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725 BCE
The Odyssey
Greek literature written by Homer in sometime around 725-675 BCE. This was an Aristotelian tragedy and epic poem. The Odyssey influenced modern literature through its narrative structure and the themes and characters presented in it. -
Period: 725 BCE to
History of Reading at Verot
By Robert, John, Marcos, and Harrison -
430 BCE
Oedipus Rex
Greek literature written by Sophocles in around 430 B.C. during the Golden Age. Oedipus Rex is an important reminder that sometimes we just have to let things go and realize that things will happen as they will. This is an Athenian tragedy and often considered as the greatest Greek tragedy. It's influenced by The Odyssey. -
700
Beowulf
Anglo-Saxon literature written by an unknown author sometime between 700 and 750. It's contribution was an insight to early English life as it was an epic poem and is considered the highest achievement of Old English literature; moreover, the earliest European vernacular epic. -
1387
Canterbury Tales
British literature written by Geoffrey Chaucer in 1387 during the Medieval Age. Credited with introducing iambic pentameter. -
1516
Utopia
British literature written by Thomas More in 1516 during the Elizabethan Era. It had a major influence on equity and the legal system in English law. -
Romeo and Juliet
British literature written by William Shakespeare in 1597 during the Elizabethan era. This is a Shakespearean Tragedy. It is a vision of an uncompromising mutual love that perishes of its own idealism and intensity. -
Julius Caesar
British literature written by William Shakespeare in 1599 during the Elizabethan Era. It showed the danger of monarchies and having to much power in one leader. -
Macbeth
British literature written by William Shakespeare in 1606 during the Elizabethan Era. It showed the destruction of unchecked ambition. -
Paradise Lost
British literature written by John Milton in 1663 during Age of Enlightenment. This was the last epic poem. -
Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God
Puritan literature written Jonathan Edwards in 1741 during the Colonial Period. It demonstrates the beliefs of puritans during the Great Awakening. -
Poe Short Stories
American literature written by Edgar Allen Poe between 1809 and 1849 during the Romantic Period. These short stories develop Gothic horror stories and sets the tone for science fiction. -
Sense and Sensibility
British literature written by Jane Austen in 1811 during the Victorian Era. The book influenced Pride and Prejudice. It contributed the action of going beyond the surface structure. It is also a novel of manner. -
Frankenstein
British literature written by Mary Shelley in 1818 during the Victorian Era. This was a Gothic fiction written under a pen name. -
Jane Eyre
British literature and a novel of manner written under a pen name, Charlotte Brontë, due to the patriarchal society. -
Wuthering Heights
British literature written by Emily Brontë in 1846 during the Victorian Era. Emily Brontë is one of the first famous female writers. -
Great Expectations
British literature written by Charles Dickens in 1861 during the Victorian Era. It included comedy into his writing which was especially difficult considering the time period. -
Flatland
British literature written by Edwin Abbott Abbott in 1884 during the Victorian Era. Edwin Abbott Abbott introduced the concept of higher dimensions. He wrote it under the name "A Square". The book was a satirical novella. -
Heart of Darkness
British literature written by Joseph Conrad in 1899 during the Realism Period. Spoke about the issues of imperialism and racism. -
My Antonia
American literature written by Willa Cather in 1918 during the Modern Age. This is a classic novel of the American immigrant experience. -
Sidhartha
German literature written by Herman Hesse in 1921 during German Modernism. It is considered a classic because it captures Buddha's teachings in a way not achieved before. -
Great Gatsby
American literature written by F. Scott Fitzgerald in 1924 during the Modern Age. It is consider to be a novel of manner. The book was written about a time of negativity throughout America and human struggles with time and fate. -
Of Mice and Men
American literature written by John Steinbeck in 1937 during the Modern Age. It is a Noble Prize winner. This book teaches the dangers of believing in dreams, especially the American dream. Also, it speaks out about the Depression-era, racism, and sexism. -
1984
British literature written by George Orwell in 1948 during the Contemporary time period. The novel has inspired movies, television shows, plays, a ballet, an opera, a David Bowie album, imitations, parodies, sequels, rebuttals, Lee Harvey Oswald, the Black Panther
Party, and the John Birch Society. today many people reference 1984 when talking about censorship and propaganda. It is very similar to Fahrenheit 451. -
East of Eden
American literature written by John Steinbeck in 1951 during the Contemporary time period. John Steinbeck won a Nobel prize and impacted literature to focus on society and economic issues. This book is inspired by the Bible. -
The Crucible
American literature written by Arthur Miller in 1952 during the Contemporary time period. It represents an important time in American history and servers as an allegory for McCarthyism. -
Fahrenheit 451
American literature written by Ray Bradbury in 1953 during the Contemporary time period. The book has been praised for its stance against censorship and its defense of literature as necessary both to the humanity of individuals and to civilization. It can be connect to 1984 because of their elements of censorship and a society where the government controls the people. -
Lord of the Flies
British literature written by William Golding in 1954 during the Contemporary time period. It marks the author‘s failure to move beyond a fundamentally Eurocentric and colonialist view of the world. -
Night
Polish literature written by Elizer Wiesel in 1956 during the Contemporary time period. This book was influential in building the collective post-war memory of the Holocaust. -
West Side Story
American literature written by Arthur Laurents in 1957 during the Contemporary time period. This was a Shakespearean tragedy inspired by Romeo and Juliet. It’s greatest influence was the theatricality of the work -
A Separate Peace
American literature written by John Knowles in 1959 during the Contemporary time period. This book is considered a classic because of its well-written prose and timeless theme. -
A Man for All Season
British literature written by Robert Bolt in 1960 during the Contemporary time period. It address the conflict between Sir Thomas More and Henry VIII and how Thomas chose to do what’s right in a time where his actions were viewed to be wrong. -
Malcom X
American literature written by Alex Hailey in 1965 during the Contemporary time period. It helped inspire the black power movement. The book is written about Malcom X who had strong beliefs for change similar to Winston in 1984. -
House on Mango Street
American literature written by Sandra Cisneros in 1983 during the Contemporary time period. This book has been the topic of various academic publications in Chicano Studies and feminist theory. It explores elements of Mexican-American culture and themes of social class, race, sexuality, identity, and gender, which makes it a modern classic. -
Beloved
American literature written by Toni Morrison in 1987 during the Contemporary time period. She was the first African American woman to write a published work. It was written to remind Americans that we too have blood on our hands. -
Into the Wild
American literature written by Jon Krakauer in 1992 during the Contemporary time period. It speaks out against social norms and encourages people to move away from materialism. -
The Book Thief
Australian literature written by Marcus Zusak in 2005 during the Contemporary time period. It isn't completely in agreement that this book is a classic, but is a well written historical fiction novel.