Why I Read Classics [CC]

Hi, everyone. It's Juan and welcome back to another video. Today I am here to talk about classics. And the question that I specifically want to address in this video is why read classics. As someone who spends a considerable amount of his reading time in the company of classic literature, I feel I can share my own experience and reasons why I read classics. But before I go into those reasons, it might be a good idea to talk about what the term classic literature means to me. And I always think a

bout what the great Italian writer Italo Calvino once wrote in an essay entitled Why Read the Classics? In it, he explores different definitions of the term. The first one is that classics are those books that when we talk about them, we tend to use the verb “reread” instead of just “read”. For Calvino, this is more about adult readers who feel inadequate about saying they are reading a classic book for the first time. But as he points out in his essay, it is impossible to read all the classics

before reaching adult life (or ever). Also, he adds, reading classics as adults will often be a richer experience. And I agree with all that. But I also think that rereading will still apply to classics in the sense that all classics are worth rereading. Those texts are so rich that they always benefit from being read and reread. I think that, at this point, I have reread most of the classics I first read when I was younger. I most recently did that with Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy and Swann’s

Way by Marcel Proust, but I have done it with many other titles. And whenever I read a classic now, I have a strong feeling that I will read it again in years to come. I would also like to be like those people who read the same book every year. I just haven’t found *that* book I would like to read over and over again. And that is one of my favorite things about reading. I am always open to finding my next favorite book. There is a long list of classics I want to read and the best thing about it

is that the list keeps growing. But let’s go back to the question of defining what I classic is. This is not something I want to spend too long on because I think that most people watching this video will know what I mean by classics. To my mind, a literary classic is a written text from the past that keeps being published, read, and studied. University literature courses mostly include classics in their reading list. And I say “mostly” because there are also courses where students are asked to

read contemporary writing. There is an overlap between “classics” and the Western canon, but they are not the same thing. The issue of the Western canon is too complicated, and I don’t want to be sidetracked, so let’s stay with classics. By the way, I would love to hear what your definition of a classic is, so let me know in the comments section below if you like. One thing I want to talk about is that there is a practical aspect to reading classics that I don’t think is often discussed. When I

pick up a novel by, say, George Eliot or a short story by, say, Henry James, I know that they are going to be worth reading. I know that what they have to say has remained relevant and how they say it has been deemed beautiful by people who have read more than me. And I am not talking about one specific person, or even a group of people, here. I am talking about all those readers that over many decades or, sometimes, even centuries have continued to read those books. With a contemporary novel, I

can read the reviews (or even watch videos here on YouTube). But unless I know the critic who praises a specific book has a similar taste and sensibility to mine, I don’t know if that book will be worth my time. I hate hype. I realize that books are products that are marketed just like oranges, make-up, or sunglasses. Publishers spend a lot of money marketing their books and BookTube is now part of that. And I have nothing against that. That’s how it works for every product, so why wouldn’t it

be different for books, right? Like most people who talk about books on this platform, I have been approached to review books by publishers or authors. So far, I have always turned them down, but I might agree to do that in the future as long as I find the book of any interest, which hasn’t been the case so far. Please don’t get me wrong, I think it is important that contemporary books get reviewed. And I am probably missing out not reading more contemporary literature. But I am safe in the know

ledge that I am not wasting my time when I read classics. I still read contemporary books. The purpose of this video is not trying to make people stop reading contemporary books. That would be nonsense because, among other things, today’s novel could be tomorrow’s classic. And writers would only be able to continue writing and publishing if someone buys and reads their books. So, I am not asking you to stop reading new releases at all. But I am here to tell you that it is important that you read

classics, too. Having said that, there is no point in trying to read all the classics, either. For one thing, that would be impossible. But I also think that wouldn’t be desirable. The number of books you read is not what matters. For a reader, the only thing that should matter is having a good time reading. So, let’s talk about that. Are classics fun to read? A lot of people grow up with the wrong idea that classics are boring or difficult – sometimes, boring and difficult. I think that comes

from the fact that in many countries, children are forced to read classics at school. They often just lack the vocabulary to understand what they are reading. But even more often, I think children are just not mature enough to read some of the books that they are forced to. So, they grow up thinking that classics are difficult. I know that I am generalizing and that there are children who love reading certain classics. But that was not my experience. While I never hated reading classics at schoo

