The Classic Lit Conundrum

Here's a confession.....I am not a romantic person, AT ALL. It's not a recent development in adulthood, I've just always been like that.

And another confession....I'm not a fan of classic literature. Which kind of makes sense with my lack of romantic tendencies. But here's the thing, romance in movies, television, novels (especially novels), I'm totally down for. It's weird and does not make sense, but there it is. If the writing, plot, and characters are done well, I LOVE a good romance in a book. However, for some reason, that does not extend to classic lit. Over the course of several years, I tried to read Pride and Prejudice about 5 times. Could.Not.Do.It. It just wasn't for me.

So this New Year's Eve, I was hanging out with some good friends. I actually made it to midnight, which hasn't happened in about 10 years. Somehow, we got on the topic of classic literature. I made the comment that it was not my cup of tea. Everybody was like, "But you just got a degree to become a librarian! How can you not like classic lit???" And then came the comment, "So you loved Twilight but you can't read the classics?" .............................................

Okay, so it's time for a little detour rant. I loved the whole Twilight phenomenon. I actually watched the first movie before I read the books. Once I did pick up the books, I blew through all four of them in a week. While they were fun, fast reads, I can admit (as a fan) that they are not the greatest work of literature. They are what they are supposed to be, entertainment. No one who reads Twilight declares them as a fine work of art. But there is no denying the power that the books and movies had on the world of entertainment. It sparked a worldwide phenomenon and created a fandom culture that brought millions of people together. That is why I was a fan.

My love of Twilight should have no bearing on my desire or ability to become a librarian. And there lies the problem with people's perception of what a librarian should be or what purpose a library should serve. My goal as a librarian is to offer a wide variety of reading material to students. Almost every library you walk in will have copies of classic literature. I appreciate that. There is no denying their importance in shaping history and culture. Nevertheless, there are also plenty of modern young adult stories that can have just as much impact. Because guess what? Not everyone is going to be able to relate to Wuthering Heights, The Great Gatsby, or Pride and Prejudice. I want to make sure each patron that walks through those doors can find a piece of work that can make them feel inspired and creative. I want them to find solace in a piece of literature. I want them to know that reading can be exciting and educational. Most of all, I want them to realize that they shouldn't be scorned for their choice of material. After all, the ALA Freedom to Read Statement declares, "There is no place in our society for efforts to coerce the taste of others, to confine adults to the reading matter deemed suitable for adolescents, or to inhibit the efforts of writers to achieve artistic expression." Reading is an artistic expression that should be nurtured, not squandered because the choice of reading material is not the golden standard deemed suitable by societal expectations.

Reference:

A. (2017, May 19). The Freedom to Read Statement. Retrieved January 24, 2018, from http://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/freedomreadstatement

#YA #classicliterature #Twilight #opinions