(no subject)

[anotheranon]

Why are there some great writers we just cannot read?

Interesting - I thought I was the only person in the world who ever admitted that I really have little taste for the classics. However, this guy brings up an interesting point - maybe its a matter of timing - if you aren't "ready" for a book and are faced with it anyway, you'll dismiss it and maybe never go back and try it again.

I have tried to read Tolkien around 3 times - I just don't get into it. I was finally able to follow the plot by listening to the books on tape, but it just wasn't as all-encompassing for me as it is for die-hard fans.

By the same token, I loved Anne Rice as a teenager but think I may have "outgrown" (?) her now. I just don't reread "Queen of the Damned" and "The Vampire Lestat" with the same enthusiasm that I used to. It does not help that her current works are pretty poor.

Most "classic" literature is fiction, which is a genre I don't read very often anyway. Why are there not more non-fiction classics? (do Shelby Foote's histories of the Civil War count?)

Comments

Great Writers

[(Anonymous)]

I think it's true that age affects our responses to literature, and so does the depth and breadth of our reading. While Huck Finn might seem like a children's adventure story to a young reader, it almost certainly reveals itself as a critique of American society, morality, and the idea of individualism to a more sophisticated, active, critical eye. Great Expectations is at core a well-crafted mystery, but with longer perspective it also becomes clear that the text encourages the reader to reflect on religion, class, pretension, identity, and his or her own selfish and ungrateful behavior (we all have our shameworthy moments!). Tolkein becomes richer when you know something of his scholarship (try reading the Raffel translation of Beowulf -- happy to talk w/you about it, and to share a Tolkein essay)-- then the Gollum chapter of The Hobbit). Ultimately, though, we like what we like. Who can condemn us, really, over matters of taste? -Heather

Re: Great Writers

[anotheranon.livejournal.com]

While Huck Finn might seem like a children's adventure story to a young reader, it almost certainly reveals itself as a critique of American society, morality, and the idea of individualism to a more sophisticated, active, critical eye.

I have read Huck Finn and enjoyed it - but then, I knew something about the time in which it was written so I was able to understand the greater context. Maybe that's what I need - I need to know where the story is coming from, what culture/events it was based in before I can really appreciate the irony, nuances, deeper meaning, etc.

Re: Tolkien: I am aware he was a scholar of Anglo-Saxon languages but know little else. I have read Beowulf - and didn't really enjoy it because, again, I didn't know much about the culture from which it came.

And of course some stories are timeless (Romeo and Juliet, in fact, many of Shakespeare's plays deal with the age old issues of love, death, jealousy, etc.)

I guess sometimes it all does come down to taste but I'm sure I'd appreciate the classics more if I am ever able to catch up on the history behind them!