The aim of the paper is not only to commemorate the top epochs and extraordinary personalities of the history of Czech criticism, but above all to recognize and describe the characteristic features and impulses that perhaps inherently exist in its development and come back again and again in many variations. Lot of them are related to today with surprising topicality. The contribution is primarily fotcused on theater criticism - which, however, always absorbs surrounding influences from other artistic and social areas, including politics.