...not to like 'classics'. Despite what your English teacher might have told you.
Mine was always trying to get me hooked on Jane Austen. This was, incidentally, a complete waste of time. It did not help that she thought I should read nothing but classics because I was 'too smart' for science fiction. (Hrm. I'd like to have introduced her to *Doctor* Stanley Schmidt, *Doctor* Isaac Asimov...I don't *think* Heinlein had a PhD, right?)
But most people who read genre fiction already know it's 'okay' not to like Jane Austen, or Charles Dickens, or Shakespeare (incidentally, I love Shakespeare).
What I do see is people thinking it's not okay not to like Tolkein - I do, but some people find him terminally boring. Or Dune. I never could get into Dune. The latest is that I finally got around to reading The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. I love Watchmen. I think it is one of the best graphic novels ever written. It's not Moore's fault I found League almost unreadable. Sorry, Kevin, it's all on you.
I was thinking 'This is a great classic...this art sucks!'
And you know what? That's okay. It's important to remember that everyone has tastes and one man's 'classic' really can be another man's drek. I guess the point is not to criticize people for not liking something just because it's famous, highly popular or has won a ton of awards.
Classics, like any other beauty, lie in the eye of the beholder. And it's important not to just sheepishly follow the majority.
I agree. In high school, one English teacher whom I respected tried to get us into James Joyce, to no avail. Now, as an adult, I might appreciate some authors more than I did as an adolescent.
ReplyDeleteI'm a huge fan of the works of Dickens, Asimov, and Tolkien, but I've had trouble enjoying the books of Melville, Herbert, or Donaldson. I do think that there is certain literature that everybody should be exposed to, but people should be free to follow what they like.
Oh, and I also prefer Watchmen to the later volumes of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, but I'd blame writer Alan Moore more than artist Kevin O'Neill in my case.
ReplyDeleteI have been mystified when I've encountered people who didn't like Shakespeare, but it takes all kinds (and tastes)....
Excellent post. I think you would find this podcast very interesting listening: http://www.intotheblender.com/2011/06/15/episode-61/.
ReplyDeleteTim (tdog4494)
Exposed to, is fine. My issue with that teacher was she thought her students should read ONLY those works she personally approved of, ever.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I would rather not have been exposed to the poetry of Thomas Hardy...
I only read the first two volumes. I love Moore, I think he's awesome. O'Neill's art, however, does nothing for me.
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