Introduction
It is a million dollar question. What makes a good piece of literature? What makes a memorable piece of music? The question applies to every medium of art in factwhat makes the work of a human worth seeing, worth reading, listening, feeling or watching, studying. And the answer too is simple enough. Any work of art that conveys an idea in its purity and freshness no matter where the looking glass is aimed at, from whichever perspective, is worthy of note. Literature can transmit ideas from ages past, to demographics wide, mould itself into fashions and traditions and yet mean something different to every individual who comes across it. Classical literature and the western canon are excellent sources for good literature, but it does not necessarily mean that every person will like what they find in these books. And this is why it is important to identify good literature through other means such as the context in which it was written, the impact of the book or the story or the verse over different time periods, the perspectives one can draw from the work and its relevance in modern time, etc. are all factors that must and usually do influence a reader’s decision to read or to not read and the attitude with which the work is read. Don Quixote, the most influential work to ever come out of the Spanish literary canon, for example, was considered to be a comic tale at the time that it was written, but after the French revolution, it was interpreted as a serious work, a tale of disenchantment and later on as a social commentary. Some even view the novel as a tragedy. Homer’s Odyssey comes with the presupposition that it was to be taken in the same tone as his previous work Iliad, but there are so few thematic correlations between the two epic tales that it’s hard to believe they were even written by the same author.
Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales have a quality of realism to them that is hard to match even in modern day literature. There is a certain aspect to every piece of classical literature that stays fresh even as centuries go by. This aspect will be interpreted in different ways by different people and different time periods, but even so, there will always be room for a fresh perspective and that’s what makes great literature great.
Criteria for establishing a good piece of literature
The conventional standards for judging and classifying the worth of literature fall short when it comes to individual taste and preference. There is no one list of books that everyone will like or appreciate. But there are a few criteria that can help us decide whether or not a certain piece of literature is marked by the kind of greatness that we all look for.
The inimitable something. Often great literature carries an inimitable element that is unique to its text, be it the style of narration, the characterisations, the theme or structure, etc. This inimitable something forms the premise for the thought experiment that was to be the novel or book.
Characterisations
Great pieces of literature celebrate great characters. The amount of the author gives to building a character, the obvious and the hidden traits of it, the changes and challenges the character goes through are all central to the success of a piece of literature.
Depiction of society
Many great pieces of literature have their own take on the society of that particular time period. Yet, few manage to bring out the kind of characteristics of the society which apply to all time periods.
Humour, Irony, Rhetoric
Literature written in good humour is always welcome. But at the same time, a certain amount of irony and rhetoric are known to imprint on a reader’s mind, filling them with newer perspectives of the world.
Individual identity
If a piece of literature gives attention to an individual’s identity as opposed to the drama and the events of the story, it is worth reading. Such literature allows the reader too to define himself in relation to the author or a narrator. One cannot stay indifferent to the classic author, as Italo Calvino puts it in his 1980s essay.
The Odyssey
In Homer’s The Odyssey, the inimitable something lies in the epic tale of adventure and hardship that Odysseus has to go through to get to his kingdom and his loving wife Penelope. Homer’s hero Odysseus takes a long time to get out of the nymph Calypso’s imprisonment and head home, finally choosing a normal life with his wife than the sensational one that the nymph offers him. Even so, Odysseus’s journey home is far from comfortable as he is faced with obstacles and danger every step of the way. Most of the danger however erupts from the hunger for glory and other mortal weaknesses of Odysseus and his men.
Characters
The character of Odysseus is uncovered with great detail and candour as the story progresses in all his strength and cunning while his son Telemachus’s personality too is explored, often from a point of comparison with Odysseus’s. Speaking in third person, the narrator offers insights into the thoughts and feelings of many of the characters, including the gods and other minor characters. Also of note is the fact that unlike other heroes of Homer’s Odysseus is not a static character. He grows wise in subtle ways as the story progresses as does Telemachus, although the latter is regarded as a youth and is expected to change.
