Why We Should Read Great Literature :: Literature Essays Literary Criticism

Why We Should Read striking Literature In western culture, many literary works have been set apart from the assuagement by being termed majuscule literature. What qualifies a work to be striking literature, and why should we read it? An excellent source on this topic is Mortimer Adler, sensationness of the premier American philosophers of the twentieth century and founder of the famous expectant Books List. According to Adler, all great(p) literature meets three criteria the work is disposed(p) to contemporary life, is worth rereading, and contains great ideas. Six of these great ideas, defined by Adler, are three great ideas by which we judge--truth, goodness, and beauty--and three great ideas by which we live--equality, liberty, and proficientice. The ideas of justice, responsibilities of a society, responsibilities of the individual, nature of disobedience, and the oppression of people are all great ideas by which we live. All writers must possess strength if they are to dependably address these great ideas. According to Anne Perez, in Experiences of the Great Books, the great writers dared to be creative in societies that were not always receptive to such courage. Great literature is germane(predicate) to human problems in every century, not just twentieth-century problems or problems exclusive to the time in which the work was written. In new(prenominal) words, great literature has stood the test of time. It still influences our beliefs and ideas, shaping our civilization. A great literary work must also have complexities. According to Adler, a great book has many meanings. This explains why all great literature is worth rereading. A good book with no more than one meaning need only be read once. In sum total to Adlers criteria, great literature addresses two important issues what is truth and how do we discern it? Each work, writes Perez, has vastly different truths ranging from aspects of art, to matters of religion, to types of government. What each writer must do is convince his or her audience that s/he has found somewhat way to determine truth. In conclusion, great literature has the following characteristics it is relevant to contemporary life, it is worth rereading, and it should contain certain great ideas.