227 Classics: Outside Reading

227 Classics: Outside Reading

What is a classic? A classic is a work of literature that, because of its meaning and quality, has not gone out of style. You may not “like” every classic that you read. You may not understand all of them. But if you focus your attention on the meaning and the quality of the overall piece, as well as the details, then you can get that classic to speak to you. Some classics, such as classic children’s literature, are easy to read. Others demand patience, concentration, and an open mind. Approach the classic with humility: That is to say, recognize that you are in the presence of an acknowledged masterpiece.

Rules: You will read one work of literature from this list by the due date. Be prepared to participate in an “inner circle” discussion group. If you have an idea for a book which is not on this list, you must clear it with me. (Do not assume that another book by an author on this list is OK.)

Evaluation: Your “inner circle” participation will be evaluated on the basis of:

your familiarity with the generalities and specifics of the piece
your ability to transcend the obvious
the depth and complexity of your ideas
your ability to make connections to other works of literature, history, your own world

Classics

232 Classics: Outside Reading

What is a classic? A classic is a work of literature that has not gone out of style because of its meaning and quality. You may not “like” every classic that you read. You may not even understand all of them. But if you focus your attention on the meaning and the quality of the overall piece, as well as the details, then you can get that classic to speak to you. Some classics, such as classic children’s literature, are easy to read. Others demand patience, concentration, and an open mind. Approach the classic with humility: That is to say, recognize that you are in the presence of an acknowledged masterpiece.

Rules: You will read one work of literature from this list or the contemporary list by the due date. Be prepared to participate in an “inner circle” discussion group. If you have an idea for a book which is not on this list or the contemporary list, you must clear it with me. (Do not assume that another book by an author on this list is okay.) Parental approval is always a must: There are lots of choices here…

Evaluations: Your “inner circle” participation will be evaluated on the basis of:

your familiarity with the generalities and specifics of the piece
your ability to transcend the obvious
the depth and complexity of your ideas
your ability to make connection to other works of literature, history, your own world
IMPORTANT: You are not allowed to say the S-word (“stupid”: This is stupid, in your discussion.) If you do, you will fail. Same applies to the B-word (boring).

Key to Classic Codes

Each book is coded with a certain number of *’s. The lower the number of *’s, the simpler the book. When you choose a very simple book, you must be prepared to compensate for its simplicity with the complexity of your own ideas about its literary value. Over the course of the year, you are expected to read a combination of books at various levels of complexity. (You can’t read all * and ** books all year.)

A designation of + means that it is acceptable to read only selected parts of the book. A designation of = means that it is acceptable to read the work over two sessions.