l, I sometimes felt frustrated by some of them. I didn’t become a reader until I went to university, but everyone’s experience is different and equally valid. And there is some truth in thinking that classics are difficult and boring. Of course, what bores a person could excite another, but something that could make it difficult for readers to enjoy classics is the language. Because classics were written a long time ago, the language used is different to the language we now use. This makes it ex

tra challenging when you read in different languages, as is my case. But even reading classics written in one’s first language can be a challenge. Let’s say your first language is English. You might still struggle with some of the language in Jane Austen's novels (just to mention a popular classic author). And it might be hard to appreciate or even recognize the irony in something like Tom Jones by Henry Fielding, which was written almost 300 years ago. And what about context? It is hard to enjo

y a Victorian novel, for instance, if you don’t have at least some knowledge of English history. And that is a relatively recent time period! Imagine trying to get your head around The Iliad or The Odyssey? Another challenge we face when reading classics is trying to understand the significance of what we are reading. Some people might find the humor in Don Quixote baffling just because it is not the same kind of humor we see on SNL or the latest US sitcom. You’ll need to make the effort to get

into the mind of a man from the early 17th-century living in Habsburg ruled Spain. And that is not easy. That is why when I review classics here on my channel, I spend some time talking about the background. If I recommend a classic (and you can take most of my book reviews also as book recommendations), I feel like I need to explain why I think it is worth your time. And I also feel like I need to help you approach the book. And that leads me to my next point, which is that you should never app

roach all the books you read the same. Each book is different and if like me, you read books from vastly different time periods, the differences are also going to be greater. It makes no sense to use the same approach when you read the latest novel by your favorite author and when you read, say, Gulliver’s Travels, which was written to satirize a world that, although it has some similarities with ours, is not the one we inhabit now. My advice when reading a classic is to know what you are facing

and preparing for it. But, as Calvino would say, remember that nothing you read about a book would ever tell you more about it than the book itself. Good contemporary editions of classic works would include introductions and notes. And they are there for a reason. I know that they can slow down your reading pace, but, you see, I would also advise you to take your time with classics. Never rush through them, even if they are short. That would rarely work because of the language although there ar

e exceptions for this when you read in translation because some translations also “update” language. But also, classics tend to be rich in references, which you will miss out on if you are not willing to invest time and effort. On the flip side, spending that time and effort on a classic is more often than not hugely rewarding. At least, that is my experience. One thing you don’t want is to be scared of classics. You don’t want to think that some books would be too hard for you. With the right t

ools, you can read any book. You might have to read other books first, you might have to train yourself to read books from a particular time period, you might have to take longer, or read the introduction and then footnotes carefully, you might have to read the same paragraph more than once. But you can read classics. Everyone can. And some classics are more accessible than others. For example, I find Tolstoy to be hugely accessible. I think anyone who reads novels can read an enjoy Tolstoy. And

he is one the greatest universal classics. And there are a lot of accessible classics. Very often the only thing between you and a classic book is the language it was written in. And if that is the case, all you need is a good dictionary and some patience. Also, and this has happened to me, you might start reading and realize soon that it is not working. I will give you an example. It took me several attempts to read Middlemarch. I tried to read that novel for the best part of 20 years. But, in

the end, I was able to do it. And not just that, I even made a review, which I am going to link to here in case you are interested. Now, Middlemarch is not a particularly difficult book to read at all. And, like many classics – and I think this is key – a lot of people love it. When I realized that – that Middlemarch could be an enjoyable novel to read – that’s when I was finally able to read it all the way through. And I even enjoyed it. So, perseverance is also important. But joy is the main

thing, and I just cannot emphasize this enough. A book becomes a classic largely because over the years enough people have enjoyed reading it. And how can a novel, a poem, a play, etc. that is so beloved by hard to read? If you put off reading classics because you have placed them on a metaphorical pedestal, you need to reconsider that. Sometimes, all it takes is finding the key to access them. For instance, the great 18th-century novel Tristram Shandy can be more challenging to read than a Vict

orian novel. Possibly because the Victorian era is closer to us in many ways, not just chronologically, which means that Victorian novels depict a world that we can more or less easily imagine as we read on. Many readers are equipped to read Victorian novels, but they may struggle with novels written in the previous century. Dickens can be great. I have to say that I am not a huge fan of Dickens, but a lot of people love his novels. But I am yet to find as large a group of people who have read T

