--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I read the rules of criticism, I…" description: "\"When I read the rules of criticism, I immediately inquire after the works of the author who has written them, and by that means discover what it is he ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb3/joseph-addison-377_books_when-i-read-the-rules-of-criticism-i-imm_3102990.png" --- # When I read the rules of criticism, I immediately inquire… ![“When I read the rules of criticism, I immediately inquire after the works of the author who has written them, and by that means discover what it is he likes in a composition.” quote by Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb3/joseph-addison-377_books_when-i-read-the-rules-of-criticism-i-imm_3102990.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb3/joseph-addison-377_books_when-i-read-the-rules-of-criticism-i-imm_3102990.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb3/joseph-addison-377_books_when-i-read-the-rules-of-criticism-i-imm_3102990.png) > “When I read the rules of criticism, I immediately inquire after the works of the author who has written them, and by that means discover what it is he likes in a composition.” [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Understanding criticism requires examining the critic's own work to reveal their preferences. **In simple terms:** Critics reveal their tastes through their own writings. Key Takeaway Read critics' works to grasp their standards. Themes criticism self-awareness literary analysis Mood analytical inquisitive Type explanatory philosophical When to use this quote - literary reviews - academic essays - creative writing workshops Key Concepts authorial intent critical theory Questions to Reflect On - How do personal tastes shape criticism? - Can criticism be truly impartial? A Different Perspective Critics may be biased, limiting objectivity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Composition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/composition/) [Criticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticism/) [Criticism Immediately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticism-immediately-5386535/) [Inquire Works](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inquire-works-5386536/) [Likes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/likes/) [Likes Composition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/likes-composition-5386534/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Works Author](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/works-author-4956965/) [Written](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/written/) ## Related quotes > [More than anything I am a novelist. But for me, an author's job is not only to create linguistically accomplished works. As an author…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/more-than-anything-i-am-a-novelist-but-for-me-an-author-s-job-is-not/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [Every author has different ways of writing and what works for one author does not necessarily work for another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-munsch/every-author-has-different-ways-of-writing-and-what-works-for-one/) [Robert Munsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-munsch/) > [When a man is made up wholly of the dove, without the least grain of the serpent in his composition, he becomes ridiculous in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/when-a-man-is-made-up-wholly-of-the-dove-without-the-least-grain-of/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [If measure and symmetry are absent from any composition in any degree, ruin awaits both the ingredients and the composition... Measure and symmetry are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/if-measure-and-symmetry-are-absent-from-any-composition-in-any-degree/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [Science does not enter a chaotic society to put order into it anymore, to simplify its composition, and to put an end to controversies.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-latour/science-does-not-enter-a-chaotic-society-to-put-order-into-it-anymore/) [Bruno Latour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-latour/) > [Musical compositions, it should be remembered, do not inhabit certain countries, certain museums, like paintings and statues. 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You can't ignore it, but you've got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damien-hirst/i-always-look-at-money-not-as-a-motivating-factor-but-as-an-element/) [Damien Hirst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damien-hirst/) > [Though I cannot claim to be a Christian in the sectarian sense, the example of Jesus suffering is a factor in the composition of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/though-i-cannot-claim-to-be-a-christian-in-the-sectarian-sense-the/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [When I start writing a new imaginary future, I have no idea what it is. The characters arrive first. They help me figure out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/when-i-start-writing-a-new-imaginary-future-i-have-no-idea-what-it-is/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [A composition is always more than the sum of its parts. In other words, a really good piece of music is more than itself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yo-yo-ma/a-composition-is-always-more-than-the-sum-of-its-parts-in-other-words/) [Yo-Yo Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yo-yo-ma/) > [Writers and musicians know well the importance of extensive reading for successful writing or extensive listening for musical composition. Likewise, visual artists... understand that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-laseau/writers-and-musicians-know-well-the-importance-of-extensive-reading/) [Paul Laseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-laseau/) > [At the risk of some oversimplification, if the skill composition of our work force meshed fully with the needs of our increasingly complex capital-stock,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/at-the-risk-of-some-oversimplification-if-the-skill-composition-of/) [Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/) > [“The composition of Shakespeare is a forest, in which oaks extend in the air, interspersed sometimes with weeds and brambles, and sometimes giving shelting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-composition-of-shakespeare-is-a-forest-in-which-oaks-extend-in/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) [Ted Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-martinez/) ## More by Joseph Addison > [Half the misery of human life might be extinguished if men would alleviate the general curse they lie under by mutual offices of compassion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/half-the-misery-of-human-life-might-be-extinguished-if-men-would/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Every wife ought to answer for her man. 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People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) [Christopher K. 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