Masterpieces of World Literature, Philosophy and Science

[Lohrenswald]

Is math science?

 

[SS-18 ICBM]

Twain's Huck Finn?

I keep seeing that book as just a children's book, but people seem to act otherwise. What major issues does it tackle? What ideas did it bequeath to future thinkers and writers?

 

[Gary Childress]

Why don't you just read the wikipedia pages of all the great works?

Yeah, it's kind of a toss up between a physical book and the Internet these days but I'm a little old fashioned and like the feel of a book in my hands. Plus reading long passages on a computer screen sort of puts me off for some reason. Not sure why. But reading Wiki instead would have saved me about $16.00 which I could have used toward something else. Oh well...

 

[Zkribbler]

I keep seeing that book as just a children's book, but people seem to act otherwise. What major issues does it tackle? What ideas did it bequeath to future thinkers and writers?

Huck Finn has been raised in a racist society and has absorbed its values. He must struggle between what he's always been taught is right and what his heart tells him is right. Here's a couple of scenes (which I'm paraphrasing after decades of no exposure to the book):

Jim told me that once he'd get up North, he find a job and never spend a single penny. He'd buy his wife, and they'd both go to work until they had enough to buy their children. And if their owner wouldn't sell, he'd hire an abolitionist to steal them! Why, such talk nearly froze my blood! Steal his children? From a man who'd never done me no harm? And whose fault was this? Why, it was mine.

Two boats came by with men holding guns.
"What's that over yonder?"
"A piece of raft, sir."
"Are you off it?"
"Yes sir."
"Any men on it?"
"One, sir."
"Well, three n*****s ran off last night. Is your man white or black?"
"He's white, sir."
They went off.
I knowed I'd done wrong. My conscious got to bothering me something awful. Then I said to myself, "Wait a minute. What if I'd told? Would I feel better? No, I wouldn't. I'd feel bad. I'd feel just like I feel now." There it was. What's the use of trying to do good, if it's troublesome to do good and it ain't no trouble to do bad and the wages is just the same? Well, I had me there. I couldn't answer that one.

 

[Terxpahseyton]

Regarding the first two: The novel I am currently working on, naturally. But only every second week. After I have overcome the humiliation of having fallen in love with such rubbish.

More srzly: I never read something I considered a masterpiece. Not sure I ever will (except in that second week). I am very skeptical that if I find it it will be a book commonly considered so.
There is just so much room in writing, so much space to explore, so many ways with so many nuances to do it right or wrong - I'd want a master piece not just to have done a great or even fantastic job, there is a lot of that out there and I have read some of it, but to truly conquer the space there is. I doubt this is even possible (except by me in my fantasies, perhaps)

 

[Yeekim]

Never heard of Absolom, but I've read Huck Finn once or twice and quite liked it.

I don't see the value beyond discovering works that sound interesting that I should check out.

Didn't even occur to me there was supposed to be any value beyond that?