Giants and Dwarfs
Douban
Essays, 1960-90
Allan David Bloom
overview
Collected here by University of Chicago professor Bloom (author of the controversial bestseller Closing of the American Mind ) are 19 impressive, previously published essays. Scholarly but accessible to serious, determined general readers are 11 commentaries on Aristophanes, Plato, Rousseau, Swift and Shakespeare, and three on teachers--the influential political theorist Leo Strauss; Raymond Aron, ``the last of the liberals''; and Alexandre Kojeve, ``the most brilliant man I ever met.'' The last five essays are on commerce and ``culture'': Machiavelli and the study of texts, John Rawls's theory of justice, the crisis of liberal education and the democratization of the university. The collection is a notable demonstration of the breadth of Bloom's learning.
contents
Giants and dwarfs : an outline of Gulliver's travels -- Political philosophy and poetry -- On Christian and Jew : The Merchant of Venice -- Richard II -- Hipparchus or The Profiteer -- Political philosopher in democratic society : the Socratic view -- Ion or On the Iliad -- Interpretation of Plato's Ion -- Aristophanes and Socrates : a response to Hall Emile -- Rousseau : the turning point -- Leo Strauss : September 20, 1899-October 18, 1973 -- Raymond Aron : the last of the liberals -- Alexandre Kojève -- Commerce and "culture" -- Study of texts -- Justice : John Rawls versus the tradition of political philosophy -- Crisis of liberal education -- Democratization of the university.
