How did F.R. Leavis defend the possibility of objective literary criticism?

F.R. Leavis defended the possibility of objective literary criticism by arguing that objectivity is achieved precisely through the individual's subjective response to a work of art. He contended that while scientific classification of a text's structure or typology may be objective, it fails to produce the value judgments essential to true criticism.1

For Leavis, objective evaluation arises when a critic’s intelligence, informed by a rigorous moral awareness, confronts the aesthetic object. This process requires a shared frame of reference within a common culture, utilizing canonical works as "touchstones" to provide a context for comparison. By placing works in relation to one another, the critic can measure the quality of feeling—such as its intensity, exactness, or seriousness—against established standards.1

Ultimately, Leavis believed that because art provides an exemplary expression of human character and feeling, the basis for objective literary criticism is fundamentally the same as the basis for an objective morality. Through this "moralized" criticism, readers can measure their own lives and aspirations against the values presented in literature.1