Harold Bloom's How To Read And Why

Harold Bloom, author of How to Read and Why, has daringly tackled the lack of sincere reading, a misfortune that has took over the reins of organized human society, by putting valid concerns into writing and providing infallible reasons on why to read and equipping the audience with robust techniques on how to get started. Bloom’s sagacious reasoning on why one should read shall be the primal concern of this essay. Bloom is trying to get a powerful message across: Human life on Earth is irrefutably finite but humans are superior to the other life forms which coexist in nature. This is because humans have a complex ability to develop a sense of ‘self’ and be able to identify as unique individuals. Human intelligence is a precious gift that

can only be fully realized by reading because “…we certainly owe mediocrity nothing...” (Bloom). The foremost reason on why reading is so important is to basically understand oneself. That is, to lay down the foundations of the ‘self’ and, to cement them thoroughly at the right places. Not only the ‘self’ has to be discovered but its true nature and desires have to be unveiled as Bloom states, “…in order to strengthen the self, and to learn its authentic interests” (Bloom). Bloom’s aforementioned argument is realistic and thoughtful. By reading liberally, one comes across a variety of literature such as classics, fiction, non-fiction, romance, mystery, crime and to name but a few. Every piece of writing has a plot exclusive to itself and its characters moulded perfectly within it. As one skims through the words and progresses forward, a plethora of emotions and thoughts are provoked in the conscious mind.
While this intense psychological activity is occurring inside the brain, one is able to fathom how to define oneself. Reading is the light at the end of the tunnel because, as soon as reading is undertaken as the means to find oneself, it drags the spiritual wayfarers out of their own darkness and enlightens them of who they are inside out and what their aim in life is. Blooms speaks of “…a higher pleasure…” that “…remains the reader’s quest.” There is no higher pleasure than discovering oneself because this is what gives meaning to life and yields a sense of happiness and fullness. Realizing where ones heart lies and then achieving those ambitions gives immense satisfaction and this can be only achieved if one reads with sincerity. This gives rise to Bloom’s next but highly interconnected argument in favour of reading. Humans are not born with a sense of ‘self’ but only with the aptness to build it up. This sense of ‘self’ grows and matures albeit with time and experience. However, many events in life can distort the perception of ‘self’, leading to extremist and utopian views of one’s world. This is where reading plays its indispensable role of acting as a moderating influence and an equilibrating force. Reading is the means of self-correction or as Bloom poses, “self-improvement” which, according to him, “…is a large enough project for your mind and spirit.” The process of learning is a non-stop struggle, from cradle to the grave and making mistakes is part of the package. Mistakes often occur due to one’s ignorance and a lack of conscious awareness. The prime goal of reading is to retrain the mind and replace the dark clouds of ignorance with wisdom and insight. For example, reading about an event with an unprecedented outcome might compel the reader to relate it to another event in his/her own life and take notice of the fact that how things could have been dealt with differently, had one known a better strategy. If reading is done with an open mind and the intention to “weigh and consider” (Bloom), then it alters one’s thoughts and views on life in a positive manner. For instance, reading about acts of kindness changes the readers’ behaviour by inspiring the reader to ‘pass’ on the act and hence, self-improvement is witnessed.

One of the hallmarks of reading is the transformation of one’s image among others from merely a simple person to shining example of wisdom and sophistication. Reading results in polished and well-versed individuals who subject themselves to higher standards of integrity and these attributes make society call them ‘scholars’. The presence of scholarly people in society is of paramount importance as seen by Bloom quoting Emerson, “…society cannot do without cultivated men and women…” (Bloom). The study and research done by sociologists suggests that humans have an intricate nature to submit to peer pressure as well as conform to societal norms rather than express themselves as the odd ones out. In that scenario, scholars are crucial assets who would steer the social and cultural norms towards reading and the desire to achieve more wisdom and knowledge because “A scholar is a candle which the love and desire of all men will light” (Bloom). Once the objectives of discovering the ‘self’ and doing ‘self-improvement’ have been conquered, the intellectuals demonstrate purity of heart and mind, empathy for those in suffering, a wary approach to the vagaries of the world