Things Fall ApartChinua Achebe***
LettersAbigail Adams**
The Education of Henry AdamsHenry Adams****
Watership DownRichard Adams***
The Zoo StoryEdward Albee****
The Bible+****
The Talmud+****
The Koran+****
The Bhavagad Gita+****
The Upanishads+****
LysistrataAristophanes**
The BirdsAristophanes**
The CloudsAristophanes**
The FrogsAristophanes**
EmmaJane Austin****
MansfieldParkJane Austin ****
Northanger AbbeyJane Austin****
PersuasionJane Austin****
Sense and SensibilityJane Austin****
Another Country James Baldwin****
The Fire Next timeJames Baldwin****
Go Tell it on the MountainJames Baldwin****
If Beale Street Could TalkJames Baldwin****
Nobody Knows My NameJames Baldwin****
Notes of a Native SonJames Baldwin****
Cousin BetteHonore de Balzac****
Droll StoriesHonore de Balzac****
Eugenie GrandetHonore de Balzac****
Pere GoriotHonore de Balzac****
Lost IllusionsHonore de Balzac****
Struggles and TriumphsP.T. Barnum**
Peter PanJames M. Barrie**
The Wizard of OzFrank Baum**
LettersLudwig von Beethoven****
Dream SongsJohn Berryman****(poetry)
Patterns of CultureRuth Benedict****
WutheringHeightsEmily Bronte****
Jane EyreCharlotte Bronte***
The ProfessorAnne Bronte****
Manchild in the Promised LandClaude Brown****
The SecretGardenFrances Hodgson Burnett**
The FallAlbert Camus***
The Myth of SisyphusAlbert Camus***
The PlagueAlbert Camus***
The StrangerAlbert Camus***
Don QuixoteMiguel de Cervantes****
In Cold Blood Truman Capote****
Silent SpringRachel Carson****
The Sea Around UsRachel Carson****
Death Comes for the ArchbishopWilla Cather****
My AntoniaWilla Cather****
Alice’s Adventures in WonderlandLewis Carroll**
The BishopAnton Chekov****
The Three SistersAnton Chekov***
The Cherry OrchardAnton Chekov***
The SeagullAnton Chekov***
The AwakeningKate Chopin***
Their Finest HourWinston Churchill****
The Second World WarWinston Churchill**** (6 Volumes) Read 1
OrationsCicero****
The Adventures of PinocchioCarlo Collodi (Lorenzini)**
The InfernoDante****
The MoonstoneWilke Collins****
The AnalectsConfucius****
Madame CurieEve Curie**
The Constitution of the U.S.**
Maggie: A Girl of the StreetsStephen Crane***
The Open BoatStephen Crane**
The Red Badge of CourageStephen Crane**
The Descent of ManCharles Darwin****
Origin of the SpeciesCharles Darwin****
The Voyage of the BeagleCharles Darwin****
Robinson CrusoeDaniel Defoe**
Microbe HuntersPaul de Kruif****
Bleak HouseCharles Dickens=****
David CopperfieldCharles Dickens=****
Great ExpectationsCharles Dickens***
The Mystery of Edwin DroodCharles Dickens=****
Hard TimesCharles Dickens=****
Nicholas NicklebyCharles Dickens=****
Our Mutual FriendCharles Dickens=****
Pick wick PapersCharles Dickens=****
Pilgrim at Tinker CreekAnnie Dillard***
USAJohn Dos Passos***
The Hound of BaskervillesArthur Conon Doyle**
The Brothers KaramazovFyodor Dostoevsky=****
Crime and PunishmentFyodor Dostoevsky=****
The IdiotFyodor Dostoevsky=****
Notes from UndergroundFyodor Dostoevsky=****
Advise and ConsentAllen Drury****
The Souls of Black FolksW.E.B. DuBois****
The Meaning of RelativityAlbert Einstein****
The Immense JourneyLoren Eiseley****
“The Love Song of J.Alfred Prufrock”T.S. Eliot** (poem)
Invisible ManRalph Ellison****
Absalom, AbsalomWilliam Faulkner=****
As I Lay DyingWilliam Faulkner=****
The Sound and the FuryWilliam Faulkner=****
So BigEdna Ferber*
Tender is the NightF. Scott Fitzgerald****
Madame BovaryGustave Flaubert****
Howard’s EndE.M. Forster****
The Slave DancerPaula Fox*
The Diary of a Young GirlAnne Frank**
Civilization and its DiscontentsSigmund Freud****
Interpretations of DreamsSigmund Freud****
Where the Air is CleanCarlos Fuentes***
The Snow GoosePaul Gallico**
AutobiographyMohandas Gandhi***
One Hundred Years of SolitudeGabriel Garcia Marquez****
Love in the Time of Cholera Gabriel Garcia Marquez****
Ellen FosterKaye Gibbons***
Dead SoulsNicolai Gogal****
The Lord of the FliesWilliam Golding***
In the Shadow of ManJane Goodall****
The Panda’s ThumbStephen Jay Gould****
Wind in the WillowsKenneth Grahame**
The Tin DrumGunter Grass***
I, ClaudiusRobert Grames****
Black Like MeJohn Howard Griffin**
The Brave Little TailorJacob and Wilhelm Grimm**
The Fisherman and His WifeJacob and Wilhelm Grimm**
RumplestilskinJacob and Wilhelm Grimm
Bound for GloryWoody Guthrie***
The Federalist PapersHamilton, Jay, Madison***
Tess of the D’UrbervillesThomas Hardy****
Jude the ObscureThomas Hardy****
Catch 22Joseph Heller****
The Children’s HourLillian Hellman***
Death in the AfternoonErnest Hemingway***
The Old Man and the SeaErnest Hemingway***
SteppenwolfHerman Hesse****
Kon-TikiThor Heyerdahl***
The IliadHomer****
Les MiserablesVictor Hugo****
The Doll’s HouseHenrick Ibsen****
Rip Van WinkleWashingtonIrving**
The Legend of Sleepy HollowWashingtonIrving**
Declaration of IndependenceThomas Jefferson**
The MetamorphosisFranz Kafka***
The TrialFranz Kafka***
Profiles in CourageJohn Fitzgerald Kennedy***
Dancing on My GraveGelsey Kirkland***
Tao-te ChingLao-tzu***
Eleanor and FranklinJoseph P. Lash***
Lady Chatterley’s LoverD.H. Lawrence****
Elmer GantrySinclair Lewis***
ArrowsmithSinclair Lewis****
NotebooksLeonardo da Vinci****
The Call of the WildJack London***
White FangJack London***
The PrinceNicolo Machiavelli***
The FixerBernard Malamud****
The Communist ManifestoKarl Marx**
AutobiographyMalcolm X***
All My SonsArthur Miller**
Moby DickHerman Melville****
The Heart is a Lonely HunterCarson McCullers**
BelovedToni Morrison****
Gone with the WindMargaret Mitchell=****
LolitaVladimir Navokov****
The OctopusFrank Norris***
McTeagueFrank Norris***
A Good Man is Hard to FindFlannery O’Connor***
The Hairy ApeEugene O’Neil**
The Emperor JonesEugene O’Neil**
The Scarlet PimpernelEmmuska Orszy****
The Revolt of the MassesOrtega y Gasset****
Common SenseThomas Paine**
Penses (Thoughts)Blaise Pascal****
Doctor ZhavagoBoris Pasternak****
Cry the Beloved CountryAlan Paton***
The Labryinth of SolitudeOctavio Paz****
The Bell JarSylvia Plath***
DialoguesPlato****
The RepublicPlato****
The Tale of Peter RabbitBeatrix Potter*
Adventures of Robin HoodHoward Pyle*
Gargantua and PantogruelFrancois Rabelais****
PhaedraJean Baptiste Racine****
AnthemAyn Rand***
All Quiet on the Western FrontErich Maria Remarque***
The Light in the ForestConrad Richter**
How the Other Half LivesJacob Riis***
Cyrano de BergeracEdmond Rostand***
Giants of the EarthO.E. Rolvaag****
The Dragon of EdenCarl Sagan****
Fanny and ZooeyJ.D. Salinger ***
No ExitJean Paul Satre****
The 500 Hundred Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins Dr. Seuss*
Horton Hatches the EggDr. Seuss*
(any play)William Shakespeare ****
PygmalionGeorge Bernard Shaw***
Dragon’s TeethUpton Sinclair****
FrankensteinMary Shelley****
The Agony and the EcstasyIrving Stone=****
DraculaBram Stoker****
HeidiJohanna Spyri**
East of EdenJohn Steinbeck****
Gulag ArchipelagoAleksandr Solzhenitsyn****
Shame of the CitiesLincoln Steffens****
Treasure IslandRobert Louis Stevenson**
Uncle Tom’s CabinHarriet Beecher Stowe****
The Confessions of Nat TurnerWilliam Styron****
The Lives of the CellLewis Thomas****
Medusa and the SnailLewis Thomas****
Roll of Thunder, Hear My CryMildred Taylor**
Many MoonsJames Thurber***
The HobbitJ.R.R. Tolkien***
Anna KareninaLeo Tolstoy=****
A Confederacy of DuncesJohn K. O’Toole****
The Guns of AugustBarbara Tuchman****
Adventures of Tom SawyerMark Twain***
The CentaurJohn Updike****
Rabbit RunJohn Updike****
All the King’s MenRobert Penn Warren****
The Double HelixJames Watson****
Leaves of GrassWalt Whitman**** (poems)
The Island of Dr. MoreauH.G. Wells***
The Optimist’s DaughterEudora Welty****
Ethan FromeEdith Wharton***
Charlotte’s WebE.B. White**
Here is New YorkE.B. White****
Essays from the New YorkerE.B. White****
One Man’s MeatE.B. White****
The Loved OneEvelyn Waugh***
The Picture of Dorian GrayOscar Wilde****
Look Homeward, AngelThomas Wolfe****
A Room of One’s OwnVirginia Woolfe****
The Caine MutinyHerman Wouk****
Native SonRichard Wright****
A Vindication of the Rights of WomenMary Wollenscraft****

