1 year, 6 months ago
What authors and books do I need to read to consider myself literate in western civilization?
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M$1 Answer
This answer is my opinion.
The best author to read in order to start becoming literate in western civilization is William Shakespeare. There are some good web sites that offer wonderful information on how to translate his Early Modern English terms. One reason why I would read William Shakespeare is that most of the themes in his plays are universal to western civilization. Even if you don’t fully understand the language, you should still be able to pick up the plots and themes fairly easily. The other reason why I am recommending William Shakespeare as a good starting point for you is that many other later western civilization authors used quotes, themes and plots from his plays and poems in the context of or as the basis for their own written works. The Sound and The Fury by William Faulkner is an excellent example (“sound and fury” is from a quote from Shakespeare’s play Macbeth).
Happy Reading!
From wikipedia.org
-quote
The Romantics, in particular, acclaimed Shakespeare's genius, and the Victorians worshipped Shakespeare with a reverence that George Bernard Shaw called "bardolatry".6 In the 20th century, his work was repeatedly adopted and rediscovered by new movements in scholarship and performance.
-endquote
The best author to read in order to start becoming literate in western civilization is William Shakespeare. There are some good web sites that offer wonderful information on how to translate his Early Modern English terms. One reason why I would read William Shakespeare is that most of the themes in his plays are universal to western civilization. Even if you don’t fully understand the language, you should still be able to pick up the plots and themes fairly easily. The other reason why I am recommending William Shakespeare as a good starting point for you is that many other later western civilization authors used quotes, themes and plots from his plays and poems in the context of or as the basis for their own written works. The Sound and The Fury by William Faulkner is an excellent example (“sound and fury” is from a quote from Shakespeare’s play Macbeth).
Happy Reading!
From wikipedia.org
-quote
The Romantics, in particular, acclaimed Shakespeare's genius, and the Victorians worshipped Shakespeare with a reverence that George Bernard Shaw called "bardolatry".6 In the 20th century, his work was repeatedly adopted and rediscovered by new movements in scholarship and performance.
-endquote
You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars. If you are asking a difficult question that might require some research, or if you'd like a wide variety of feedback, a higher tip often leads to more answers to your question.
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