Paul's review of The Western Canon: The Books and School of the Ages
The Western Canon: The Books and School of the Ages by Harold Bloom
I have to agree with Bloom's general argument - we need to respect the Western Canon of literature - there's a reason that an English degree at any given univeristy is more of a joke than it has ever been - let's have some standards, instead of the slop that is now called literary criticism.
Bloom characterizes canonical material as "strange," a vague description, but one that works (if you've felt it before) and responsive to prior canonical material (the anxiety of influence). It's true, great literature, like anything else that is great should have a competitive edge to it.
The reviews of some "representative" commentary are great (including one of my favorites, Dickens' Bleak House) and Blooms list of his own canonical choices are a great reference.
Bloom characterizes canonical material as "strange," a vague description, but one that works (if you've felt it before) and responsive to prior canonical material (the anxiety of influence). It's true, great literature, like anything else that is great should have a competitive edge to it.
The reviews of some "representative" commentary are great (including one of my favorites, Dickens' Bleak House) and Blooms list of his own canonical choices are a great reference.
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