According to Matthew Arnold, the main flaw of the Historic Estimate in judging poetry is that it values poetry merely because it is old or famous, rather than for its intrinsic artistic and intellectual merit. Arnold warned against this approach in The Study of Poetry (1880), arguing that people often overrate ancient or historically significant works simply due to their age and reputation, rather than objectively assessing their true poetic quality. He believed that poetry should be judged by its ability to convey profound truth and high seriousness, rather than by historical reverence alone.
