The best works of world classical literature. The best works of classical world literature that are worth reading for the soul
Anna Karenina. Lev Tolstoy
The greatest love story of all time. A story that has not left the stage, has been filmed countless times - and has not yet lost the boundless charm of passion - destructive, destructive, blind passion - but all the more bewitching with its greatness.
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Master and Margarita. Michael Bulgakov
This is the most mysterious novel in history Russian literature XX century This is a novel that is almost officially called “The Gospel of Satan.” This is “The Master and Margarita”. A book that can be read and reread dozens, hundreds of times, but most importantly, it is still impossible to understand. So, which pages of “The Master and Margarita” were dictated by the Forces of Light?
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Wuthering Heights. Emily Brontë
A mystery novel included in the top ten best novels of all time! The story of a stormy, truly demonic passion that has been exciting the imagination of readers for more than one and a half hundred years. Katie gave her heart to her cousin, but ambition and a thirst for wealth push her into the arms of a rich man. Forbidden attraction turns into a curse for secret lovers, and one day.
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Eugene Onegin. Alexander Pushkin
“Have you read “Onegin”? What can you say about “Onegin”? These are the questions that are constantly repeated among writers and Russian readers,” noted the writer, enterprising publisher and, by the way, the hero of Pushkin’s epigrams, Thaddeus Bulgarin, after the publication of the second chapter of the novel. For a long time now it has not been customary to evaluate ONEGIN. In the words of the same Bulgarin, it is “written in Pushkin’s poems. That's enough."
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Cathedral Notre Dame of Paris. Victor Hugo
A story that has survived centuries, become canon and given its heroes the glory of household names. A story of love and tragedy. The love of those to whom love was not given and not allowed - by religious dignity, physical weakness or someone else's evil will. The gypsy Esmeralda and the deaf hunchback bell-ringer Quasimodo, the priest Frollo and the captain of the royal riflemen Phoebus de Chateaupert, the beautiful Fleur-de-Lys and the poet Gringoire.
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Gone With the Wind. Margaret Mitchell
The great saga of the American Civil War and the fate of the headstrong Scarlett O'Hara was first published more than 70 years ago and does not become outdated to this day. This is Margaret Mitchell's only novel for which she received a Pulitzer Prize. A story about a woman whom neither an unconditional feminist nor a staunch supporter of house-building is ashamed to emulate.
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Romeo and Juliet. William Shakespeare
This is the highest tragedy about love that human genius can create. A tragedy that has been filmed and is being filmed. A tragedy that does not leave the theater stage to this day - and to this day it sounds as if it was written yesterday. Years and centuries go by. But one thing remains and will forever remain unchanged: “There is no sadder story in the world than the story of Romeo and Juliet...”
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The Great Gatsby. Francis Fitzgerald
“The Great Gatsby” is the pinnacle not only in Fitzgerald’s work, but also one of the highest achievements in world prose of the 20th century. Although the novel takes place in the “roaring” twenties of the last century, when fortunes were made literally from nothing and yesterday’s criminals became millionaires overnight, this book lives outside of time, because, telling the story of the broken destinies of the generation of the “Jazz Age”.
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Three Musketeers. Alexandr Duma
The most famous historical and adventure novel by Alexandre Dumas tells about the adventures of the Gascon d'Artagnan and his musketeer friends at the court of King Louis XIII.
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Count of Monte Cristo. Alexandr Duma
The book presents one of the most exciting adventure novels of the French classic literature of the 19th century century of Alexandre Dumas.
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Triumphal Arch. Erich Remarque
One of the most beautiful and tragic novels about love in history European literature. The story of a refugee from Nazi Germany Dr. Ravic and the beautiful Joan Madu, entangled in the “unbearable lightness of being,” takes place in pre-war Paris. And the alarming time in which these two happened to meet and fall in love with each other becomes one of the main characters of the Arc de Triomphe.
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The man who laughs. Victor Hugo
Gwynplaine, a lord by birth, was sold as a child to comprachico bandits, who made a fair jester out of the child, carving a mask of “eternal laughter” on his face (at the courts of the European nobility of that time there was a fashion for cripples and freaks who amused the owners). Despite all the trials, Gwynplaine retained the best human qualities and your love.
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Martin Eden. Jack London
A simple sailor, in whom it is easy to recognize the author himself, goes through a long, hardship-filled path to literary immortality... By chance, he finds himself in secular society, Martin Eden is doubly happy and surprised... both by the creative gift that has awakened in him, and by the divine image of young Ruth Morse, so unlike all the people he knew before... From now on, two goals are relentlessly facing him.
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Sister Kerry. Theodore Dreiser
The publication of Theodore Dreiser's first novel was fraught with such difficulties that it led its creator to severe depression. But further fate The novel “Sister Carrie” turned out to be lucky: it was translated into many foreign languages, reprinted in millions of copies. New and new generations of readers enjoy immersing themselves in the vicissitudes of Caroline Mieber's fate.
