Great Books Will Never Grow Old
Great books have changed the world.
There is some degree of danger in taking the time to read great books.
The most radical result could be that you will be exposed to fresh and vibrant ideas. These ideas might even change your life. Ironically, some of the largest ideas that have literally changed society were written by authors who have been dead for hundreds of years. Many contemporary songs, movies and plays are remakes of the plays of Shakespeare or other ancient authors.
Great books can teach us great ideas. The writings of those who experienced life before there were smart phones can help us put our twenty-first century living into perspective.
Beyond ideas, there are many practical results of reading classical and enduring works of literature.
- vocabulary can increase
- writing ability can improve
- your sense of history can be enhanced
- your ability to express ideas publicly can improve
Let’s be honest here. Reading most of the great books expands our mind and patience much further than the thousands of “highly philosophical” text messages we read each month. Our intellectual courage may be called to action. Our comfortable concept of how life should be lived may be challenged. Some of our prejudices may have to be abandoned.
Reading great books is a unique enjoyment. You will see glimmers of contemporary society in a book written long before the Internet came into being. For instance, Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet are mirrored in contemporary movie and television plots. You will learn to appreciate the historical background that has actively created our present day level of sophistication. On the other hand, you might find we are not as sophisticated as we think we are.
People who read great books often emerge from the experience asking more of themselves, maybe even becoming the activist they didn’t know existed within.