Which 20th century writers (of fiction) will be regarded as classic?

[Kyriakos]

For someone who would be near the end of the 21st century, which 20th century authors of fiction would be regarded as part of the classics?

I think that Borges, Pessoa and Kafka likely will be there, moreso Kafka perhaps, given his meteoric rise to prominence following ww2. Pessoa is a gamble, but in recent times he has become more known.

Of the nobel winners i am not sure any will be termed as part of the classics, apart from Hesse (i personally don't like most of what i read of him, but he is definitely a special kind of author) and iirc Hamsun also won a nobel, no? (i doubt Hamsun will be on the same tier of classics, though, again a notable author).

Other cases which i personally regard as good writers, but i am not sure if they will be deemed classic, are Lovecraft, Dunsany, Tanizaki, Walzer (Robert). For Dunsany and Walzer too much time has passed and they aren't that well-known.

-You can propose your own ( or post semantic wars about defining classic in a manner which even half an ant consisting of torso, two legs and abdomen, would readily identify as the definitive one? )

 

[jackelgull]

I'm not sure if the literary canon has room for more authors, but if it does, I'd wager that Junot Diez would find himself there. His book the Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao is pure amazing, tying in national destiny, with the fate for a family and its tragedy, and somehow tying that into the life of its central protagonist Oscar Wao.

 

[Borachio]

Ooh. Hundreds of them.

Let's pick one pretty much at random: Joseph Heller. (But only for the one novel.)

 

[abradley]

Two

Cannery Row

and

The Two Deaths of Quincas Wateryell

Why, because I went through a period like described in both, could relate.

Not the case with novels like The Great Gatsby, which was also great IMO.

 

[Zkribbler]

I'm not a big fan of Hemingway, but there's no denying the sea change he made in writing styles. If you read the flowery eloquence of 19th Century classics such as Uncle Tom's Cabin and then follow it with the spartan prose used by Hemingway, you'll see what I mean.

James Clavell's historical novels (Tai Pan and Shogun) must be in there.

And if the pantheon of gods can work their magic, Sir Terry Pratchett.

Not the case with novels like The Great Gatsby, which was also great IMO.

Until this day, I cannot understand what is great about Gatsby. I studied it in college; I saw the movie; but I just don't get it.

 

[abradley]

I'm not a big fan of Hemingway, but there's no denying the sea change he made in writing styles. If you read the flowery eloquence of 19th Century classics such as Uncle Tom's Cabin and then follow it with the spartan prose used by Hemingway, you'll see what I mean.

James Clavell's historical novels (Tai Pan and Shogun) must be in there.

And if the pantheon of gods can work their magic, Sir Terry Pratchett.

Until this day, I cannot understand what is great about Gatsby. I studied it in college; I saw the movie; but I just don't get it.

It may have been that you studied it.

I read for pleasure, when it becomes a task, it's not enjoyable.

Why is Gatsby great, for me it was the mystery.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

J.K. Rowling

 

[Leoreth]

J.K. Rowling

In the same way that Doyle is, sure.

 

[REDY]

Are they not considered to be classic already?

From not mentioned for example Eco, Steinbeck or Nabokov

 

[Tahuti]

Philip K. Dick. Though Umberto Eco would be an important one too.

 

[Kyriakos]

Re those mentioned:

Hemingway, yes (i actually forgot he won a nobel...). I have only read the Old man and the Sea, and back when i was 14, for english class. So yeah, i am not equipped to say if he will be part of the classics in the end of the 21st century, but it is not a bad bet at all

Umberto Eco is another one, although ( ) i haven't actually read any of his books... I know of the synopsis of Fucault's pendulum, which seems very interesting (was it written by the same person who created the Broken Sword series? ), and saw the movie adaptation of the name of the Rose (but i heard the movie is not a good adaptation, and Eco hated it-- i loved it though).

 

[gay_Aleks]

In the same way that Doyle is, sure.

So my grandchildren will be watching Harry Potter: Except Magic is Actually Technology: The Movie?

Jesus Christ, the Sherlock adaptations are bad enough! Can't we have a gritty Poirot adaptation already?

 

[aelf]

More like they will be watching Potter: The Wizard Begins, and the subsequent sequels as well as the subsequent second reboot directed by Christopher Bay Snyder.

 

[REDY]

Umberto Eco is another one, although ( ) i haven't actually read any of his books... I know of the synopsis of Fucault's pendulum, which seems very interesting (was it written by the same person who created the Broken Sword series? ), and saw the movie adaptation of the name of the Rose (but i heard the movie is not a good adaptation, and Eco hated it-- i loved it though).

I have read both, you definately must read it. Movie was very good adaptation of non-intellectual parts of book.

