The Classics
Yesterday I went into our little independent bookstore to find Ken Kesey's ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST. I searched in vain through fiction, finally redirected to the Classics section. Ken Kesey, a writer of a not-so-past generation, is now a classic? So what makes a classic a classic? Familiarity, timelessness, critically reviewed greatness, long-term sales, appearances in educational curriculum (a fun plural would be "curriculi")...what makes something a classic on your book shelf?
About Glenda
"I read Glenda Burgess' poignant and harrowing memoir, THE GEOGRAPHY OF LOVE, in one sitting-- in one breath -- and all I had ever felt about love's ability to vanquish everything, to swallow heartbreak, to correct history, Burgess makes us believe. And...
Causes Glenda Burgess Supports
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Importance makes a classic,
and Kesey's `One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest,'' first as a novel, then a play, then a film, is very important. I've heard people talk about the incredible suffering Kesey prevented by writing that book (I talk about it). It changed mental health laws in so many places. Tennessee Williams' ``Suddenly Last Summer'' had an impact along the same general lines, courageously examining, as did ``Cuckoo's Nest,'' the threat of shock treatments, medication and lobotomy to discourage the spirited and stifle the truth.
An important book is due out in a year or so on Kesey, by the way.
We have an incredible work of art by Kesey that he created with his son Zane and his grandson Caleb. To get a look at it, go to Askart.com, then find Kesey, then tap on Art for Sale. You can then tap on the image to enlarge it. Actually, I don't care if we ever sell it, especially to a private collector, hoping to eventually get it into a museum, where it belongs.
The importance of...
Excellent observations, Steve! So we have importance weighing in for a "classic." Your art work also sounds truly unique and you clearly care a great deal for what it represents. Art is important to me, as well. Interesting comments!
I clicked on this post
I clicked on this post because today, my character thought about this book. The novel is set in 1977, and this movie and this book could not be classic yet--but both soon would be. I took a class in 1985 on the Sociology of Mental Illness, and it was required reading. It's classic because at the time it was written, we had such a limited idea of mental illness. We had such a limited idea about incarceration. Probably, we still do, about both.
So yes. Classic.
J
Jessica Barksdale Inclan www.jessicabarksdaleinclan.com
Mental Illness and a fictional character...
Jessica, did you read Steve's post? He agrees. Kesey's novel as Classic literature because it possesses importance as a treatise and exploration of mental illness. And interestingly enough, old enough and iconic enough, to be a concept for your novel's character. That does indeed suggest "classic." What about historical relevance? I've heard said the film "Dr. Strangelove" is a classic, because of the satire of the 20th C. Political-Military machine. So clearly topical relevance and ground-breaking ideology.... Is "classic" also a period style of writing, for example the Bronte sisters?