is more original than Bloom or Hirsch. He blames the fall of culture on the poets and critics who should be its guardians. If we are collapsing into a new barbarism, Kernan says it is in no small measure due to the asocial artist whose every utterance, however outrageous, can be justified just because he calls himself that, an artist. And the part of the literary tradition that the "artist" leaves unharmed, the critic finishes off." Robert Hauptman, reviewing The Death of Literature in World Literature Today, concluded that "The Death of Literature is a useful, often insightful commentary on current thought on criticism, literature, and society. It will stimulate the intellect of anyone who has the self-discipline to turn off the television or computer." See also The Imaginary Library References Sources 1990 non-fiction books English-language books Books of literary criticism