Some time ago I wrote a post in which I discussed classics as a genre and some of the things that I learned about classics and wanted to share. I decided to write that post after a discussion I had on Bookstagram regarding this topic. It's been a while since, and during these months I (personally) think that I have improved my writing style, but I also already changed my perspective on certain things. This all happened because I learned other peoples opinions, read posts and articles on different matters, etc. These things happen very fast and I decided to come back to the topic of classics and discuss them further here. However, if you are interested in reading the other post I wrote about this, click this link.
As you might know, every month I share a post called 'Monthly Classics ...', in this post I talk about a classic I've read, I review them, share my opinion and sometimes discuss why they are considered a classic or why I consider them a classic. Almost all of the classics I've discussed so far are written by women, all but A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare (I also reviewed The Hobbit and Peter Pan but not for the Monthly Classics posts). Now, first off I want to say that I review books I'm interested in. That is regarding all reviews I share here, which explains why I review a lot of fantasy books, I just like these a lot! For classics, this is the same for me.
Classics are often outdated, set in a different society with different standards. Which sometimes can make it hard to understand the books, also because they use older English, or words that we don't use anymore. The last I want to do is to force myself to read a book (just because it is a 'classic') which I do not enjoy. Enjoying the process of reading is my top priority, otherwise, I would not be able to read as much as I do and thus not review as much as I do. This is why I do not feel bad that I read a lot of fantasy, for me, it's the same as that you will not sit through a film you do not like from the start, just because it's so popular.
Just because a book is regarded as a classic, does not mean that I will read it. When choosing a classic (or any other type of book) I look at reviews or the synopsis, just to make sure I have a good feeling about it before I start. Besides, I do not like to only write negative reviews on here, so I try to make sure I feel good about the book. Even though it might not be the best I've read, I can still write a positive (yet critical) review about it. I've seen that when I choose books because of Bookstagram hype, I sometimes feel disappointed and those reviews are not fun to write.
Why do I almost always choose classics written by women authors? The simple answer: because those books speak to me. I needed to read Pride and Prejudice for a course and really enjoyed Jane Austen's writing style, which made me want to read more of her works. Emma is high on my list. I also needed to read Jane Eyre for a course, and now I put the books of her sisters on my tbr. Because these books often have female protagonists I tend to personify myself better with the main characters. Something I always do when reading a novel. I need to link myself to the main character(s) so that I can follow their story as if I were the one that experienced it. I read books to escape from (our currently boring) reality. This is something I have always done. It is why I love books more than films because I can be the main character for a short while. Which is also why I can cry my head off when something happens to one of the characters in the book, I get attached to them.
Classics are a difficult genre. It is subjective to consider a novel a classic because the entire genre is kind of a grey area. I consider To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee a classic, even though it is 'only' 60 years old, while for others, the age might be a reason to not consider it a classic. Besides, most classics are linked to the Western Canon, which I also said in my other post. Meaning that many older books of (for example) Asian culture are completely disregarded. When we start to look at the Western Canon, many of the books that are selected are written by white men. Sadly, in our history, our ancestors put them above everyone else, which is why these books were read more by the community because books of other authors (from women or from people of other ethnicities) were not even given the opportunity to have their books shared or published. This is why there is such a big difference in the number of books of white men against books of other people in our canon, even today.
Besides the fact that I choose books that I am interested in, I also do not want to contribute to staying 'true' to our canon. By sharing reviews of classics that might not be that well-known, especially amongst younger people or people that do not study literature, (for example To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf), I hope to make you, my reader, aware of other books (that are classics!!) that you might have never heard off. Although most of the classics I have discussed here are very popular, even amongst younger readers (for example a novel as Jane Eyre), I haven't read these myself before and want to have read them too. However, when I feel like I have gone through the novels I've heard a lot off (on Bookstagram for example), I will definitely try to find more unknown classics. Especially of other cultures because I am very interested in learning more about these classics too.
Many classics from the Western Canon are subjective and focused on the white side of the Western society. Even for me, the classics that I've read and reviewed so far were written by WHITE women. Even though they are women, they are still not including other ethnicities. I recognise this and while writing this I have come to the conclusion that I want (and need) to include other authors for other ethnicities too on my blog. So, if you can recommend me a classic from other cultures, or from coloured authors, I would love to learn about them!
I hope you enjoyed this post and maybe are now thinking about this topic. If you want to comment on this please do, I enjoy to talk about these kinds of things and hear other people's perspectives! For now, have a lovely day!
With love,
Julia
Comments