<<It doesn't necessarily mean one's interpretation is more valid than the others' >> Well, that's where we disagree, Camille :) I'm not going to dismiss a novice reader's opinions out of hand, and I'm not going to accept a literary critic's opinion as Absolute Truth, but education makes a difference. It's like the difference between a chef and the rest of us when it comes to food. I spent some time with a guy who went to a highly rated cooking school and he talked to me about some of his experiences. You WOULD NOT BELIEVE the stuff they had to eat :) But it was all part of their education--the education of their taste buds. Now, I eat things, I like them, I say, "That's good food." I eat other things, I don't like them, I say, "that sucks." A chef doesn't approach the matter that way. He knows what certain foods are supposed to taste like. He can eat a spinach casserole, say, thinking that Spinach is revolting, yet still tell me it was a good casserole. He can eat a different disk that he enjoys much more, but tell me it wasn't done well. That's the difference between an amateur and a professional reader. Professional readers are also more self aware of the premises with which they interpret a work. <<> Otherwise, the Grishams or Steels of the world would be lauded as the next > Shakespeare and send the masses to the bookstores with cash or credit cards > eagerly to be handed over Now, that's reducing the argument to a pretty facile level. Like I said earlier, when we talk about our Grishams and our Wilbur Smiths and, in Australia, our Bryce Courtenays, we're talking not about authors but corporations set up to produce novels simply figureheaded by the author.>> Camille, this reasoning is a bit skewed. Did you know that Grisham had to sell his first book out of the trunk of his car? Is it substantially different from his later works because, presumably, it was written From the Heart at that point, while his later novels were money motivated? Did you know Michelangelo resented the hell out of having to paint the ceiling of the Sistine chapel? Do you know how many famous paintings from that period were comissioned and painted Just for the Money, or for the Egos of those supporting artists financially? You can't read a work and know the motives behind it. Much less value it as art based on that judgment. Jim _____________________________________________________________________ You don't need to buy Internet access to use free Internet e-mail. Get completely free e-mail from Juno at http://www.juno.com Or call Juno at (800) 654-JUNO [654-5866]