Understanding Poetry, Selfhood, and Originality

The question asks about the origin of 'originality' in poetry when the poet's 'selfhood' is the main subject, based on the provided passage by Harold Bloom. Let's break down the passage to understand its key points.

The passage contrasts two ideas about poetry:

1. Traditional Poetry: Its use is "instruction through delight". This means teaching common societal truths or deceptions, with aesthetic pleasure coming from meeting expectations based on past poetic styles and themes.
2. Poetry of Selfhood: This kind of poetry focuses on the poet's individual 'selfhood' or psyche. The individual psyche has unique "accidents" that it considers "truths". This focus requires "self-recognition" and leads to the "pleasures of originality".

The passage then explains how this originality works. It says that the "pleasures of originality" depend upon "a kind of lying against time, and against the achievements of the past." This is a crucial phrase for answering the question.

Analyzing the Source of Originality in Poetry of Selfhood

When a poet makes their own 'selfhood' the subject, they are exploring their unique inner world, their personal experiences ("accidents"), and their need for "self-recognition". This exploration leads to originality, which, according to the passage, involves a departure from established traditions ("lying against time, and against the achievements of the past").

Let's look at the options provided:

• some truth of untruths.

• truth of self‐recognition.

• creating ideal pleasures.

• re‐living the past joys.

Evaluating Each Option

We need to determine which option best describes where originality springs from when selfhood is the subject, based *only* on the passage.

• Option 1: some truth of untruths.

  The passage states that originality depends on "a kind of lying against time, and against the achievements of the past". This "lying" can be interpreted as presenting perspectives or ideas that go against conventional "truths" or past achievements. The individual poet's unique "accidents, which it needs to call truths" also fit this idea. The poet finds their personal "truth" (originality, self-recognition) by exploring what might be considered "untruths" from a traditional or societal viewpoint. This option aligns well with the phrase "lying against time, and against the achievements of the past."

• Option 2: truth of self‐recognition.

  The passage states that the "necessity for self-recognition" *requires* originality. While self-recognition is the *goal* or *need* that drives the pursuit of originality, the passage describes the *source* or *method* of achieving this originality as depending on "a kind of lying against time...". So, self-recognition is the reason originality is needed, but not directly what it springs *from* in the sense of creative method described.

• Option 3: creating ideal pleasures.

  The passage mentions "pleasures of originality". However, it does not describe these pleasures as "ideal". The concept of fulfilling "expectations founded upon past joys" is associated with traditional poetry, not the originality stemming from selfhood. The passage doesn't use the word "ideal" to describe the pleasures of originality.

• Option 4: re‐living the past joys.

  The passage associates fulfilling "expectations founded upon past joys" with the traditional use of poetry. Originality in the context of selfhood is presented as a departure from this tradition, depending on "lying against time, and against the achievements of the past." Therefore, re-living past joys is contrary to the source of originality described here.

Based on the analysis, the phrase "a kind of lying against time, and against the achievements of the past" is the passage's explanation for how originality is achieved when selfhood is the subject. Option 1, "some truth of untruths," best captures this idea of finding unique perspectives or 'truths' by challenging or deviating from established norms or past achievements, which could be seen as 'untruths' relative to tradition.

Revision Table

Additional Information on Harold Bloom's Poetry Theory

Harold Bloom was a prominent literary critic known for his theories on influence. In works like The Anxiety of Influence, he argued that poets struggle against the influence of their predecessors. This struggle, he believed, is a key driver of poetic creativity and originality. A poet must "swerve" from the path of their influential precursors to create something new. This idea resonates with the passage's concept of "lying against time, and against the achievements of the past" to achieve originality. The poet, in asserting their unique 'selfhood', must define themselves in opposition to the historical weight of poetic tradition. The "truth of untruths" might refer to the new perspective or creative "misreading" that arises from this struggle against influence, which, while potentially a deviation from the predecessor's "truth," becomes the new poet's own authentic expression.