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American tragedy. Theodore Dreiser
The novel “American Tragedy” is the pinnacle of creativity of the outstanding American writer Theodore Dreiser. He said: “No one creates tragedies - life creates them. Writers only portray them.” Dreiser managed to portray the tragedy of Clive Griffiths so talentedly that his story does not leave the modern reader indifferent.
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Les Misérables. Victor Hugo
Jean Valjean, Cosette, Gavroche - the names of the heroes of the novel have long become household names, the number of its readers in the century and a half since the publication of the book has not become smaller, the novel has not lost popularity. A kaleidoscope of faces from all walks of French society first half of the 19th century centuries, bright, memorable characters, sentimentality and realism, intense, exciting plot.
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The adventures of the good soldier Schweik. Jaroslav Hasek
A great, original and outrageous novel. A book that can be perceived both as a “soldier’s tale” and as a classic work directly related to the traditions of the Renaissance. This is a sparkling text that makes you laugh until you cry, and a powerful call to “put down your arms,” and one of the most objective historical evidence in satirical literature.
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Iliad. Homer
The attractiveness of Homer’s poems is not only that their author introduces us to a world separated from modernity by tens of centuries and yet unusually real thanks to the genius of the poet, who preserved in his poems the beat of contemporary life. Homer's immortality lies in the fact that in his brilliant creations contains inexhaustible reserves of universal human enduring values - reason, goodness and beauty.
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St. John's wort. James Cooper
Cooper managed to find and describe in his books that originality and unexpected brightness recently open continent, which managed to captivate the whole of modern Europe. Every new novel The writer was eagerly awaited. The exciting adventures of the fearless and noble hunter and tracker Natty Bumppo captivated both young and adult readers..
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Doctor Zhivago. Boris Pasternak
The novel “Doctor Zhivago” is one of the outstanding works of Russian literature, throughout for long years remained closed for wide range readers in our country, who knew about him only through scandalous and unscrupulous party criticism.
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Don Quixote. Miguel Cervantes
What do the names of Amadis of Gaul, Palmer of England, Don Belianis of Greece, Tyrant of the White tell us today? But it was precisely as a parody of the novels about these knights that “The Cunning Hidalgo Don Quixote of La Mancha” by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra was created. And this parody has survived the genre being parodied for centuries. "Don Quixote" was recognized best novel throughout the history of world literature.
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Ivanhoe. Walter Scott
"Ivanhoe" - key work in the series of novels by W. Scott, which take us to medieval England. The young knight Ivanhoe, who secretly returned from the Crusade to his homeland and was deprived of his inheritance by the will of his father, will have to defend his honor and love beautiful lady Rowena... King Richard will come to his aid Lion Heart and the legendary robber Robin Hood.
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Headless horseman. Reed Main
The plot of the novel is so skillfully constructed that it keeps you in suspense until the very last page. It is no coincidence that the exciting story of the noble mustanger Maurice Gerald and his lover, the beautiful Louise Poindexter, investigating the sinister mystery of the headless horseman, whose figure terrifies the inhabitants of the savannah when he appears, is extremely beloved by readers in Europe and Russia.
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Dear friend. Guy de Maupassant
The novel “Dear Friend” became one of the symbols of the era. This is the most strong romance Maupassant. Through the story of Georges Duroy, who is making his way to the top, the true morals of high French society are revealed; the spirit of corruption that reigns in all its spheres contributes to the fact that an ordinary and immoral person, such as Maupassant’s hero, easily achieves success and wealth.
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Dead Souls. Nikolay Gogol
The publication of the first volume of N. Gogol’s “Dead Souls” in 1842 caused heated controversy among contemporaries, splitting society into fans and opponents of the poem. “...Speaking of “ Dead souls“-you can talk a lot about Russia...” - this judgment of P. Vyazemsky explained main reason disputes. The author’s question is still relevant: “Rus, where are you rushing, give me the answer?”
All the romantic pathos that shrouded the Middle Ages is presented in Ivanhoe. Valiant knights, beautiful ladies, sieges of castles and the political subtleties of vassal relations - all this found a place in Walter Scott’s novel.
In many ways, it was his creation that contributed to the romanticization of the Middle Ages. The author described historical events, which cover the period in English history after the Third Crusade. Of course, there were serious artistic improvisations and fiction, but this only made the story more fascinating and beautiful.
It was impossible not to include in this selection the most famous creation of Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol. For many schoolchildren, studying “Dead Souls” is the highlight of their literature lessons.
Nikolai Gogol is one of the few classics who knew how to write about the problems of bourgeois life and Russia as a whole in such a sarcastic and direct tone. There is neither the epic heaviness of Tolstoy nor the unhealthy psychologism of Dostoevsky. Reading the work is easy and pleasant. However, it is unlikely that anyone will deny him the depth and subtlety of the phenomena he noticed.
The adventure novel “The Headless Horseman” is multi-layered: it intertwines detective and love motives. Plot intricacies create intrigue and keep you in suspense until the very end. last pages books. Who is this headless horseman? A ghost, a figment of the heroes’ imagination or someone’s insidious trick? You are unlikely to fall asleep until you get the answer to this question.
