Classical music is a special taste like Greek language or pre-Columbian archeology, not a common culture of reciprocal communication and psychological shorthand.
Allan BloomRead
These sociologists who talk to facilely about the sacred are like a man who keeps a toothless old circus lion around the house in order to experience the thrills of the jungle.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote criticizes those who superficially engage with deep subjects without understanding their true significance.
Allan Bloom uses the analogy of a 'toothless old circus lion' to illustrate how some sociologists may discuss the 'sacred' or profound subjects without grasping their genuine essence. He suggests that their experiences are as shallow as keeping a harmless lion for the thrills of the exotic, implying that true understanding requires more than mere surface-level engagement; it demands a deeper connection with the realities of life.
Themes
SociologyUnderstandingShallowSacredExperiencePhilosophy
In practice
Example use cases
In a lecture on sociology, one might use this quote to emphasize the need for deep understanding rather than superficial discussions.
More from Allan Bloom
All quotes →The humanities are like the great old Paris Flea Market where, amidst masses of junk, people with a good eye found cast away treasures...They are like a refugee camp where all the geniuses driven out of their jobs and countries by unfriendly regimes are idling.
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Our Nation, a great stage for the acting out of great thoughts, presents the classic confrontation between Locke's views of the state of nature and Rousseau's criticism of them... Nature is raw material, worthless without the mixture of human labor; yet nature is also the highest and most sacred thing. The same people who struggle to save the snail-darter bless the pill, worry about hunting deer and defend abortion. Reverence for nature, mastery of nature- whichever is convenient.
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Reason transformed into prejudice is the worst form of prejudice, because reason is the only instrument for liberation from prejudice.
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There is no real education that does not respond to felt need; anything else acquired is trifling display.
Allan BloomRead
Students now arrive at the university ignorant and cynical about our political heritage, lacking the wherewithal to be either inspired by it or seriously critical of it.
Allan BloomRead
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