Kriitikust

Kriitikust is the practice and study of criticism in Estonian discourse. It encompasses the analysis, interpretation, and evaluation of cultural works, ideas, performances, and social phenomena. Critics work to explain why a work matters, how it functions within its tradition, and how it relates to audience, values, and society.

Fields include literary criticism, art criticism, film and theater criticism, music criticism, media and cultural criticism, as well as political and social critique. Critics may focus on form, content, style, historical context, and ideology; they often engage with reception history and the maker's intention, while acknowledging multiple readings.

Methods and standards: close reading, comparative analysis, historical contextualization, theory-informed interpretation, and evaluative judgments about quality, significance, or value. Critics may use descriptive, interpretive, or normative approaches; the field retains debates about subjectivity, authority, and the role of taste.

Ethics and impact: ethical criticism requires honesty about sources, transparency about biases and conflicts of interest, and respect for authorship and audience. Public criticism contributes to cultural discourse, canon formation, and democratic deliberation, while facing criticism itself over power, gatekeeping, and representational fairness. With digital media, criticism is more participatory, quicker, and more diffuse, widening accessibility but also raising questions of expertise.