Literary merit is the quality shared by all works of fiction that are considered to have aesthetic value. The concept of literary merit has been criticized as being necessarily subjective, since personal taste determines aesthetic value, and has been derided as a relic of a scholarly elite.iterary merit is the quality shared by all works of fiction that are considered to have aesthetic value. The concept of literary merit has been criticized as being necessarily subjective, since personal taste determines aesthetic value, and has been derided as a relic of a scholarly elite.