--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Good critical writing is measured by the…" description: "\"Good critical writing is measured by the perception and evaluation of the subject; bad critical writing by the necessity of maintaining the professiona..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93f/raymond-chandler-629_critical_good-critical-writing-is-measured-by-the_1157408.jpg" --- # Good critical writing is measured by the perception and… ![“Good critical writing is measured by the perception and evaluation of the subject; bad critical writing by the necessity of maintaining the professional standing of the critic.” quote by Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93f/raymond-chandler-629_critical_good-critical-writing-is-measured-by-the_1157408.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93f/raymond-chandler-629_critical_good-critical-writing-is-measured-by-the_1157408.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93f/raymond-chandler-629_critical_good-critical-writing-is-measured-by-the_1157408.jpg) > “Good critical writing is measured by the perception and evaluation of the subject; bad critical writing by the necessity of maintaining the professional standing of the critic.” [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Critical writing is judged by its insight into the subject; poor criticism often serves to protect the critic’s reputation rather than the truth. **In simple terms:** Good criticism reveals truth; bad criticism protects ego. Key Takeaway Prioritize honesty over self‑preservation in analysis. Themes criticism integrity reputation literature truth Mood thoughtful analytical serious Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - book reviews - academic papers - media commentary - editorial work Key Concepts ethics rhetoric professionalism Questions to Reflect On - What would you change in your own critiques to be more honest? - How can readers spot self‑serving criticism? A Different Perspective Focusing on reputation can compromise the depth and usefulness of critique. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Criticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticism/) [Perception](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perception/) [Standing alone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/standing-alone/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Most critical writing is drivel and half of it is dishonest. It is a short cut to oblivion, anyway. Thinking in terms of ideas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/most-critical-writing-is-drivel-and-half-of-it-is-dishonest-it-is-a/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [I am not a music snob. If anything, my musical taste is bad by any critical standards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ian-black/i-am-not-a-music-snob-if-anything-my-musical-taste-is-bad-by-any-2/) [Michael Ian Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ian-black/) > [I think exercise is critical to my writing and an essential way to recharge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-giffin/i-think-exercise-is-critical-to-my-writing-and-an-essential-way-to/) [Emily Giffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-giffin/) > [The biggest obstacle to professional writing is the necessity for changing a typewriter ribbon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-benchley/the-biggest-obstacle-to-professional-writing-is-the-necessity-for/) [Robert Benchley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-benchley/) > [I write every day. Writing is a necessity - like eating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-maclane/i-write-every-day-writing-is-a-necessity-like-eating/) [Mary MacLane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-maclane/) > [If you spend your life with academics, when you step outside, you realise there is this huge general readership that is almost impossible to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-paulin/if-you-spend-your-life-with-academics-when-you-step-outside-you/) [Tom Paulin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-paulin/) > [Writing is a necessity and often a pleasure, but at the same time, it can be a great burden and a terrible struggle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lethem/writing-is-a-necessity-and-often-a-pleasure-but-at-the-same-time-it/) [Jonathan Lethem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lethem/) > [“It seems I've strayed from my mission vision, which is used as the sea is now about to hoard even filled in by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pilo-poly/it-seems-i-ve-strayed-from-my-mission-vision-which-is-used-as-the-sea/) [Pilo Poly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pilo-poly/) > [We have more faith in what we imitate than in what we create](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-lee/we-have-more-faith-in-what-we-imitate-than-in-what-we-create/) [Bruce Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-lee/) > [Dont be afraid to stand for what you believe in, even if that means standing alone..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/dont-be-afraid-to-stand-for-what-you-believe-in-even-if-that-means/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It was as if when I looked into his eyes I was standing alone on the edge of the world...on a windswept ocean beach.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/it-was-as-if-when-i-looked-into-his-eyes-i-was-standing-alone-on-the/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) > [Standing alone doesn't mean I am alone. It's mean's I'm strong enough to handle things all by myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/standing-alone-doesn-t-mean-i-am-alone-it-s-mean-s-i-m-strong-enough/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [First New York was a sort of provincial capital, bigger and richer than Manchester or Marseilles, but not much different in its essential spirit.