Harold Bloom - "Shakespeare: The Invention of the Human"

Even if you disagree with him, you have to admire his contagious passion for Shakespeare and literature

He went on to live 20 more years. Luckily.

Thank you for the upload! RIP Harold Bloom, we will miss you.

I didn’t understand Bloom’s zest for Shakespeare until I spent a random summer afternoon with Henry IV parts one and two. Language and emotion are not allied better in any other artists works; Bloom is totally right about this.

"Now cracks a noble heart. Good night sweet prince: And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest!" Rest in peace, Harold!

A marvellous interview, replete with brilliant insights and sad wisdom. Coincidentally I am currently studying Shakespeare for a uni course and watching this video inspired me to immediately borrow "Shakespeare: The Invention of the Human" from the library. Your channel is excellent, so glad I discovered it and subscribed.

Sibelius said that no one ever put up a monument in honour of a critic. I would pay a subscription for a monument to Harold Bloom (not that he would have wanted one). Harold taught a generation how to read : There is no end to Bloom.

One and only, Harold Bloom.

I agree wholeheartedly when he says Shakespeare’s writings are secular scripture. I was just thinking about this earlier today. Whenever I’m confronted with something in life that I can’t fathom, I instinctively reach for Shakespeare.

Love returning to this interview. Charlie Rose and Harold Bloom have such a great energy.

We never had composers (aside from Elgar), though we appropriated Handel, I think, but there are NO poets or writers anywhere IMO. Go back a hundred years and you'll never be disappointed. It's the best thing I ever did!

Beautiful Bloom, blooming fiercely in perception! Thanks!

Thank you very much Bloom for the lecture

Cant help but feel bad for him. You can see in his eyes at the beginning of the interview how absolutely miserable he is. Obviously starting to suffer from the beginning of heart disease, plus hes always been a melancholic person. What a genius

Beautiful!!!

Thank you for curating this material

Anthony Grafton's book, Cardano's Cosmos, a biography of the Italian astrologer and mathematician, discusses the Renaissance practice by which "astrology could become a disciplined, empirical inquiry into the depths of the self. It both prescribed profound exercises in characterology and introspection and stimulated inventive exercises in expressing and recording their results." (p.202) This is not to disagree with Professor Bloom by any means. This quote from Grafton's study illuminates the culture of that time, which encouraged - via the examination of the personal horoscope - the exploration of a "self". Renaissance astrology, replete with concepts and descriptive jargon, sketched out an individual's personality. Shakespeare was obviously aware of this revived, predictive culture that formed a kind of proto-psychology. The correlation of fate and character was an accepted if controversial concept. The point is that self knowledge was encouraged and aided by a "scientific" theory of personality. Keep in mind that Renaissance astrology was far from today's superficial pop commercialism, and Johannes Kepler was another mathematician/astrologer sought out for his ability to describe astrological insights into human personality.

Great interview!

I feel about Prince as Bloom does about Shakespeare. A man ahead of his time, so much to say, so much depth and bravery. I'm sure I'll get the comments, negative ones, but I love Bloom's devotion and when you are hit with it, likely as a young person as I was with Prince, it illuminates, liberates and becomes you.

I have this wonderful book in my collection. It is a masterpiece!!