ABSTRACT
The longstanding problems of critique can be illustrated in literary works, here through William Blake and George Orwell. Alternatives to critique are proposed; adopting acritical thinking that acknowledges the traditionality and metaphoricity of concepts. This also entails recognising critique itself as a ‘tradition’, not ontologically different from other discourses, Of course, acritical thinking that acknowledges that culture constitutes the possibility of our thought and language is exceptionally vulnerable to critique. Yet, rather than engaging in a ‘Critique of Critique’, this chapter proposes forgiving one’s critics, acknowledging their good intentions, and if they persist in critique, forgiving them – nothing annoys them quite so much, to paraphrase Oscar Wilde. Finally, the limits and aporias of critique are addressed in detail, that critique offers no concrete moral values, focuses exclusively on negativity and suffering, disfigures and misrepresents the meanings people hold and makes an untenable distinction between the critic and their target. Thus, there is serious need to understand critique and to develop acritical theories, not just within academia but for politics and society more broadly.
