Kevin Simler

Sometimes I'm judgy about other people's aesthetic experiences. "I can't believe you liked THAT" — movie, TV show, etc. This feels wrong. 1/

It's thinly-veiled one-upmanship: my taste/discernment is better than yours. I'm not like that in other areas of life. Why art? 2/

I'd never pooh-pooh someone for learning from a more "basic" book than the ones I read, for example. 3/

Probably better to treat aesthetic experiences like learning experiences: If it works for you, awesome. 4/

There's still a role for criticism, of course, but it crosses the line when its directed at someone else's enjoyment. 5/

"I enjoyed ____" "ok" vs "____ is good" "... WAT" -- the latter being a more objective declaration

yeah good point. some people are kind of asking to have their opinions challenged

so they don't get bent out of shape when someone says they love Barefoot chardonnay