#42- Harold Bloom, You'll Be Missed
In this week\u2019s episode, Scott and Karl pay homage to the recently deceased Harold Bloom, a great ally to our mission at Online Great Books.
Once hailed the most notorious literary critic in America, Bloom was a professor of humanities at Yale and a fierce defender of canonicity.\xa0 His version of the canon, with Shakespeare reigning at its center, is far more extensive than the Adlerian version.
Scott and Karl read Chapter 1 of Bloom\u2019s The Western Canon: The Books and School of the Ages. The two discuss what makes this book so controversial to begin with, the problems with postmodernism, and the aesthetic value of books.
What is your goal in reading the canon? Do you read because it\u2019s good for you or just because it\u2019s good? According to Karl, your goal should be \u201cto seek as hard a pleasure as you can.\u201d Here at OGB, we welcome the simplicity in reading from the canon\u2013 it narrows down how you should be spending your time. We think Dr. Bloom would agree.
If you are interested in starting your journey with the Great Books, use the discount\xa0OGBPODCAST\xa0to save 25% on enrollment at\xa0Online Great Books.