"The two most common charges against the older fiction, that it pleased wickedly and that it taught nothing, had broken down before the discovery, except in illiberal sects, that the novel is fitted both for honest use and for pleasure"

In this quote, author Carl Clinton Van Doren is going over the criticisms frequently directed towards older works of fiction. He specifies that the two most common allegations against these works were that they were ethically corrupt and lacked academic worth. However, Van Doren argues that these criticisms have been disproven by the awareness that books can serve both an ethical function and supply pleasure. He keeps in mind that just narrow-minded groups still keep the belief that books are solely for enjoyment or for damaging readers. Van Doren's words suggest that the book is a versatile and valuable form of literature that can both captivate and inform.