The Literary Canon: the ultimate literature checklist.

For literary critics and English majors like myself, the “literary canon” becomes a road map of books to read in order to engage in conversation about literature. If you are a book lover who is interested in reading in a more academic way, the literary canon is the place to start.

But, what is the literary canon?

When we’re referring to a literary canon, we’re not talking about a large caliber gun or a professional camera, we are referring to, “a sanctioned or accepted group or body of related works,” as said by Merriam-Webster. But that definition is super vague, right?

Canons are usually defined by one correlating trait. For example, “Shakespeare's Canon” refers to all of the works written by William Shakespeare. The canon is “sanctioned” by its author. The literary canon, however, is a collection of works deemed to be “great” literature— a qualification that is far more subjective.

The easiest way to understand what warrants such literary reverence is to look at books who have earned them. Here is the literary canon checklist:

Homer, author of The Odyssey and The Illiad

 The Odyssey by Homer (750 BC)

One of the oldest literary works still massively read today, The Odyssey written by Greek philosopher Homer tells the story of King Odysseus on his way home from the Trojan War. The plot sounds simple in summary, but it's a long work of poetry and prose, sharing themes of hospitality, grief, and vengeance.

One thing that stands out about this book is just how old it is— like older than the New Testament. Some scholars think that a work has to simmer for a while before it becomes great literature, so maybe the book’s age is part of why it is so revered. However, it was new at one point, and was it any less great back then?

Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare (1597)

I mentioned Shakespeare had his own canon earlier, but many of his stories are so important that they end up in the literary canon as well. Romeo and Juliet is a tragic tale of forbidden love and miscommunication that ends in death for both characters, but the thing is, you probably already knew that.

Even if you haven’t read the work itself, the story is told and retold so many times across various forms of media: 1996 film adaptation, West Side Story, and Gnomeo and Juliet. What makes this story undeniable canon is its popularity and its timelessness.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (1818)

Most modern Halloween cartoons and comedies reference the iconic character Frankenstein, based on Mary Shelley's gothic novel; though the character presented today is very different from the one in Shelley's novel. Most notably, Frankenstein isn't the name of the monster, it's the name of the scientist who created him. The story follows Frankenstein's monster as it gets rejected by society and ultimately takes revenge on its creator.

This book is largely considered one of the first science fiction books ever written. It's publication shaped an entire genre of books to follow, a large quantity of which are taught in schools because of their social dialogue. This book is considered canon because it paved the way for many novels to follow it, and of course because of it's timeless character.

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov (1955)

When I read Lolita a couple of summers ago, it’s not because I thought I would enjoy the story of a middle aged English tutor who believes he’s being seduced by a 12 year old girl. I chose to read it because it is the basis for so many conversations I engage in about the media’s portrayal of young women. 

While the book was undeniably well written, I think that it’s cemented in the canon because it's a conversation started. Similar to Romeo and Juliet, sometimes we think books in the canon as large frames of work for others to branch out from.

Should we even care about the canon?

Other works include F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, and Toni Morrison’s Beloved— one of the most modern books widely accepted into the canon, being published in 1987.

The literary canon is so important because these are the books we are taught in school, they are the works we deem great enough to represent their sector’s of literature, and although many great writings are neglected in the making of this list, they books that are included contribute to societal progression by creating a space for dialogue and criticism. 

That being said, I don’t believe it should be held to a higher standard than the books in your canon. The great heads of literary criticism who compile this list do so with the largely biased perception of Christian, white men. As the years go by, the canon will become more diverse, but not as fast as books are being produced. 

When we pull certain books aside and tell others that these are the books they are meant to be esteemed and taught, we create a mutual literary language amongst most people with a high school education. It encourages people to think together, but if we're not careful, it can encourage us to think as one.

In another blog post, I will dive deeper into the faults and shortcomings of the canon, but I believe its important to have basic understanding of what it is first. How many literary canon books have you guys read, and what books do you think deserve a spot on the coveted list?