AIBU to feel uneducated after coming across this list of 'Great Books' that HIGH SCHOOL students are meant to have finished??

[HopefulAnnie]

www.welltrainedmind.com/great-books/

Website is called Well Trained Mind as well haha!

I have read maybe 12 books here and have barely heard of the rest. I can't believe this is a high school reading list, I feel so thick but these books seem somehow advanced to me.

I'm going to try and start from the 9th grade and read a couple and work my way up.

How many of these books have you guys read?

It's only just dawned on me looking at that list again that they suggest reading the stuff in chronological order. So when you're in ninth grade, you read Aristotle, the Bible and the Mabinogion and when you're in 11th grade, you read all the "modern" stuff like Great Expectations.

I don't understand what they mean by a "classical" education either. Clearly Aristotle, Plato etc are part of a traditional classical education (because a "classical" education usually refers to the ancient Greek and Roman writers). But Huckleberry Finn and Crime and Punishment aren't. So do they mean something else altogether? I don't get it.

Aha. It's not what it means in Europe. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_education_movement.

Also, "In Classical Education, the authors examine six different approaches elementary and secondary schools use to tie the “3 Rs” to the moral and civic education of the Western tradition. They include Christian Classicism, which is advocated by the Association of Classical and Christian Schools; Democratic Classicism, which has been adopted by over 100 public schools; Moral Classicism, which is based on the idea that education is a path to virtue; and Liberating Classicism, Marva Collins’ program for minority children in poor neighborhoods that emphasizes phonics and character education."

It seems to be about reading 'improving books'.

I think that list was sponsored by the estate of William S(tearns) Davis. I have never heard of him, but he's all over the place.

It has a massively American bias, and even allowing for that it's very odd.

I've just looked up his medieval one (it's online free) and it is Weird Shit. With the emphasis on shit.

perhaps him? en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Stearns_Davis

It's a ridiculously pretentious list. If that's all a child of that age is given to read it'd put them off for life. It's so dry.

I've read about 30 and I have an Literature degree. It's very American writers and bible heavy isn't it?

Going to check out the bbc list. Suspect I'll do better there.

Bbc list- 67 plus Shakespeare, although not all of them I don't think, plus about four that I read half of and scanned the rest I do own them though so I can pick up where I left off.

Ulysses and W&P I'm looking at you.

Ridiculous list! I ' m Greek so happen to have read some of the first lot, and I have read a lot of the philosophy books for work but good luck to any 11th grader reading the Critique of Pure Reason! (The Aristotle book is mis-titled as well so I suspect whoever put the list together was pulling titles off Wikipedia)

Also if you are truly pretentious you need to have read the Tale of Genji!

Boring load of shite with a couple of exceptions.

' Boring load of shite with a couple of exceptions.'

Don't listen to the unkind poster, she doesn't know you. And you sagas, stop sniggering. You weren't even on the list you barbaric oiks.

So IABU to feel thick cheers MN!

I like the look of the fake BBC reading list, I've read and enjoyed almost half of that list!

Btw, this wasn't a lit reading list it is a classical home education list and it's not expected that anyone will read all the books,

I feel that I missed out on a classical education because I attended a school that didn't offer these subjects and I was never really bothered about ancient Greek/Roman life & history etc. but I'm thinking about taking an evening course or A Level in Classics, it'd be v fascinating!

I think I have read at least some of everything on the Classical list in the original. We had to do bits of loads of authors for Greek/Latin unseens and I had to do Greek tragedy at university.

Its a list that would put most teenagers off reading for life.

Well trained mind and similar US 'classical' home education programmes tend to be of the 'older stuff must be better and more edifying than the new stuff that is so obviously destroying civilization' types. It does say that no one will read all of them but I'm sure there are more than a few competitive parents who have tried.

Personally, for a list that is meant to be about using literature to teach history and philosophy and going on about comparing philosophies, it's rather narrow - almost solely Western Europe and Anglo US. It has room for Mein Kampf, but no books or authors from the vast majority of the world.
For what is being shown as a high school literature/history/philosophy/ethics curriculum it does read more like a list of books to be read and expand pretentious vocabulary and only reading those books (which likely would destroy a desire to read much else even if they had the time!) would leave a person quite uneducated about a lot of the goals it says it's set out to do.

you are just uneducated on this particular subject/specialism.

I've read 51 of those books from the BBC website - most of the harder one like dickens few of his books are an easy reads for me, as a older teenager or early 20's - when I had more patient.

Some really weren't worth the effort though other's obviously great.

Did some like Lord of the flies through school - I hated extract and tracked books down. Other's my parents had scatter round the house in hope having classics about their DC would read them - I was only one who did.

Recently tried Les Misérables - couldn't get past first chapters though I do want to see the latest film. I have Great Gatsby and woman in white on my kindle ready to read. I had a copy of all of William Shakespeare plays - read a few but it's really not a good way to encounter the plays IMO.

I've read 4 of the books on op grade 9 list - as part of two different OU course dealing with in part or mainly classical areas.

I don't think I am particularly well read though - I don't tend to like the modern literacy stuff found on the booker prize lists and struggle with Dickens now as don't have patience and can't seem to get into the classic Russian novels.

I tend to read an awful lot of crap on my kindle these days.

I feel that I missed out on a classical education because I attended a school that didn't offer these subjects and I was never really bothered about ancient Greek/Roman life & history etc. but I'm thinking about taking an evening course or A Level in Classics, it'd be v fascinating!

OU do some nice courses - though there prices have gone up hugely since I thought the same and studied with them.

*Also if you are truly pretentious you need to have read the Tale of Genji!
^

Oh, I have read that one.

In answer to a PP, Annie maybe. I do think reading is about enjoyment first and foremost. I don't think there are books that 'have' to be read. There are books I feel I have to read but it is such an individual experience and our outlooks and prioritises etc are all different.

Oh MrsDV I do love you