Homeschool for the 21st Century

Classic Vs Modern Literature: The Issue Of Pretense

Student Holding Literature For Online Course

People almost always read what they are most interested in. Even for an online literature course. Whether modern or classic, literature is the forefront to gain knowledge. Its wide scope allows you to delve into the categories of epics, ballads, hymns, and more.

Both modern and contemporary literature are two overlapping things. Where a lot of people must be in favor of reading modern literature, there are a lot of people who stand for classic literature too. To know more about it, let’s get an overview of modern and classic literature. You can also take a look at our online literature course catalog.

What Is Modern Literature?

Modern literature refers to the modernist period in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It is the period where literature was written, explained, and spoken. It was parted to give to the essence of both prose and verse. Modern authors are more experimenting where they take the risk to create something new and trendy. Their work is not limited to revolution or love. They have discussed more the surrounding, future, art, matter, love, sorrow, and a lot of things. They try to influence people with their work and creativity. It’s also about making people understand others and how to keep up with society.

What Is Classic Literature?

The period of classic literature was focused on inner self and perception where the stream of consciousness was the only thing that you can find in the author’s work. You can find revolutionary figures like Karl Marx, Sigmund Freud, Charles Darwin, and Friedrich Nietzsche who wrote much about the world war and its circumstances. Their work is more related to wars, urbanization, and revolution to influence people. It was conveyed in a very conversational way because the writing was the only thing to explain the on-going situation. The characters they used were strong and more dramatic to explain the plot. Furthermore, most of the scholars of the classic literature period used their poetry to sketch their thought.

Classic Vs Modern Literature

Image From Classic Literature — Beowulf
Beowulf fighting the Grendel beast monster. This book is covered in our British Literature class.

In both classic and modern literature, the writing style is quite distinct. Where one includes more urban and influential topics, the other one is related to the people and their lifestyle. Classic and modern literature break down into several sub-categories. They are Britain Literature, American literature, post-colonial literature, and Latin literature.

Britain’s literature is more formal and advanced. American literature is pretty causal. You can even see the difference as its prose and verses where the writers talk more with an aim. The modern learning as compared to the classic one is explainable and includes writing whereas the contemporary literature was majorly verbal.

Classic Vs Modern Literature: The Issue Of Pretense

The issue of pretense between modern and classic literature has been there for so long. Typically, youth love and appreciate modern literature or modernist literature. Because of the direct intellectual, it’s easier for people to understand.

The classic literature is more influential which requires deep research and understanding to know what’s happening. According to most of the writers, the only difference between these two is the gap of centuries. However, some writers believe that modern literature is based on the foundation of classic literature which makes it more impactful. Many people claimed that modern or modernist literature tries to be influential even though it’s not. This brings up the issue of pretense.

Here is what makes you read classical literature:

  • When you say that modern literature is based on classics then it means that it holds a pivotal role in shaping the way we read books. The artistic use of words and poetry makes it more readable and understandable.
  • Classic literature is full of knowledge and history where you get to read more than just dialogues. Even some of the classics include prominence and shining examples of that time. If you begin to read it, you’ll see how impressive it is. Not just for the adults but it has content that can inspire and motivate youth and tends especially.
  • You can find books related to creative rebellions and dissents of that time. In case you are not a history person than you can simply go for more subtle content that might include fruity, or oaky elements that’ll add fun to your reading taste.
  • Reading the classics helps you identify writers that contributed to setting up the foundation of literature. When you begin reading it, you’ll unpack depths that you didn’t know were even there. English Literature classes are full of fun, emotional, and surprising. You can either get too hyper or stay focused on what you’re reading. It has that effect to influence people with its right choice of descriptive words.

The Bottom Line

From a vast category, you can choose whatever you like and go for it. From different writing styles, the theme to the subject, it has so much for you to explore. Also, to learn more about English Literature concepts. Big River Academy has a lot to offer when it comes to an online literature course. Check out our course catalog and register today!

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