The unassuming man pictured above is legendary literary critic and Yale University professor, Harold Bloom. In the 20th century, this man has played a significant role in determining what is "literature" and what is not. In simplest terms, literature refers to works of writing that are well-constructed, timeless, and universal.
Back to Harold. This man has written volumes on William Shakespeare. One of his most interesting contributions to the on-going analysis and criticism of Shakespeare is the following book:
The book is based around a rather radical idea. The following is a brief excerpt from the Amazon.com summary:
The following is one of Mr. Costal's favorite questions.
Does art imitate life or does life imitate art?
Bloom subscribes to the latter perspective.
