Discernment
noun
The second look after taste reacts. It examines whether something is genuinely weak or merely unfamiliar, and whether the first response contains judgement, habit or prejudice.
Also known as considered judgement
Discernment is the second look.
Taste reacts first. Something fits or it does not. Discernment asks the response to explain itself. Is this weak, or merely unfamiliar? Is it elegant, or merely expensive? Did the work fail, or did it violate a rule you inherited without examining?
The distinction keeps taste from becoming prejudice in a better jacket. It also keeps discernment from producing work that passes every check and moves nobody. You need the instinct and the examination. One catches what a checklist misses. The other makes sure your history is not speaking with more authority than it earned.