what is the meaning of Mark Twain's quote ""Classic" a book which people praise and don't read"?

Question

i know some quotes dont mean what they say literally, so i dont think mark twain is talking about an actual book. ive done a lot of research on google to find out what it means but im not finding any results. so if you have an idea please please pleaseee tell me. =)

Answer 1

The first responder is correct. A classic is a book that many people will reference or try to quote, but the most they've done is read the Cliff Notes or get past the first chapter.

I was a science major in college, so I didn't really get to read much beyond HS. But, now I've picked up Willa Cather and O.Henry to start myself off. Twain is also a great author and humorist - he's one to be considered a 'classic'.

Read, read, read - it's the best thing you can do for yourself:-)

Answer 2

Actually, I think Mark Twain meant exactly what he said, but you are right, "Classic" is not a specific book, but the books considered classic literature, like Jane Eyre, Oliver Twist, The Count of Monte Cristo, etc. Surprisingly enough, some of Twain's books like Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn are now classics, but they don't really fit the "classic mold" in which books are often depressing or difficult. Twain was probably also getting a dig in at snooty people who talked about reading the classics, but had such rudimentary knowledge that they couldn't possibly have read them.

I was an English Lit major and believe me, if I had not had to read some of those "classics" I would not have done so. Many of the classics are too long and too hard to understand, so they cannot be considered common for "pleasure reading." To me, so many of the classics are depressing, and I don't want to spend my free time being depressed.

Answer 3

Mark Twain Classics

Answer 4

Twain is calling attention to the tendency among people that want to be thought of as "learned" to adopt a consensus-view about what constitutes valuable culture, without actually forming an opinion based on experience.

Twain's insights are classic. Much of his work is availble for free online.

Answer 5

I think you did too much research--Twain is just being humerous. Wouldn't you rather read some lighter fiction than something by Charles Dickens--even though Dickens work is a classic? It's a classic, but hard to slog through.

Answer 6

If you think of the books people call "classics," you know that nearly everyone has heard of them, maybe even know the plot and themes of the book, but rarely have these people actually read the book.

Answer 7

yeah, it means the whole group of books called classics, which everyone talks about (and praises), knows about, thinks are great and probably even owns but never read