Most of the books on high school curriculums seem based solely in tradition. School systems cram books “you must read before you die” or “literary classics” into syllabuses without regard for the people who actually read the books. Teenagers struggle to find themselves in the famous literary characters they are forced to consume. After taking a closer look, it may be easier than you think to place yourself into the lives of classic literary figures. If we are forced to reach for certain books in our most formative adolescent years, we should at least be able to relate to them, right?
- A Separate Peace by John Knowles
This one may be a no-brainer. The two main characters exist in a high school of sorts, except, instead of being shipped off to fight in the Vietnam war, we flow forward into college or jobs—a.k.a the real world. Gene and Finny fight to make a name for themselves in the small world they inhabit, before staring death in the face in the form of war. The pair’s competitiveness forces them apart as they both constantly try to show off to each other and themselves. With homosexual themes underlying every page, John Knowles produces the perfect picture of trying to become something in your own hometown or high school before entering something bigger and scarier than ourselves.
2. Hamlet by Shakespeare
Shakespeare’s relatability often gets clouded by flouncy language and poetic verse, but with a repertoire like Will’s, readers are bound to find a character they relate to. Hamlet seems like the obvious choice when discussing books my teacher made me read as a teenager—well, that and Romeo and Juliet, which I’m sure some high schoolers and their boyfriends think they can relate to but fortunately, usually cannot. Hamlet, at the very least, teaches us about the hero’s quest, a common troupe in literature. Hamlet also serves as the classic example of a character with a fatal flaw. Hamlet’s inability to act sabotages his quest. All readers are on some sort of quests in their own lives. Reading Hamlet may elicit the understanding of your own fatal flaw, because we all have them, and how that flaw affects our own individual journeys.
3. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
When my 10th grade teacher handed me this book for the first time, I was excited to finally see what all the fuss is about. As an adolescent, I could understand the genius in the work and had a great time reading and discussing it. But, seeing as I was not pining for a girl across the sea and hosting ragers in my house every night, I never fully explored the book’s relatability potential. Looking back now, it becomes clear that every character is longing for something, whether it be attention, love or some other vice. Every character seems inherently lonely, especially Nick who always watches from the outside. Nick’s outsider mentality and Jay’s lavish attempts at hiding his insecurities seem like the perfect troupes to fit just about every teenager in high school ever. The problem is, we didn’t want to admit our loneliness or our longing to be someone else or date someone else. It didn’t seem like the type of thing to proclaim to our third period English class.
Being out of high school teaches you just how much the time we read a book, affects how the book affects you. Reading The Great Gatsby now would give me a whole new slew of emotions. But, when you read such important work at such a vulnerable age, meanings become hidden behind insecurity and self doubt. Hence, the ability to look back and see just how much a character or a plot line affected you at a specific moment in your life will never not be important.
Featured Image via Charred Latte Art