Quote:
Originally Posted by auntykatkat
Books-I-like are never classics."
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You've casually mentioned something that I've been waiting to address. I truly believe (and maybe not in your particular case, or all others participating in the thread) that the above sentiment(?) is often times the driving force behind adults looking back and discussing—or writing articles about—"how badly the books sucked that they made us read in school"—how it "
almost made me hate reading."
It's not so much a matter of "I'm concerned for the education of our young people, who struggle mightily with these antiquated texts" as it is "
why aren't the books I like ever elevated to "Classic" or "Literature" status?"
Many people (again, I'm making no
direct accusations here) have a weird obsession with wanting the academic world to acknowledge the literary value of their favorite books. They seem to need the world to recognize their personal favorites as "Classics." As if their love for the book(s) is somehow slightly tainted and can only be made shiny and
justified by having young people the world over use them in an academic setting.
I count my blessings that I was never forced to study/analyze the kinds of books I would normally rush home and read for pleasure in my youth. I couldn't imagine a worse form of torture, actually.