Harold Bloom - The Anxiety Of Influence. A Theo... -

Harold Bloom’s (1973) revolutionized literary criticism by suggesting that poets do not find inspiration in their predecessors, but rather engage in a subconscious struggle against them. 🧠 The Core Concept

Wordsworth "swerved" from Milton’s epic style to focus on the individual's internal nature. Harold Bloom - The Anxiety of Influence. A Theo...

Bloom outlines six specific ways (or "ratios") that a new poet twists the work of a predecessor to make it their own: Writers must intentionally "misread" their idols to create

Eliot’s insistence on "impersonality" was a defensive reaction (Kenosis) against the Romantic focus on the self. This creates a "Freudian" struggle between the (the

Writers must intentionally "misread" their idols to create space for their own work.

Writing is a competitive struggle for imaginative survival.

Bloom argues that "great" writing is born from a writer's fear that they have nothing original to say. This creates a "Freudian" struggle between the (the established master) and the Ephebe (the new poet).