Classic literature

[jinjang]

I have many friends who read, but I haven't met anyone who read classic books. Of course, I do not always read classics. After I read a book, I would like to talk about it. Hoping to find someone to discuss the books I read, I join the forum. There are so many postings and I am already overwhelmed. Where should I begin?
I just finished Reading Lolita in Tehran and now I am reading Chicago by Alaa Al Aswany. Anyway, I look forward to reading as many posting as I can and I am glad to join the forum.:)

[kiki1982]

That's why I joined too! Thanks to that talking it is more interesting to read and think about my books...

Unfortunately I haven't read anything you mentioned, but I'll hope see you again.

k

[Scheherazade]

Welcome to the Forum, JinJang.

You can always visit our Book Club for our monthly reads: http://www.online-literature.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=15

Also, the Book Reviews section will give you ideas on books as well: http://www.online-literature.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=6877

[Virgil]

Welcome to lit net Jinjang. That's what we do here, discuss literature. :) Hope you enjoy it.

[prendrelemick]

Welcome to the site Jinjang.

I have read Reading Lolita. I found it intresting as a documentry on the revolution in Iran, but a failure as a novel, in fact the author warns us that she can't do narrative.
Also her view of that society was from a position of privilege, we only get an occasional glimpse of those at the coal face.

It did get me wondering about the mind set of the men she tells us about. Can sucessfull intelligent people really believe that they are the superior sex to such an extent, that they discriminate against the opposite sex in every aspect of life ? They must know it to be immoral.

[jinjang]

What you said is true. The author, as a privileged professor, escaped legally, while Nassrin left the country illegally and so the author does not know what had happened to her. I was wondering about her journey in the rough route or whether she survived at all. An oppressed society can certainly make hypocrites out of many men or women, just like Angel in Tess of the d'Urbervilles by Hardy. People, men and women, suffer with nonsensical morality and tied themselves with religions or customs. When one grows up in such a society, one will never be free from their own mind prison even when they get out of it.

[prendrelemick]

I think you have hit upon the problem with the book. I am left with feeling that others in the group had a more interesting story to tell. However, as I was ingnorant of the events she covers, it was an informative read.

It is very difficult to make a judgement upon the morality of societies different from our own. I would be very interested to hear the views of a secular male from Iran. Are they comfortable with the privilege they enjoy.

I think one's moral compass is set early in life, and only alters with great interllectual or empirical upheaveal.

[jinjang]

I would be very interested to hear the views of a secular male from Iran. Are they comfortable with the privilege they enjoy.

Then, you may like to read the book Chicago by Alaa Al Aswany. The book was written in Arabic and translated into English. The author lives in Cairo and it is about many Egyptians, male and female medical students, who came to Chicago to study. It describes different kinds of men who are from similar backgrounds as in Iran of revolutionary time. It is a light book you can read quickly.


I think one's moral compass is set early in life, and only alters with great interllectual or empirical upheaveal.
I grew up in Korea during the 80's and you could say it was somewhat similar. Many of my views have gone through changes, but I am bound by my culture: Higher educations and liberal views carry me only so far as to be understanding toward other people, but I remain as traditional as I was deep down. What upheaval may I need, I wonder, to completely shed the traditional me.

Reading Lolita in Tehran was as "informative" as Kite Runner. I enjoyed them both very much.

[prendrelemick]

Thanks for the reccomendation Jinjang, I'll look out for it.

My son lived in Korea for three years. He found many things about the society commendable. He was an outsider looking in of course, but felt that the west has "shaken off" valuable traditions as well as oppressive ones.

Kite Runner is an excellent book. It extolls the virtue of traditions, but warns us that fanaticism can twist them to the most incredible evil.

I did not enjoy A Thousand Splendid Suns as much. Once again (as in Reading Lolita) it portrayed the muslim male as unthinkingly wicked. It's not the wickedness I object to, its the unthinking part.

[JBI]

Get The Norton Anthology of English literature from a library if you can, and browse through it, taking out books you think are of interest to you, if in English literature, your interests lie. Personally though, I think most penguin books are good enough reads. Just pick out the ones that seem more famous to you.

Oh, and read Wordsworth, he's a great introduction to literature.

[jinjang]

To prendrelemick:
I left Korea more than 10 years ago when it was a still developing country and I revisited the 13th richest country in the world and many things had changed. What I know of Korea is quite often no longer true. I started the book A Thousand Splendid Suns, but decided to drop it because there are so many books to read and I did not want to waste my time, especially when I have only a couple hours in the evening to read.

I have many friends who said they stopped reading fictions as they get older, not to mention classic books. They seem to think that fictions and classic books are for high school students. What do you think of that?

[MissScarlett]

Jinjang, the classics are my favorites, but I certainly haven't read them all.

I have Reading Lolita in Tehran on my shelf to read.

Tess of the d'Ubervilles is one of my favorite books. I love Thomas Hardy, D.H. Lawrence, Emily Bronte, Jane Austen, many others.

[prendrelemick]

A book can only become a classic if it is worth reading. I'll keep reading them until my eyes give out. In all fiction there are discoveries to be made about the world. To stop reading fiction would be to cut off an avenue for growth, and deny myself great pleasure.

What do these friends read ? or have they stopped altogether. I suppose there are so many kinds of media these days.

[jinjang]

My friends are managers, geologists, geophysicists, or computer scientists. They read strictly non-fictions, biographies, political or scientific magazines, etc. In between classic books, I read some of those, too. But, I am always more drawn to classic literature. My husband ,a software guy, could read a whole book about trilobites and he thought it fascinating. He observed that most of the good science books are written by British scientists. It takes me a long time to finish a book like Joseph and His Brothers by Thomas Mann. I tend to choose, though unintentionally, long books and I am a slow reader with a note and a pen. Then, I rarely have time to read the others and I feel quite often ignorant around my friends, which should not bother me, but it does sometimes.

[jinjang]

To MissScarlett

Tess of the d'Ubervilles is one of my favorite books. I love Thomas Hardy, D.H. Lawrence, Emily Bronte, Jane Austen, many others.
I do enjoy all you have listed. It is so good to find people who share the same interests. I can easily imagine we have the same favorite author list.

[Amethyst2010]

My friends are managers, geologists, geophysicists, or computer scientists. They read strictly non-fictions, biographies, political or scientific magazines, etc. .... I feel quite often ignorant around my friends, which should not bother me, but it does sometimes.

Jinjiang,

I'm afraid that people with full-time job, part-time studies, and also a family to take care of, will not have much time to read. And reading to gain knowledge to be immediately applied at work or in our social life is given higher priority. Still I think we may learn something from literature and classics even if they are written decades and centuries ago. I started taking English literature seriously only about a year ago, and I can't decide if I love it a lot or just a little. I understand how you mean about feeling ignorant. Well, as long as we continue reading, we can't be getting more ignorant, right ?

[wessexgirl]

Jinjang, I tend to read mainly classics too. I love Hardy, Dickens, the Brontes, Austen, Eliot, and Shakespeare. You will never be ignorant if you continue reading these and other brilliant works. There is a reason they are classics, because they have stood the test of time, and can still speak to us now. There are so many books out there vying for our time, many of which I do want to read, but it must say something about the classics that we keep coming back to them. I'm not reading nearly as much as I should or used to, due to many circumstances, but I would always go for "the golden oldies" before contemporary novels, although there are some writers and their works which I'm sure will be considered "classics" too in the future. Happy reading, and it doesn't matter that your friends don't read the same as you. As long as you enjoy your reading what does it matter?