Beat Generation, that was a vision that we had, John Clellon Holmes and I, and Allen Ginsberg in an even wilder way, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/the-beat-generation-that-was-a-vision-that-we-had-john-clellon-holmes/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [But, outside of being a sweet little girl, she was awfully dumb and capable of doing horrible things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/but-outside-of-being-a-sweet-little-girl-she-was-awfully-dumb-and/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“For when you realized that God is Everything you know that you've got to love everything no matter how bad it is, in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/for-when-you-realized-that-god-is-everything-you-know-that-you-ve-got/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“I'm an idealist who has outgrown my idealism I have nothing to do the rest of my life but do it and the rest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/i-m-an-idealist-who-has-outgrown-my-idealism-i-have-nothing-to-do-the/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“Most of them were running away from something―usually the law.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/most-of-them-were-running-away-from-something-usually-the-law/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“Non lo so, non importa e non fa nessuna differenza.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/non-lo-so-non-importa-e-non-fa-nessuna-differenza/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“And in the flush of the first few days of joy I confidently tell myself (not expecting what I'll do in three weeks only)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/and-in-the-flush-of-the-first-few-days-of-joy-i-confidently-tell/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [I want a blaze of light to flame in me forever in a timeless, dear love of everything. And why should I pretend to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/i-want-a-blaze-of-light-to-flame-in-me-forever-in-a-timeless-dear/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“For the next week that was all I heard - manana, a lovely word and one that probably means heaven.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/for-the-next-week-that-was-all-i-heard-manana-a-lovely-word-and-one/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“O how wonderful life is, how miraculous, God made this and God made that", "how do you know he doesn't hate what He did:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/o-how-wonderful-life-is-how-miraculous-god-made-this-and-god-made/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [Notoriety and public confession in the literary form is a frazzler of the heart you were born with, believe me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/notoriety-and-public-confession-in-the-literary-form-is-a-frazzler-of/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [I promise I shall never give up, and that I'll die yelling & laughing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/i-promise-i-shall-never-give-up-and-that-i-ll-die-yelling-laughing/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“The hot water pools are steaming, Fagan and Monsanto and the others are all sitting peacefully up to their necks, they're all naked, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/the-hot-water-pools-are-steaming-fagan-and-monsanto-and-the-others/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) [Explore all 936 Jack Kerouac quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) [Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If critics say your work stinks it's because they want it to stink and they can make it stink by scaring you into conformity with their comfortable little standards. Standards so low that they can no longer be considered \"dangerous\" but set in place in their compartmental understandings.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jack Kerouac" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/if-critics-say-your-work-stinks-it-s-because-they-want-it-to-stink/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/if-critics-say-your-work-stinks-it-s-because-they-want-it-to-stink/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/jack-kerouac-182_art_if-critics-say-your-work-stinks-it-s-bec_2633956.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/jack-kerouac-182_art_if-critics-say-your-work-stinks-it-s-bec_2633956.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/jack-kerouac-182_art_if-critics-say-your-work-stinks-it-s-bec_2633956.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If critics say your work stinks it's because they want it to stink and they can make it stink by scaring you…” — Jack Kerouac", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Jack Kerouac", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If critics say your work stinks...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/if-critics-say-your-work-stinks-it-s-because-they-want-it-to-stink/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/if-critics-say-your-work-stinks-it-s-because-they-want-it-to-stink/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```