Reading enjoyment among teenagers was at one of the lowest levels in 2022. Where in the previous two years there had been an increase in the statistics of teenagers reading, this year it plummeted Classic literature has become especially underappreciated among teenagers of today with the popularity of Young Adult as a genre. Whilst there is nothing wrong with YA literature, there is a certain timeless, unique quality of classic literature. One cannot deny the understated beauty of classic literature and the reminder it offers that even centuries ago, someone utterly understood you. Sadly, many people never experience this feeling because classic literature is inherently elitist, which means that people are not encouraged to attempt classic literature and find themselves in a reading rut.  

  

This leads to my main point about why every school should have a classics club. Having a classics club encourages students to read a classic that they may not have considered before, or if they have it forces them to look at the book from an unfamiliar perspective. When asking the teachers who began my school’s classic club what made them start a classics club Emily Cartmel said, “There are so many incredible novels that aren't on the curriculum - why wouldn't we want to share some?” Emily Cartmel is right. An article by Penguin published in June of 2021 shows that less than 1% of GCSE students in England study a book by a writer of colour, and only 7% study a book by a woman. These are pitiful statistics and feed into the rhetoric of white, male academia which controls the world of literature. Choosing the classics it gives educators a chance to show their students that this is not the case.  

 

When asking another teacher why she began classics club Holly Manning answered with this explanation “A recognition that the classic texts students are exposed to at KS4 are not particularly diverse or representative of the society we live in. However, instead of dismissing such texts as "outdated" or lacking in inclusivity, I wanted to encourage students to experience them through a critical lens; thereby enabling students to find beauty in the writing while recognising where their faults or issues may lie. Furthermore, I also wanted to showcase texts that host a diverse range of voices and speak pertinently to universal themes.” Holly Manning understands that while classic literature is a beautiful medium it can also be deeply problematic, and it is important to understand that these outdated views were the norm for the time. The best way is to examine these texts from a 21st-century perspective. 
 

Overall having a classics club will improve the pupils understanding of how the world once was, what has changed and what has not but most importantly what needs to change. Because it is up to all of us to improve this world we live in. We can start one classics club at a time...