There are a select few agents who specialize in literary fiction. If you start a naive search of literary agents, you will find that their stated interests zero

There are a select few agents who specialize in literary fiction. If you start a naive search of literary agents, you will find that their stated interests zero in on books that are of the political moment. The majority of agents are looking for a book, preferably young adult fiction, that focuses on a protected class, of which the author should also be a member. This is not a complaint, but the evident regression to the mean, which is really no more than an acknowledgment of market forces, is available at a glance. Books are no longer commodities whose primary purpose is to be read. Rather, they are meant to capture an upswing of interest in a particular topic, and then become more widely celebrated than widely considered. The fact is that most works of literary fiction written today are simply not up to snuff. Although there are writers devoted to their vocation, they lack a context in which to work. Literary agents cannot contribute to the process of writing. A kind of grassroots appreciation of the benefits intrinsic to reading and writing literature needs to take place, in my opinion, if we are to produce any great works of literature.