Every day, high school teachers and college professors must decide which novels are worth their students’ time and energy. These decisions then influence and shape the “canon” of what is considered great literature and what will become “classics.” One of the most enjoyable and interesting aspects of my web site project is hearing answers to the question: What constitutes a classic? On one level, everyone knows the answer and few would dispute that The Scarlet Letter or Huckleberry Finn are American classics. But the more interesting question is: WHY are they classics? And even better: Will they be classics until the end of time? What happens if people stop reading them? Should they still be taught in high schools and universities throughout the country? Are American classics valued throughout the world? It is one thing to have teachers forcing hapless students to slog through “The Classics,” but what happens once we are free of the constraints of the classroom and can actually choose what we read for ourselves?
When first designing my list of ten American classics that every American “should” have read, I asked a number of my teaching colleagues for their input. Questions arose, such as: At what point has a work stood the test of time? What if a work is such a product of its time, with regard to offensive language and beliefs, that it really should be put to rest? I asked myself this question as I struggled with the last chapters of Huck Finn. I quickly found out that many, many readers — including Ernest Hemingway and Jane Smiley — have stuggled with the last few chapters of this novel, and this convinced me to keep it on the list. I believe a book club could have an interesting discussion about what “went wrong” at the end of this well-known tale.
So, I’m hoping to start the discussion anew! What titles did I ignore on my list? Which titles should I have not included? At what point does a novel lose its “classic” status? Does “classic” even mean anything anymore? I would love to hear what others — American and otherwise — think! Please check out my American Classics page and feel free to disagree with my choices!
I keep thinking about what makes a classic a classic. I think all of the things you mention are irrefutably part of the formula, but the other one that I think is so important is the resonance that a work has within a culture. I mean, I don’t think “To Kill a Mockingbird” is considered a classic in China, you know? Classics help give a culture a shorthand reference list for what we stand for,what we believe in, what we all should know within the values of our society.
I think book list are so completely subjective: I just had to do a comparison of the Modern Library’s list of 100 best books to their reader’s list. Boy, they couldn’t have been more different and each spoke loudly about the people who made up the poll. And the NYT bestseller list is not, actually, a list of TOP bestsellers. They remove titles that are considered “evergreen” to help keep the list lively and interesting. I could link you to some articles.