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-cowley/first-new-york-was-a-sort-of-provincial-capital-bigger-and-richer/) [Malcolm Cowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-cowley/) > [It is almost inevitable that our faith will be challenged. We may at times find ourselves surrounded by others and yet standing in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-s-monson/it-is-almost-inevitable-that-our-faith-will-be-challenged-we-may-at/) [Thomas S. Monson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-s-monson/) > [Guys standing around and talking about Spanish fly: 'You know anything about Spanish fly?' 'No, tell me about it.' Well there's this girl Crazy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-cosby/guys-standing-around-and-talking-about-spanish-fly-you-know-anything/) [Bill Cosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-cosby/) ## More by Raymond Chandler > [Television's perfect. You turn a few knobs, a few of those mechanical adjustments at which the higher apes are so proficient, and lean back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/television-s-perfect-you-turn-a-few-knobs-a-few-of-those-mechanical/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [There is no trap so deadly as the trap you set for yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/there-is-no-trap-so-deadly-as-the-trap-you-set-for-yourself/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [Common sense is the guy who tells you that you ought to have had your brakes relined last week before you smashed a front…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/common-sense-is-the-guy-who-tells-you-that-you-ought-to-have-had-your/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [ “Hammett was the ace performer... He is said to have lacked heart; yet the story he himself thought the most of \[The Glass Key\]… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/hammett-was-the-ace-performer-he-is-said-to-have-lacked-heart-yet-the/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [She jerked away from me like a startled fawn might, if I had a startled fawn and it jerked away from me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/she-jerked-away-from-me-like-a-startled-fawn-might-if-i-had-a/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [A good story cannot be devised; it has to be distilled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/a-good-story-cannot-be-devised-it-has-to-be-distilled/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [Dashiell Hammett took murder out of theVenetian vase and dropped it into the alley.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/dashiell-hammett-took-murder-out-of-thevenetian-vase-and-dropped-it/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [ “He \[James Cain\] is every kind of writer I detest...a Proust in greasy overalls, a dirty little boy with a piece of chalk and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/he-james-cain-is-every-kind-of-writer-i-detest-a-proust-in-greasy/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [It was a blonde. A blonde to make a bishop kick a hole in a stained-glass window.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/it-was-a-blonde-a-blonde-to-make-a-bishop-kick-a-hole-in-a-stained/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“I had been stalking the bluebottle fly for five minutes, waiting for him to sit down. He didn't want to sit down. He just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/i-had-been-stalking-the-bluebottle-fly-for-five-minutes-waiting-for/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“A three-piece Mexican band was making the kind of music a Mexican band always makes. Whatever they play, it all sounds the same. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/a-three-piece-mexican-band-was-making-the-kind-of-music-a-mexican/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [Mostly I just kill time," he said, "and it dies hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/mostly-i-just-kill-time-he-said-and-it-dies-hard/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“The book was not new. Dates were stamped on the front endpaper, in and out dates. A rent book. A lending library of elaborate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/the-book-was-not-new-dates-were-stamped-on-the-front-endpaper-in-and/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [Without magic, there is no art. Without art, there is no idealism. Without idealism, there is no integrity. Without integrity, there is nothing but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/without-magic-there-is-no-art-without-art-there-is-no-idealism/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“The homicide skipper that year was a Captain Gregorius, a type of copper that is getting rarer but by no means extinct, the kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/the-homicide-skipper-that-year-was-a-captain-gregorius-a-type-of/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) [Explore all 430 Raymond Chandler quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) ## More Critical quotes > [People will pay a price for putting political obstruction over progress in a time that is so critical and urgent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-kaine/people-will-pay-a-price-for-putting-political-obstruction-over/) [Tim Kaine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-kaine/) > [Our critical day is not the very day of our death; but the whole course of our life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-donne/our-critical-day-is-not-the-very-day-of-our-death-but-the-whole/) [John