A review by teganlt
An Experiment in Criticism by C.S. Lewis

5.0

The goodness of a work of literature is not to be found in the text per se, but in the kind of reading the text invites. Non-literary readers "use" books whereas literary readers "receive" books. The difference is between treating the reading activity as a means to some other end (e.g. vicarious wish-fulfillment, the text's teaching of certain putative truths) and treating the activity as an end in itself. We should expect a book to be worth reading if good readers enjoy it, and not so worthwhile if it seems only to be used. Importantly, it is not a literary demerit for a book to be used so long as it may still be received; that is, the presence of readers who use a text tells us nothing about whether it may in fact be received.