Literature and how it gets that way.

I have been visiting (and in some cases re-visiting) classical literature. I feel as though I've found some cyclopean wealth of knowledge that has been lost to the vast majority of unwashed miscreants that make up my generation. I find the last fact a tragedy.

These massive works of literature, which many contain the essence of human spirit, are forced upon us as young and hormonal teens. It is during this time when the American teenager, or at least a vast majority of American teenagers, finds education repugnant. I find it fascinating that this is the time when many of us will read the classics of literature.

When we think of novels like "Siddartha" or "The Metamorphosis" we think of high school English class and the sheer boredom it evoked. And while I did enjoy these novels, I don't feel I could possibly have grasped the full breadth and depth of these novels.

I would go so far as to say that many of us would learn as little as possible, the bare minimum to eke by, and then discard this knowledge like a burnt matchstick. In looking back I do remember reading these novels, but not much more than that. It was "Siddartha" alone that had any inkling of standing out in my mind. Funny, that it is the same book that started my return to literature of the classical variety.

That being said, I would like to briefly mention two books recently read by this humble blogger.

1) Dharma Bums by Jack Kerouac. (I spelled his last name right the first try!)

and

2) The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka.

Both are amazing pieces of literature for different reason, and both I would recommend. What is next on Ian's reading list? "On the Road" by Kerouac, "Naked Lunch" by William S. Burroughs and "Pulp" by Buckowski. Americana, here I come.