ristram Shandy, for instance. And I think Tristram Shandy is one of the best English novels of all time and one that any serious or ambitious reader should read. By the way, I have also reviewed Tristram Shandy, so I am going to link to it here as well. Okay, let’s say that I have convinced you to read more classics. Or that, perhaps, you already read classics, anyway. So, the question would be what classics to read, right? As I said at the beginning of this video there are so many classics avai

lable that it will be impossible for anyone to read all of them. The good news is that you don’t need to read all of them. So, how do you choose? Well, for me, there are specific authors I want to read. You know, I read something new to me by an author I have never read before and I enjoy it so much that I want to read more by him or her. That has happened to me with writers such as Edith Wharton, Nikolai Gogol, or Leo Tolstoy. Sometimes, I come across a reference to a classic. And that could ha

ppen when reading a classic or a contemporary novel. Something would intrigue me about that reference, so I decide to pursue it. Many things could lead you to a classic. I call those my rabbit holes, which can be distracting but also most illuminating. But there are other ways to find out what classics to read. For instance, if you have an existing interest for a specific time period, country, or civilization, you could easily pick up classics that align with those interests. For instance, if yo

u are into Greek mythology, then reading Greek tragedies would be a great idea, you know? I think you get the gist of what I am saying. If you are motivated to read classics, not just for the sake of reading classics and becoming more educated, but because you already have an interest in what those classics could bring you, you will probably be more successful. Sometimes, watching a film or TV adaptation of a classic could move you to pick up the book it is based upon. And although the current t

rend seems to be all against spoilers, I think that knowing the plot of a classic can often help you read it and enjoy it more. But that’s just me. You might feel different about that. I know that some people like to read fiction knowing as little about it as possible. But I am not persuaded that that approach is necessarily the best. At least, not for every book. And you know I think that one should approach each book differently. And that is why there can be false starts. You could start a boo

k and realize it is not working because your approach isn’t right. And that could also mean that it might not be the right time for you to be reading that specific book. The rule of thumb should always be that if you are not enjoying what you are reading, if you feel like what you are getting out of it is not enough to justify the time and effort you are investing, then you should stop reading that book and pick up something else, instead. You should read classics just out of love for literature

and the sheer pleasure of reading something great. But because there are so many classics available, you don’t want to waste your time with something that is simply not working for you. And there is always the promise that a classic that doesn’t work for you today might just work for you tomorrow. I’ve experienced that so many times to know it is true. Okay, the next question I want to address briefly is if reading classics and talking about them is appealing. I know that if I talked about book

prize nominations and reacted to longlists and shortlists, those videos would get a lot of views. But I am not that interested in book prizes. And I am also rare excited about new releases. And it could simply be because most of my favorite writers are dead. I think some people are genuinely excited by new releases and book awards, so let them do their thing because some of them do it very well. I have a look at some of those kinds of videos sometimes, you know, videos about new releases and bo

ok awards. I am a firm believer in letting people who talk about books on YouTube talk about the books they love. I think that’s what most people would want to see, right? And that is what I do here on my channel, particularly with my weekly book reviews that come out every Saturday. I didn’t set out to only review classics. What I do and what I want to continue to do is review the books that I love and that I think are worth reading and I argue my case in each of those reviews. If I read a new

release that I feel passionate about and feel I have enough to say about it to merit a whole video, then I will review it. And that also applies to genres. I tend to read literary fiction, but that is a category that is nebulous enough to allow me to read so many kinds of books, that you should not be surprised if one day you see me reviewing science fiction, fantasy, romance, detective fiction, etc. Labels are not important to me at all. I am a reader with an established taste. I know what I li

ke, and I know why I like it. However, from time to time, I like to venture out from what I know I would like because I am always hopeful that I would learn something. But, more often, I prefer to stick to what I have a strong feeling I would like. Because time is finite and I will never have time to read all the books I want to read. And this is something that I have learned over the years. I had to read a lot before I knew what my taste was. Or, rather, my taste in books was shaped by what I r

ead. I don’t know if this resonates with you too but, if you are so inclined, I would love to hear your thoughts on any of this. It is always a pleasure for me to read your comments here and over on Instagram or Twitter. So, please keep them coming. I think that is all I had to say about classics today. If I think of anything else, I will let you know in a future video. For now, I am going to sign off, but not before saying thank you for watching and goodbye. I hope to see you again soon for a n

ew video. Bye!