Quote:
Originally Posted by kacir
When I was preparing for my English Language State Exam (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Examination ) we had to read certain number of "classics" in English. There was no list of books, you could choose any book that was "classic". By that time I had read several hundreds of books in English, but I suspected that Stephen King, JRR Tolkien, Terry Pratchett , or even Agatha Christie would not be considered "classic" by the Examination Committee. So I was pressing my teacher -- a member of Committee -- to define what exactly a "classic book" was. After lots of questions I came up with a definition.
A "classic book" is anything your English teacher has read in English, so [s]he can discuss the book with you during the exam ;-)
As far as I could tell, very few Committee members had read anything [in English] except the books they were forced to read for their exams, while they were studying to become English Teachers. |
One of my English teachers was much more advanced. She thought that her students should read English. No matter what book exactly. So, I has
The Clan of the Cave Bear and
Shogun on my list (beside
1984 and
The Day of the Triffids)