Society/Company
As Odysseus travels with his men, deep insights are driven from the weaknesses of men and their inability to control them leading to many a problem. This reflects the past of the story of Odyssey as well as society in general, where even people with good intentions fall prey to small weaknesses which ultimately pave way for great dangers.
Homer’s epics were written for a pan-hellenic audience and use the forms and usages from various dialects in addition to the Ionic dialect in which it was written. His efforts paid off as the work was soon accepted not just by the people of Greece, but readers all over the world. His characters and their individual identities resonate with the idea of the perfect man or the hero and in the case of Odysseus, with a tinge of humour and satire to it.
The Canterbury Tales is a profound reflection of the phenomenon of classism that was prevalent in the medieval society and is obviously relevant even to this day. Chaucer’s deep and methodical description of each and every one of his twenty-seven primary characters is aimed at bringing about a meaningful and timeless reflection of the state of the society general during his time. Chaucer uses the descriptions of the character’s clothes and the fabrics they were made of in order to further elucidate the characters. This is an inimitable quality seen in
Chaucer’s work, even though the stringent mechanical approach to the element of characterisation screams to be imitated.
Characterisation and Identity. Intense realism of characters coupled with attention to certain kinds of details while ignoring other’s brings to question the character’s story as well as the narrator’s prejudice. This in effect brings about a unique perspective on the individual identity despite the existence of any number of characters. The fact that Chaucer is a part of the pilgrim group itself is a fine narrative tool, often prompting the reader to view all the characters and all their stories from his standpoint.
Humour and Rhetoric
There is no dearth of humour and irony in Chaucer’s tales. In every story, there is an element of humour and in many of the character depictions, there is an ironical note. For example, even though Chaucer thoroughly admires the courtly behaviour of the prioress, one cannot help but note the contradiction between the societal aspirations and the actual stature of a medieval nun.
The Vision
Chaucer had the vision of a form of poetry written in vernacular English at the time when the official court language was French and the language acceptable to the Church is Latin. His success in creating the Canterbury Tales marks the beginning of modern English literature and is still quite understandable and enjoyable for the modern English readers. Great literature is accessible by all and the Canterbury Tales still retain that status after seven centuries.
Don Quixote
There is a very curious word in English dictionary that every writer yearns to use, but fail most of the time. It is quixotic, a word derived from Cervantes’s character Don Quixote, meaning ‘idealistic and unrealistic’. A wide varieties of characters have enchanted the modern reader, but very few of them have as much depth equalled by the same amount of farcicality as Don Quixote. It is obviously the inimitable something about Don Quixote, in its portrayal of a romantic middle aged gentleman who wanted to live the ideals that society seemed to discard.
Depiction of society
The fact that an individual can still be different, even idealistic when an entire society is in the rut is a well-accepted idea that was first depicted in Cervantes’s novel. In the book, chivalry is no more a primary characteristic of a knight and even gallantry and nobility wasn’t expected of one. And yet, Don Quixote aims to be exactly all those things while he dreams about the perfect woman, hoping to be her saviour.
Individual Identity
Apart from the characterisation, Don Quixote’s personal identity is still a bit of a mystery among the many, many fans of literature that he garnered over the centuries. For example, in the end, when he so readily proclaims to give up the grand ideas of chivalry, one has to wonder whether he had been bluffing about his madness all this while. Also, in the second part, Don Quixote is a character that understands he is being written about. A unique and interesting theme, it explores the individual’s identity from two different perspectives at the same time.
Conclusion
A reader will easily understand what kind of literature excites him the most. But to constantly explore the realm of literature and keep the curiosity alive as to all the various forms and styles of it, it is always best to go with the ideas that a piece of literature claims to explore. Whether it is realism, society, chivalry or adventure, there is always a tell that inspires the individual, an element that he or she can identify with and define oneself with and through that element one can identify great literature.
Works Cited
Homer. "Book XVIII." Odyssey. Trans. Stanley Lombardo. Indianapolis: Hackett Pub., 2000. Print.
Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Canterbury Tales. Trans. Cooper, Helen. Oxford Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 1996. Print.
de Cervantes, Miguel. Don Quixote. Trans. Grossman, Edith. New York: HarperCollins, 2005. Print.
