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The Shadow of a Great Rock: A Literary…
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The Shadow of a Great Rock: A Literary Appreciation of the King James Bible (original 2011; edition 2011)

by Harold Bloom

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1683161,280 (3)3
The King James Bible stands at "the sublime summit of literature in English," sharing the honor only with Shakespeare, Harold Bloom contends in the opening pages of this illuminating literary tour. Distilling the insights acquired from a significant portion of his career as a brilliant critic and teacher, he offers readers at last the book he has been writing "all my long life," a magisterial and intimately perceptive reading of the King James Bible as a literary masterpiece.Bloom calls it an "inexplicable wonder" that a rather undistinguished group of writers could bring forth such a magnificent work of literature, and he credits William Tyndale as their fountainhead. Reading the King James Bible alongside Tyndale's Bible, the Geneva Bible, and the original Hebrew and Greek texts, Bloom highlights how the translators and editors improved upon-or, in some cases, diminished-the earlier versions. He invites readers to hear the baroque inventiveness in such sublime books as the Song of Songs, Ecclesiastes, and Job, and alerts us to the echoes of the King James Bible in works from the Romantic period to the present day. Throughout, Bloom makes an impassioned and convincing case for reading the King James Bible as literature, free from dogma and with an appreciation of its enduring aesthetic value.… (more)
Member:goddesspt2
Title:The Shadow of a Great Rock: A Literary Appreciation of the King James Bible
Authors:Harold Bloom
Info:Yale University Press (2011), Hardcover, 320 pages
Collections:Your library
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Tags:literary criticism, religion

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The Shadow of a Great Rock: A Literary Appreciation of the King James Bible by Harold Bloom (2011)

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I was a little disappointed as the author didn't really dig too deep in his literary appreciation. He just presented quotations of passages and seemed to give brief praise and move on. It was too scant on the aesthetic and structural analysis to back up his appreciation for me. ( )
  Ranjr | Jul 13, 2023 |
I don't know why I read anything by Harold Bloom - he's just a hard read for me. But I always learn something, as I did in reading this book.
ADDENDUM: Now, about six months after finishing this book, I have changed my rating to 4-stars. As a book, it's one thing - but considering the long-term effect it has had on me, well....that's something else. I picked up this book at a time in my life when I was looking for something to salvage in my relationship with the Bible, and I found it here. Who knew? I have embraced again the old KJV, not for the reasons that motivate some of my conservative Christian friends, but for the reasons that Bloom suggests (at least, this is where my mind went) - that inspiration gives us a tiny little glimmer of understand of God, The Other, The Holy, or whatever name one wishes to use. This book rescued me. ( )
1 vote anitatally | Feb 28, 2019 |
A curious and scintillating analysis of religious text as literary work. Bloom says he's spent his whole life working on this book, and one can feel that here, comparing previous versions, and the original Hebrew, and making comparisons to other great masterworks.

A slim volume, but one dense with insights. ( )
1 vote HadriantheBlind | Mar 30, 2013 |
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The King James Bible stands at "the sublime summit of literature in English," sharing the honor only with Shakespeare, Harold Bloom contends in the opening pages of this illuminating literary tour. Distilling the insights acquired from a significant portion of his career as a brilliant critic and teacher, he offers readers at last the book he has been writing "all my long life," a magisterial and intimately perceptive reading of the King James Bible as a literary masterpiece.Bloom calls it an "inexplicable wonder" that a rather undistinguished group of writers could bring forth such a magnificent work of literature, and he credits William Tyndale as their fountainhead. Reading the King James Bible alongside Tyndale's Bible, the Geneva Bible, and the original Hebrew and Greek texts, Bloom highlights how the translators and editors improved upon-or, in some cases, diminished-the earlier versions. He invites readers to hear the baroque inventiveness in such sublime books as the Song of Songs, Ecclesiastes, and Job, and alerts us to the echoes of the King James Bible in works from the Romantic period to the present day. Throughout, Bloom makes an impassioned and convincing case for reading the King James Bible as literature, free from dogma and with an appreciation of its enduring aesthetic value.

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