Lauren How
In the present day, social media and online trends often favour new and upcoming works of literature, marking a move away from the classic literature that is often a foundation of school curricula and at the heart of literary debates. We must ask ourselves why, beyond the school curriculum, these literary works are so often overlooked?
To begin with, it is important to define what a ‘classic’ is. The term ‘classic’ is frequently used to describe literary works, but does this term cater to historical literature? Or is it more simply ‘classic’ if it has amassed a high level of popularity? It is possible to look towards the education system, do the books chosen to teach the future generation achieve the status of ‘classic’?
The word itself is typically defined as something judged over time to be of the highest quality and outstanding in its genre. With this in mind, many literary works come to mind, from Jane Austen’s Little Women and Pride and Prejudice to Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights to George Orwell’s 1984. The overlapping theme of all these books can be traced to their place in discussion. If brought up between a group of friends, there is a high likelihood that at least half of the group would have read, or at least heard of, these novels.
To emphasise the relevance of such novels, I will discuss the persistent relevance of the novels, The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde and The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald as timeless portrayals of a pervading cultural relevance.
The Picture of Dorian Gray is an aesthetic novel which provokes debate on hedonism, the importance of art, and the role of art in shaping identities. Dorian Gray finds himself heavily influenced by Henry Wotton, a hedonistic Lord who believes beauty is the only aspect of life worthy of attention. These views, combined with a French book Dorian carries with him and reads through the novel, eventually lead to his moral corruption and downfall from ‘high society’.
In the modern day, such areas of thought pervade cultural understandings. For example, some groups argue that the rise of violent video games ‘corrupt’ young minds. Similarly, discussions around the impact social media will have on the current and future generations are central to the anxieties accompanied with the digital age. Evidently, Wilde captured an ongoing topic of debate on the importance of culture and how exposure can shape the moral attitudes and mindsets of young minds, including that of Dorian.
Similarly, The Great Gatsby assesses the role of social mobility and the ‘corruption’ which can arise from transcending these class barriers. Jay Gatsby is commonly recognised as a member of ‘new money’, in which individuals work their way out of social deprivation to achieve what was often referred to as ‘The American Dream’. Fitzgerald’s depiction of materialism and superficiality continues to relate to modern society, as the ongoing push for status and the capitalist sense of ‘achievement’ are embedded in the cultural expectations of the education system and the media. The conflict between ‘new’ and ‘old’ money can be applied to modernity, given the role of social mobility.
Therefore, the prevalence of these works of literature within society is incontestable; the themes presented apply to many societal anxieties of the modern day, especially surrounding social media and morality. The integration of classics into the education system and encouraging a pertaining readership is essential to memorialising past societies and advancing our knowledge of not only present anxieties but the way these have evolved over time.
Lauren How
Featured image courtesy of Noom Peerapong via Unsplash. Image license found here. No changes were made to this image.
Image 1 courtesy of Ronald Woan via Flickr. Image use license found here. No changes were made to this image.
Image 2 courtesy of Husaria Agatka via Flickr. Image use license found here. No changes were made to this image.
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