The Anatomy of Influence: Literature as a Way of Life - Hardcover

Bloom, Harold

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0300167601 ISBN 13: 9780300167603

Publisher: Yale University Press, 2011

Synopsis

'Literary criticism, as I attempt to practice it', writes Harold Bloom in "The Anatomy of Influence", 'is in the first place literary, that is to say, personal and passionate'. For more than half a century, Bloom has shared his profound knowledge of the written word with students and readers. In this, his most comprehensive and accessible study of influence, Bloom leads us through the labyrinthine paths which link the writers and critics who have informed and inspired him for so many years. The result is 'a critical self-portrait', a sustained meditation on a life lived with and through the great works of the Western canon: Why has influence been my lifelong obsessive concern? Why have certain writers found me and not others? What is the end of a literary life? Featuring extended analyses of Bloom's most cherished poets - Shakespeare, Whitman, and Crane - as well as inspired appreciations of Emerson, Tennyson, Browning, yeats, Ashbery, and others, "The Anatomy of Influence" adapts Bloom's classic work "The Anxiety of Influence" to show us what great literature is, how it comes to be, and why it matters. Each chapter maps startling new literary connections that suddenly seem inevitable once Bloom has shown us how to listen and to read. A fierce and intimate appreciation of the art of literature on a scale that the author will not again attempt, "The Anatomy of Influence" follows the sublime works it studies, inspiring the reader with a sense of something ever more about to be.

About this title

Review:

"Bloom...has many arresting things to say and says them, often, with exquisite precision. He is, by any reckoning, one of the most stimulating literary presences of the last half-century--and one of the most protean, a singular breed of scholar-teacher-critic-prose poet-pamphleteer." -- Sam Tanenhaus, "New York Times Book Review"--Sam Tanenhaus "The New York Times Book Review " "Reading Bloom read the great writers of the canon is an immense pleasure; reading Bloom read Bloom is a revelation. Like his ideal poets, Bloom brings us fire and light, apt tools for reading in the dark."--James Angelos, "Ugarte"--James Angelos "Ugarte " Bloom "has been one of America''s most fascinating literary critics for nearly half a century. In his newest book, "The Anatomy of Influence: Literature as a Way of Life, "Bloom revisits the ideas that made him a star--and explains, in a straightforward way, why he''s spent his career trying 'to build a hedge around the secular Western canon.' "--Josh Rothman, Brainiac Blog, "Boston"" Globe"--Josh Rothman "Brainiac Blog, Boston Globe " Bloom "has been one of America's most fascinating literary critics for nearly half a century. In his newest book, "The Anatomy of Influence: Literature as a Way of Life, "Bloom revisits the ideas that made him a star--and explains, in a straightforward way, why he's spent his career trying 'to build a hedge around the secular Western canon.' "--Josh Rothman, Brainiac Blog, "Boston"" Globe"--Josh Rothman "Brainiac Blog, Boston Globe " Selected as a Choice Outstanding Academic Title for 2011 in the Language and Literature category.--Choice Magazine "Choice Outstanding Academic Title: Language and Literature " "If Bloom is right--and I believe he is--that 'literary criticism . . . ought to consist in acts of appreciation, ' he has fulfilled that mandate once again in "The Anatomy of Influence.""--Robert Pogue Harrison, "New York Review of Books"--Robert Pogue Harrison "New York Review of Books " If Bloom is right and I believe he is that literary criticism . . . ought to consist in acts of appreciation, he has fulfilled that mandate once again in "The Anatomy of Influence." Robert Pogue Harrison, "New York Review of Books"--Robert Pogue Harrison "New York Review of Books "" "This finale to his illustrious career in literary criticism will not disappoint fans of Bloom . . . Essential." L./i>--L. McMillan "Choice "" "Bloom . . . has many arresting things to say and says them, often, with exquisite precision.He is, by any reckoning, one of the most stimulating literary presences of the last half-century and one of the most protean, a singular breed of scholar-teacher-critic-prose poet-pamphleteer." Sam Tanenhaus, "New York Times Book Review"--Sam Tanenhaus "The New York Times Book Review "" "As defender of the Western canon, the controversial Bloom has no equal. . . . Bloom's elegant and accessible writing will be welcomed by serious readers." Nancy R./i>--Nancy R. Ives "Library Journal "" "Bloom thinks in the sweep of millennia, of intellectual patterns that unfold over centuries, of a vast and intricate labyrinth of interconnections between artists from Plato to Pater." Michael Lindgren, Washington Post--Michael Lindgren "The Washington Post "" Reading Bloom read the great writers of the canon is an immense pleasure; reading Bloom read Bloom is a revelation. Like his ideal poets, Bloom brings us fire and light, apt tools for reading in the dark. James Angelos, "Ugarte"--James Angelos "Ugarte "" Bloom has been one of America's most fascinating literary critics for nearly half a century. In his newest book, "The Anatomy of Influence: Literature as a Way of Life, "Bloom revisits the ideas that made him a star and explains, in a straightforward way, why he's spent his career trying to build a hedge around the secular Western canon. Josh Rothman, Brainiac Blog, "Boston"" Globe"--Josh Rothman "Brainiac Blog, Boston Globe ""

About the Author:

Harold Bloom, Sterling Professor of the Humanities at Yale University, is the world-renowned author of thirty-eight books. His publications include his New York Times best sellers The Western Canon, Shakespeare: The Invention of the Human, and The Book of J, as well as his pioneering studies A Visionary Company and The Anxiety of Influence. He is a MacArthur Prize Fellow, a member of the Academy of Arts and Letters, and the recipient of many awards and honorary degrees.

About this edition

• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 0300167601
• ISBN 13: 9780300167603
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 384