Donne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-donne/) > [It's pointless to be critical of your stuff once it's done. I don't spend a lot of time agonising over it. It's of no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/it-s-pointless-to-be-critical-of-your-stuff-once-it-s-done-i-don-t/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) > [Majority decisions tend to be made without engaging the systematic thought and critical thinking skills of the individuals in the group. Given the force…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/majority-decisions-tend-to-be-made-without-engaging-the-systematic/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Without a vision there is no possibility of creating something larger than what al-ready exists. An entrepreneur has to be able to bring something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/without-a-vision-there-is-no-possibility-of-creating-something-larger/) [Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/) > [We must always refill and ensure there is a critical mass of leaders and activists committed to nonviolence and racial and economic justice who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/we-must-always-refill-and-ensure-there-is-a-critical-mass-of-leaders/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [But whether you stay or go, the critical decision you can make is to stop letting your partner distort the lens of your life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lundy-bancroft/but-whether-you-stay-or-go-the-critical-decision-you-can-make-is-to/) [Lundy Bancroft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lundy-bancroft/) > [As a businessperson, I dont have the power to change the government. That is in the hands of the political leaders. However, as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tadashi-yanai/as-a-businessperson-i-dont-have-the-power-to-change-the-government/) [Tadashi Yanai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tadashi-yanai/) > [It has never been more critical that a leader step forward to accelerate our understanding of cancer - and champion the effort to finally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-j-dzau/it-has-never-been-more-critical-that-a-leader-step-forward-to/) Victor J. Dzau > [Pleasure is by no means an infallible critical guide, but it is the least fallible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/pleasure-is-by-no-means-an-infallible-critical-guide-but-it-is-the/) [W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/) > [There is no royal path to good writing; and such paths as exist do not lead through neat critical gardens, various as they are,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessamyn-west/there-is-no-royal-path-to-good-writing-and-such-paths-as-exist-do-not/) [Jessamyn West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessamyn-west/) > [You know, children philosophize more than adults - and they are critical of adults.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/you-know-children-philosophize-more-than-adults-and-they-are-critical/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) > [The critical question about regret is whether experience led to growth and new learning. Some people seem to keep on making the same mistakes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-catherine-bateson/the-critical-question-about-regret-is-whether-experience-led-to/) [Mary Catherine Bateson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-catherine-bateson/) > [Obama did organize a great large number of people and many enthusiastic people, what's called in the press 'Obama's Army.' But the army is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/obama-did-organize-a-great-large-number-of-people-and-many/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Too often we forget that social and political movements don't happen overnight. They don't bring change immediately - you have to build a critical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/too-often-we-forget-that-social-and-political-movements-don-t-happen/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) Browse all 2,389 Critical quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Good critical writing is measured by the perception and evaluation of the subject; bad critical writing by the necessity of maintaining the professional standing of the critic.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Raymond Chandler" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/good-critical-writing-is-measured-by-the-perception-and-evaluation-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Critical" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/good-critical-writing-is-measured-by-the-perception-and-evaluation-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93f/raymond-chandler-629_critical_good-critical-writing-is-measured-by-the_1157408.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93f/raymond-chandler-629_critical_good-critical-writing-is-measured-by-the_1157408.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93f/raymond-chandler-629_critical_good-critical-writing-is-measured-by-the_1157408.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Good critical writing is measured by the perception and evaluation of the subject; bad critical writing by…” — Raymond Chandler", "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": "Raymond Chandler", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Good critical writing is measured by...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/good-critical-writing-is-measured-by-the-perception-and-evaluation-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/good-critical-writing-is-measured-by-the-perception-and-evaluation-of/#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 } } ] } ```