The Closing of the American Mind

How Higher Education Has Failed Democracy and Impoverished the Souls of Today's Students

Allan Bloom

Recommended By

Book Synopsis

"The Closing of the American Mind" by Allan Bloom is a provocative and influential work that critiques the state of education and cultural relativism in American society.

Bloom argues that the American mind has progressively shut itself off from the pursuit of transcendent values, leading to a narrow focus on personal desires and a loss of connection with the past. He examines how the rise of popular culture, particularly in the form of rock music, has contributed to this decline and weakened the ability of individuals to engage with high culture and intellectual exploration.

Bloom also critiques the liberal education system, stating that it often fails to impart foundational knowledge and critical thinking skills, resulting in students who lack a deep understanding of Western philosophy and history. He suggests that the emphasis on relativism and the rejection of moral absolutes in academia produces graduates who are intellectually closed-off and unable to engage with complex ideas or consider alternative perspectives.

By exploring various philosophical, historical, and literary works, Bloom offers a passionate call for a return to the principles of the Enlightenment and a rediscovery of the great achievements of Western civilization. He argues that this reengagement with the classics and higher education can help individuals regain a sense of purpose, moral clarity, and intellectual depth.

"The Closing of the American Mind" serves as a thought-provoking critique of contemporary American culture and education, challenging readers to reconsider their assumptions and advocate for a more rigorous and intellectually vibrant society.

Explore More Books

See All
Capital Ideas
Scotland
The Age of Entitlement
Mohammed and Charlemagne
Feeding the Dragon
Who We Are and How We Got Here
Frisco Kid
The Plant Paradox
The New Economics
The Warren Buffett Way
Live Your Truth
What We Owe the Future
With the Old Breed
The Greatness Mindset
Werner Herzog - A Guide for the Perplexed
Amusing Ourselves to Death
The Razor's Edge
The Little Prince
Lifespan
Foundation
The First Conspiracy
Proof of Corruption
Karl Marx's Theory of History
Masters of the Word
Black Flags
Thermoinfocomplexity
Fewer
Mathematics: Its Content, Methods and Meaning
The American Challenge
The Network State
Bel Canto
Mao
The Victorian Internet
Spain in Our Hearts
Asset Management
The Sovereign Individual
The French Revolution and What Went Wrong
Confessions of a Philosopher
The Innovators
Misbehaving
All Marketers are Liars
Off The Record
The Pleasure of Finding Things Out
Programming Bitcoin
A Random Walk Down Wall Street
The Great CEO Within
Founders' Son
Think Like a Monk
The Last Lion
Why We Believe in God(s)
The Poems of Dylan Thomas
Home Game
Platform Revolution
The Ethics of Money Production
Loonshots
In the Heart of the Sea
A Magic Web
21 Lessons for the 21st Century
The Little Bitcoin Book
The Sketchbooks of Chris Wilkinson
A Time for New Dreams
The Making of the Atomic Bomb
Thing Explainer
Monetizing Innovation
The Right Stuff
The Great War of Our Time
Our Mathematical Universe
Direct Truth
What You Want
Connectography
Why America Is Not a New Rome
The World According to Garp
Water in Plain Sight
An American Marriage
P53
Levels of the Game
The End of Power
Invariances
Think Like a Rocket Scientist
How to Be Topp
Intellectuals and Race
Hopping Over The Rabbit Hole
The Story of Civilization: Caesar and Christ
Jonathan Livingston Seagull
House On Fire
Personal Knowledge
From Third World to First
Little, Big
The Sports Gene
First a Dream
Innovating Out of Crisis
Team of Rivals
Disruptor
The Score Takes Care of Itself
As One Is
Where Mountains Roar
Justice on Trial
Return to the Little Kingdom
Mastery
Lords of Finance