Thursday, March 8, 2012
Will they become classic?
We had a discussion in class last week about which books that are popular now will be popular in the future. I agree very much with the books that we included as not-classic, like Twilight and The Davinci Code, but some that people think will be classics in the future I must disagree with. When I look at which books stand the test of time and are read by future generations, I feel the books must be able to be taught academically. Harry Potter was on the list of what would be classic in the future, but I question if it can be taught in a classroom. Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, EAP, have all stood the test of time because they are all literary and teach us something about the human nature and can be taught academically. Harry Potter I believe is much more like Twilight or The Hunger Games, purely for entertainment purposes. But the magical series has become so popular that I could see it becoming something like The Lord of the Rings, which is still fantasy, but has academic values to it as well. Lord of the Rings also does a great job of entertaining readers and being taught at a young age could inspire students to read. I do not see Harry Potter being taught in English 481 a hundred years from now, but perhaps in a High School English class.
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You pose on interesting analysis of popular now, classic in the future. Many books are insanely popular without a shred of literary excellence. A question which might help create a more logical list of what is going to stand the test of time is what does the literature tell future societies about the past? Yes, Harry Potter is mostly entertainment, but since it is sooooooo popular, instead of telling a lesson or moral, maybe the book will be read to understand our culture and our values.
ReplyDeleteWhat Kristen suggests is actually something we do now in some courses (mostly grad courses): look at popular works to see what made them popular. It'll be interesting to see where (and if) HP is taught in the future, as you suggest.
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