Kamen Zidarov

We are walking down the street with a critic friend of mine and talking about the theater. He is a great aesthete, a convinced communist and loves talented works of art. A woman comes towards us. Suddenly he stops, looks at her carefully and when she has passed us, he exclaimed: - What a beautiful woman! - Her nose was a bit big - I object, - and... her forehead seemed to be low... - It doesn't matter - he objects. - In general, she gives the impression of a beautiful woman. - Look - he says, turning after her - what a graceful head, a slender figure, beautiful legs... A stunning beauty!.. A woman with atmosphere! Aesthetic.. 7 I could not object further, because he understood women. I fell silent. And suddenly some resentment flickered in my heart. - And why do you, the critics, when making an ideological and artistic assessment of a given work of art, not evaluate it precisely like this, by its overall, spontaneous impact on the reader or viewer, and only then note its weak points? My friend was very resourceful, biting, and replied with subtle irony: - It depends on the author.