 

[onejayhawk]

One stands above the rest, Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird
Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings
Joyce's Ulysses
Orwell's Animal Farm

For young readers
Salinger's The Catcher In The Rye

For children
White's Charlotte's Web

J

 

[Borachio]

Until this day, I cannot understand what is great about Gatsby. I studied it in college; I saw the movie; but I just don't get it.

I've not seen the movie. But I was deeply impressed by the novel. It's just so well-written, imo. Reading it was effortless.

As for Hemingway, For Whom the Bell Tolls is a classic.

As is Lamming's Natives of my person.

And Carson McCuller's The Heart is a Lonely Hunter.

Many, many others.

 

[abradley]

A classic is an outstanding example of a particular style, something of lasting worth or with a timeless quality. The word can be an adjective (a classic car) or a noun (a classic of English literature). It denotes a particular quality in art, architecture, literature, design, technology, or other cultural artifacts. In commerce, products are named 'classic' to denote a long-standing popular version or model, to distinguish it from a newer variety. Classic is used to describe many major, long-standing sporting events. Colloquially, an everyday occurrence (e.g. a joke or mishap) may be described in some dialects of English as 'an absolute classic'.

"Classic" should not be confused with classical, which refers specifically to certain cultural styles, especially in music and architecture: styles generally taking inspiration from the Classical tradition, hence classicism.

IMO Dickens is a perfect example of the 19th century.

As for the 20th I still like my two choices and would add Orwell, his Animal Farm and 1984 can't be beat in style, subject, he's even an adjective:

Morality, Pragmatism, and Orwell in Rhetoric and Policy

10 November 2015

We’ve all gotten very familiar with Vladimir Putin’s Orwellian logic, according to which peace is war, intervention is non-intervention, democracy is fascism, and fascism is democracy. His latest comments at the Valdai discussion club just reinforced, if any reinforcing were still necessary, the point that the man is a master of mendacity.

(Continued)
http://www.worldaffairsjournal.org/...ity-pragmatism-and-orwell-rhetoric-and-policy

My bold.

Don't forget his essay on Writing:

Influence on language and writing[edit]
In his essay Politics and the English Language (1946), Orwell wrote about the importance of precise and clear language, arguing that vague writing can be used as a powerful tool of political manipulation because it shapes the way we think. In that essay, Orwell provides six rules for writers:

Never use a metaphor, simile or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
Never use a long word where a short one will do.
If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
Never use the passive where you can use the active.
Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.[120]
(Continued)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Orwell#Influence_on_language_and_writing

 

[Ajidica]

I would go with Walter Miller Jr for A Canticle for Leibowitz.

I mean, the book is just brilliant and has some amazingly evocative passages.

 

[abradley]

I would go with Walter Miller Jr for A Canticle for Leibowitz.

I mean, the book is just brilliant and has some amazingly evocative passages.

Great choice.

There's a Audio here:

Usage Public Domain Mark 1.0
Topics sci-fi, fantasy, futuristic, drama

A Canticle for Leibowitz is a post-apocalyptic science fiction novel by American writer Walter M. Miller, Jr., first published in 1960. Based on three short stories Miller contributed to The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, it is the only novel published by the author during his lifetime. Considered one of the classics of science fiction, it has never been out of print and has seen over 25 reprints and editions. Appealing to mainstream and genre critics and readers alike, it won the 1961 Hugo Award for best science fiction novel.

Set in a Roman Catholic monastery in the desert of the southwestern United States after a devastating nuclear war, the story spans thousands of years as civilization rebuilds itself. The monks of the Albertian Order of Leibowitz take up the mission of preserving the surviving remnants of man's scientific knowledge until the day the outside world is again ready for it.

Inspired by the author's participation in the Allied bombing of the monastery at Monte Cassino during World War II, the novel is considered a masterpiece by literary critics. It has been compared favorably with the works of Evelyn Waugh, Graham Greene, and Walker Percy, and its themes of religion, recurrence, and church versus state have generated a significant body of scholarly research.


This 15 part serial is based on the novel by Walter M. Miller, Jr. published in 1959. The story had previously been published as a series of novellas in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science. The book won the Hugo award winner for best science fiction novels of all time.

The radio drama adaptation by John Reed, and produced at WHA by Carl Schmidt and Marv Nunn.

The play was directed by Karl Schmidt, engineered by Marv Nunn with special effects by Vic Marsh.

Narrator - Carol Collins and includes Fred Coffin, Bart Hayman, Herb Hartig and Russel Horton.

Music was by Greg Fish and Bob Budney and the Edgewood College Chant Group.

 

[illram]

Lots. Of those not mentioned yet, Stephen King would be one name I would put forward that is sure to ruffle feathers of the more uptight literary types.