The Greatest Classics for Holiday Season

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe · Stendhal · Jules Verne · Gustave Flaubert · Lewis Carroll · Theodor Storm · Henrik Ibsen · Charles Dickens · Plato · Honoré de Balzac · Mark Twain · Harriet Beecher Stowe · Rabindranath Tagore · Fyodor Dostoyevsky · Walt Whitman · Niccolò Machiavelli · Oscar Wilde · Robert Louis Stevenson · James Fenimore Cooper · Edgar Allan Poe · William Shakespeare · Giovanni Boccaccio · Confucius · George MacDonald · Charlotte Brontë · Anne Brontë · Emily Brontë · Henry David Thoreau · Jack London · Henry James · Louisa May Alcott · Victor Hugo · Arthur Conan Doyle · Frances Hodgson Burnett · Joseph Conrad · Jane Austen · Herman Melville · George Eliot · Laurence Sterne · Thomas Hardy · Jonathan Swift · Edith Wharton · Benito Pérez Galdós · Daniel Defoe · Henry Fielding · Alexandre Dumas · Rudyard Kipling · William Dean Howells · Kalidasa · Kenneth Grahame · Marcel Proust · Washington Irving · Juan Valera · Willa Cather · Nathaniel Hawthorne · Homer · Gaston Leroux · Charles Baudelaire · William Makepeace Thackeray · Voltaire · Kate Chopin · Apuleius · John Milton · Charlotte Perkins Gilman · Frederick Douglass · Laozi · John Keats · James Joyce · Ann Ward Radcliffe · Kahlil Gibran · Kakuzo Okakura · Soseki Natsume · Princess Der Ling · L. Frank Baum · H. G. Wells · W. B. Yeats · J. M. Barrie · G. K. Chesterton · T. S. Eliot · L. M. Montgomery · C. S. Lewis · D. H. Lawrence · E. M. Forster · H. P. Lovecraft · F. Scott Fitzgerald · Marcus Aurelius · Friedrich Nietzsche · Lewis Wallace · Ivan Turgenev · Anton Chekhov · Leo Tolstoy · Nikolai Gogol · Sir Walter Scott · George Bernard Shaw · Miguel de Cervantes · Mary Shelley · Cao Xueqin · Emile Zola · Válmíki · Bankim Chandra Chatterjee · P. B. Shelley · Elizabeth von Arnim · Herman Hesse · Dante · Pedro Calderon de la Barca · Sun Tzu · Inazo Nitobé · Bram Stoke · George Weedon Grossmith · Willkie Collins

Nov 2022 · DigiCat

About this ebook

The Greatest Classics for Holiday Season is an anthology that encapsulates the essence of diverse literary styles, historical periods, and cultural narratives, creating a mosaic of human experience and imagination. This collection stands out for its breadth, including works that range from the intense introspection of Dostoyevsky, the poignant social critiques of Dickens and Hugo, to the fantastical realms created by Lewis Carroll and H. G. Wells. It showcases the varied ways in which literature can be a mirror to the world, reflecting or refracting the social, psychological, and existential dilemmas of humanity. The inclusion of seminal pieces by Shakespeare, Plato, and Confucius alongside modernist reflections by James Joyce and T. S. Eliot further enriches this canvas, providing a comprehensive overview of the literary achievements across ages. The contributing authors and editors, each a luminary in their own right, bring their unique voices and perspectives, rooted in their distinct historical and cultural contexts. From Goethe's exploration of romanticism to Voltaire's enlightenment critique, and from the transcendental musings of Thoreau to the existential ponderings of Nietzsche, this collection traverses the intellectual landscapes that these writers inhabited. The assembly of such varied authors not only highlights the evolutionary trajectory of literary thought but also the undercurrents of philosophy, politics, and individual consciousness that permeate their works. It's a vibrant testament to the enduring power of storytelling and the unifying thread of human curiosity and creativity throughout different eras. This anthology is an indispensable resource for readers seeking to immerse themselves in the wealth of human thought and expression. The Greatest Classics for Holiday Season offers a unique opportunity to journey through the intellectual and emotional territories charted by some of the most influential figures in literary history. It is a call to those who wish to explore the depths of human experience, to understand the diversity of life through the prism of literature. For educators, students, and lovers of literature, this collection serves as a gateway to the multifaceted nature of classic literary works, inviting an engagement with ideas and narratives that have shaped the human condition across centuries.

About the author

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) stands as a towering figure in world literature. A versatile German writer, dramatist, and philosopher, Goethe's influence extends beyond literature into the philosophical and scientific domains. His literary style encompasses a rich array of forms, integrating Romanticism, Classicism, and Realism in a body of work marked by deep introspection, a love of nature, and an acute understanding of human passions and struggles. Perhaps best known for his two-part poetic drama, 'Faust,' Goethe's oeuvre also includes an astonishing variety of poetry, novels, and scientific treatises. His first novel, 'The Sorrows of Young Werther' (1774), was instrumental in developing the Sturm und Drang literary movement, capturing the emotional turmoil and intellectual ferment of the time. Goethe's 'Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship' is considered a prototypical bildungsroman, exploring the thematic tapestry of education and personal growth. Meanwhile, 'Elective Affinities' showcases Goethe's exploration of the complexities of human relationships through the metaphor of chemical reactions. His extensive travels through Italy led to the autobiographical work 'Italian Journey,' which offers insights into both the culture of the time and the author's own development. In Goethe's vast compilation, 'The Greatest Classics for Holiday Season' may include a selection of his writings that emphasize themes pertinent to reflection, festivity, and the human experience, encapsulating the profound wisdom and artistic beauty characteristic of his work. Goethe's literary legacy is preserved by the universality of his themes and the timeless nature of his prose and verse.