The Role of the Critic: Final Reflection

The role of the critic has amalgamated into many different roles throughout my time this semester in Alexia’s class. Previously, I’ve worked in PR and journalism, so I was excited to hone in on my writing skills and learn a little more about the role of the critic, and how that could potentially fit in with my future plans in writing.

The role of the critic, for me, was originally seen as ‘negative reviews’ – often when I think of something being critiqued, I often see it in a negative light. This point is seen as valid, as the Cambridge Dictionary does define the word ‘critic’ as “someone who says they do not approve of something”, hence my idea that most of the pieces we would be writing about would have a negative or adverse take on the idea/restaurant/film etc. I now understand that the role of the critic, although it may be a negative or unfavorable stance on a movie, a book, a restaurant or an album, can also be arguing for something’s worth, and why people should give it a second chance, or embrace a new idea. Furthermore, this has expanded my thinking in terms of my writing, asking myself “how can I spin these critical ideas into ones that embrace positivity in something that does not necessarily work that I would lend myself to” – for example, I find it much easier to write positively about a restaurant, and I tend to not mention things that are not the best (for example, I would much rather mention a dish that was really outstanding, rather than picking up on the bits that were mediocre), but those mediocre elements are just as important in the whole piece of writing. I have taken away from this course that critical writing (and thinking critically in terms of writing) is all about balance and how you shape the reader into your own opinion, but leaving them room to decide for themselves (something that I think I am getting better at – at least I am trying to!).

Another thing that has been brought to my attention was how feedback is super critical in writing, and how often I don’t associate it with my own work. Being published almost every week, I tend to disassociate myself with feedback, often because it is not directly related to me, I don’t really take on board the feedback (rather I take on the feedback from my editor, rather than the feedback from the people reading that as I don’t get that feedback directly more often than not!), however, having my work read in class by my peers is more nerve-wracking than having my work read by 10,000 people. I found the feedback section particularly stressful, as I feel like I take it more personally, rather than everything being through a computer screen. What I have taken away from the feedback session of this course is that I shouldn’t be too critical of myself (often that now, I’ll be anxious about what people have to say about my work) because people are generally nicer and I get a lot more out of it – I often find that I ramble on about my work, and it could be shortened which has been something that was more concise. Another part of the feedback that I have taken on board was seeing the bigger picture and describing everything as a whole, as well as staying true to my voice of the article, which is also something that I have been working on in my own critical reflections. My role of the critic and taking criticism has shifted since starting the course, I think I am a lot more open-minded to feedback and shifting my view of a piece: I think having the adaptability is something that has resonated in me, but I now know how to use it to my advantage through critiquing other people’s work as well as my own.

Throughout the course, my idea of the role of the critic has also shifted in terms of what articles that I can write. Previously (as you would know) I only have really written food criticism (I have written a couple of lifestyle-type pieces previously, but my main focus has always been on food, restaurants, and bars). However, through being challenged out of my comfort zone and writing other pieces on film and television shows (the workshop on the ‘prompts’ where we were given a word and had to write about a television show was super useful, and I have actually used in when writing pieces for work and I don’t know where to begin) has allowed me to see that I am not just a ‘food critic’, I can write in other genres and that is okay as well. If I hadn’t gone through the process of stepping out of my comfort zone in this way, I would never have learned that I can adapt what I have learned in food writing to other genres. I also feel like this ties into the feedback section that I reflected on previously, as I enjoyed reading other people’s work on shows that I had not watched, or albums that I had not listened to and also reflected on how I can implement those ideas and structures into my own writing, what make this piece unique and how I could put my own angle on it.

Overall, my view of the role of the critic has shifted and integrated through my own writing and through critiquing other people’s works, as well as going outside of my comfort zone to be able to reflect and analyse my own work from a new standpoint.