and the willpower to take initiative for the purpose of making this world a free and happy place. In modern times, unrivaled examples include Bill Gates, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Stephen Hawking and to name but a few. Bill Gates is an author, a computer programmer and a philanthropist who has donated millions of dollars to charitable organisations. Tyson and Hawking are also authors of many publications and are scientific ‘messengers’ who have taken upon themselves the mission to eliminate propaganda and prove the truth via the scientific method. Their exalted status can be accredited to their commitment to read and then succeed. Moreover, these avid readers and writers are the primary sources of inspiration for the masses as Bloom asserts, “…if you become an authentic reader, then the response to your labors will confirm you as an illumination to others…” (Bloom). Furthermore, Bloom firmly believes that reading is a basic human need because it would allow them “…to retain any capacity to form their own judgements and opinions…” (Bloom). Reading literature is a convenient means to explore the past, unravel the present and predict the future. It is a channel through which innumerable standpoints and perspectives can be determined. However, Bloom demands sincere reading from his audience because reading is “but to weigh and consider” (Bloom) which is a very genuine request. Every individual has a subtle and unique personality and, keeping that in mind, should not allow oneself to be robbed off it. Unfortunately, people are very gullible and effortlessly persuaded by the arguments and viewpoints of others and often suppress their true inner feelings. The intellectuals and scholarly people are, in essence, those who have overcome this destabilising weakness. They approach literary writing critically and cautiously so that they do not surrender without forming an opinion of their own. Consequently, reading is encouraged so the mind becomes more receptive to others’ ideas but simultaneously, owing to an abundance of theses, forced to make its own perceptions. To reiterate once more, Bloom’s main idea is to draw the audiences’ attention towards the despairing fact that the phenomenon of “deep” and sincere reading in our society is gradually diminishing. Bloom is fairly successful in imparting his message across by utilising convincing proofs on why one should read. Part of his success can be attributed to his unrelenting position and stance on reading to which he sticks to until the end. Bloom uses a number of ‘warnings’ on what shall happen if the people’s habit of reading degrades. He warns that if the passion of reading declines then “…much of the self scatters with it” (Bloom) and how “…society cannot do without cultivated men and women…” (Bloom). That is enough to raise the eyebrows of the sensible people who are sufficiently capable to foresee what Bloom foresees i.e. a bleak future for the subsequent generations who would have a poor ‘self’ identity. These intelligent people would then take a pragmatic approach to thoroughly eradicate this disturbing trend. Along with advising the audience on why to read, Bloom offers a substantial amount of suggestions on how to actually read. This is probably a wise move on his part because once the reader is done with the ‘why’ part, he is still not completely convinced because, quite naturally, the question of how it should be done would arise inside their minds. Once the reader has skimmed through the ‘how to read’ section, he would be more satisfied with the author’s reasoning because, instead of just being bombarded with a list of reasons on the so-called importance of reading, he would be armed with the techniques to realize the necessity of reading sincerely by himself; so in the end, the author wins the argument. Another reason why Bloom has accomplished the mission of conveying his ideas is how he tries to connect directly with the audience. Bloom has ensured to communicate his intentions to the audience that he truly cares for their state of affairs, “…generally I am too moved…” (Bloom) and that he is writing for their own sake indeed to ease them of their “pathos” i.e. suffering. He mentions “the letters that I receive from strangers these last seven or eight years…” (Bloom) and ultimately, this is the secret towards his success. People have an inherent to desire to listen to those who show empathy and are supportive. As Bloom spells out the purpose of his prose, the audience is suddenly reminded of the truth his words contain in relation to their lives and hence his obvious success. Bloom has not written the entire essay using his own mind but also included quotations from other famous personalities such as Samuel Johnson, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Francis Bacon to lend credibility to his ideas and explanations. This is a viable idea in argumentative writing because the audience is compelled to agree with the author. Hence, it can be rightly concluded that Harold Bloom’s attempt at presenting his ideas is a remarkable success.
When one reads Harold Bloom’s text How to Read and Why and Dr.

Mortimer Adler’s Why Read Great Books?, one can figure that they do share some common grounds in terms of thoughts and ideas. Adler would definitely agree with Bloom that reading should be everyone’s first priority each and every day. Bloom is pleading to the audience to read “…as though you share the one nature…” (Bloom) whereas Adler comments that “…man remains man. We and the ancients share a common human nature and hence certain common human experiences and problems” (Adler). In Bloom’s viewpoint, “time’s tyranny” should not be affecting how or why one should read because even though intergenerational gaps might exist in the literature one comes across, the core values of people from different cultures and societies from where the authors originate remain largely unchanged. The intricate human nature and the basic humanity is not only unchanged but passed from generation to generation. Even though the modern generations try to assimilate into new schools of thought, they cannot let go of their past because people are a product of both genetics and the environment. Since the past nature is basically carried forward to the current nature, sincere readers are easily able to relate with what is written in the texts and comprehend their meanings as well as realize the true origins of many phenomenon experienced today because “The way we read now, when we are alone with ourselves, retain considerable continuity

with the past…” (Bloom). Adler would be very happy to agree with Bloom on the transferability of man’s nature over the next decades and centuries. Adler has so finely pointed out how socioeconomic institutions, albeit different, existed in the past and so were the worries associated with them. For example, the war-provoking and territory-defending tactic of humans has been the same ever since. So by heart, man has not changed a lot. That is why Adler has encouraged reading of the past because there is high chance that a valuable lesson might be learned in that process. However, Adler’s and Bloom’s ideas are more intertwined than that. Bloom has declared that “Historicizing, whether of past or present, is a kind of idolatry, an obsessive worship of things in time” (Bloom) and prompts us to “Read therefore by the inner light…” (Bloom). Concurrently, Adler has also expounded that “Exclusive preference for either the past or the present is a foolish and wasteful form of snobbishness and provinciality” (Adler). The basic idea is to not discriminate between the past and present because, in the end of the day, they do not matter as much as exaggerated. Readers must strive for the eternal knowledge and wisdom being propagated by the books. Both the ancients and the contemporaries are the “cultivated men and women…” (Bloom) who are harbingers of learning and experience. To conclude, reading should be taken as the task to set oneself free of delusion and eradicate unfamiliarity with the ‘self’ because, when all is said and done, reading is “to learn to share in that one nature that writes and reads” (Bloom). As Adler and Bloom would agree, only then would humans reach the higher understanding of love and of life.