Rubric:

You may have this with you during your book talk.

Poor / Fair / Good / Excellent
Preparation / You don’t have your book with you. / You have your book, but no parts are flagged / You have your book, with some parts flagged / You have your book with you, with specific parts flagged for good reasons
Knowledge of the book / You seem not to have read the book. / You know only information about the book. / You know some generalities and specifics about the book. / You are knowledgeable about generalities and specific of your book.
Transcending the obvious / You can state only the most obvious information about the book. / You show basic insights that transcend the obvious. / You state one or two interesting observations / You show perceptive and mature insights into literary subtleties
Making connections / You make no connections to the books of other members of your group. / You make only the most basic connections to the books of other members of your group. / You make a few connections to the books of other members of your group. / You make insightful connections to the books of other members of your group
Using literary language / You use no literary language to talk about the book. / You use the most basic litrary terms to talk about the book. / You use a few important literary terms to discuss the book. / You use literary terms skillfully in the context of discussing your book.

Talking Points: Essential Questions

Power:

Complex and meaningful stories are always about power. The power can be physical, intellectual, economic, or emotional. How is power a driving force in your story? Who has the power? What kinds of power are there? How is the power usedRefer to literary elements in your discussion such as plot, theme, characterization, irony, setting, etc.

Transformation:

All classics involve a transformation of the main character. Describe the main character’s transformation: How and why does he or she change? How do the other characters cause the change? What is the effect of the change? How, if at all, does the change deliver greater understanding to the main character?

Sense of Urgency:

All classics involve a situation that creates a sense of urgency for the characters. Describe the sense of urgency: what causes it, why it is urgent, how it is resolved.

Deception and Betrayal

All great stories involve deception and/or betrayal. Describe the deception or betrayal, name the characters involved and their motivation, tell the results of the deception or betrayal.

The Four Page Treatment

Aristotle’s Three Act Structure

1 Page: Describes the opening scene

1/2 Page: Tells the general action of the first 25% of the book (Act I)

1 Page: Tells the “initiating event” that happens at the end of Act I, which has launched the story into “full conflict mode”

1/2 Page: Tells the action of Act II (middle 50% of book), specifying the confrontation that takes place at the midpoint

1/2 Page: Tells the action at the end of Act II, which propels the story into its inevitable resolution (point of no return)

1 Page: Tells the resolution