Charles Dickens was extremely popular during his lifetime. People were waiting for him next novels in much the same way as we are now waiting for the release of some “Transformers”. The educated English public loved his books for their inimitable style and plot dynamism.
"Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club" - the most funny piece Dickens. The adventures of English snobs who proclaimed themselves explorers human souls, full of ridiculous and comical situations. Social issues, of course, is present here, but it is presented in such a simple form that it is simply impossible not to fall in love with the English classic after reading it.
"Madame Bovary" is rightfully considered one of the greatest novels of the world classics. This title in no way detracts from the fascination of Flaubert’s work - a challenging story love adventures Emma Bovary is bold and daring. After the publication of the novel, the writer was even brought to justice for insulting morality.
The psychological naturalism that permeates the novel allowed Flaubert to clearly reveal a problem that is relevant in any era - the convertibility of love and money.
Oscar Wilde's most famous work touches a nerve with its deeply nuanced portrayal of its protagonist. Dorian Gray, an esthete and a snob, has extreme beauty, which contrasts with the internal ugliness that develops throughout the plot. Revel in watching moral failure Gray, allegorically reflected in the visual change in his portrait, you can spend hours on end.
"American Tragedy" - the wrong side American dream. The desire for wealth, respect, position in society, and money is common to all people, but for most, the path to the top is closed by default for various reasons.
Clyde Griffiths is a man from the lower classes who is trying with all his might to break into high society. He is ready to do anything for his dream. But society, with its ideals of success as absolute life goal itself is a catalyst for moral violations. Clyde ends up breaking the law to achieve his goals.
To Kill a Mockingbird is an autobiographical novel. Harper Lee described her childhood memories. The result is a story with an anti-racist message, written in simple and accessible language. Reading the book is useful and interesting; it can be called a moral textbook.
Not long ago, a continuation of the novel called “Go Set a Watchman” was published. In it, the images of the characters in the writer’s classic work are so turned inside out that cognitive dissonance cannot be avoided when reading.
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(Russian) - this is broad concept, and everyone puts their own meaning into it. If you ask readers what associations it evokes in them, the answers will be different. For some, this is the basis of the library collection, others will say that works of classical Russian literature are a kind of example with high artistic merit. For schoolchildren, this is everything they study at school. And they will all be absolutely right in their own way. So what is classical literature? Russian literature, today we'll talk only about her. ABOUT foreign classics we'll talk about it in another article.
Russian literature
There is a generally accepted periodization of the formation and development of Russian literature. Its history is divided into the following time periods:
What works are called classics?
Many readers are sure that classical literature (Russian) is Pushkin, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy - that is, the works of those writers who lived in the 19th century. It's not like that at all. It can be classic from both the Middle Ages and the 20th century. By what canons and principles can one determine whether a novel or story is a classic? Firstly, a classic work must have high artistic value and be a model for others. Secondly, it must have worldwide recognition, it must be included in the fund of world culture.
And you need to be able to distinguish between the concepts of classical and popular literature. A classic is something that has stood the test of time, and oh popular work They can forget quite quickly. If its relevance remains for decades, perhaps it will also become a classic over time.
The origins of Russian classical literature
At the end of the 18th century, the newly established nobility of Russia split into two opposing camps: conservatives and reformers. This split was due different attitude to the changes that took place in life: Peter's reforms, understanding of the tasks of the Enlightenment, the painful peasant issue, attitude towards power. This struggle of extremes led to the rise of spirituality and self-awareness, which gave birth to Russian classics. We can say that it was forged during the dramatic processes in the country.
Classical literature (Russian), born in the complex and contradictory 18th century, was finally formed in XIX century. Its main features: national identity, maturity, self-awareness.
Russian classical literature of the 19th century
The growth of national consciousness played a major role in the development of culture at that time. More and more is opening up educational institutions, intensifies public importance literature, writers are beginning to pay a lot of attention native language. It made me think even more about what was happening in the country.
Karamzin's influence on the development of 19th-century literature
Nikolai Mikhailovich Karamzin, a major Russian historian, writer and journalist, was the most influential figure in Russian culture in the 18th-19th centuries. His historical stories and the monumental “History of the Russian State” had a huge influence on the work of subsequent writers and poets: Zhukovsky, Pushkin, Griboyedov. He is one of the great reformers of the Russian language. Karamzin put it into use a large number of new words, without which we cannot imagine modern speech today.
Russian classical literature: list of the best works
Selecting and compiling a list of the best literary works is a difficult task, since each reader has his own preferences and tastes. A novel that will be a masterpiece for one may seem boring and uninteresting to another. How to create a list of classic Russian literature that would satisfy the majority of readers? One way is to conduct surveys. Based on them, one can draw conclusions about which work the readers themselves consider the best of the proposed options. These types of information collection methods are conducted regularly, although the data may change slightly over time.
List of the best creations of Russian classics, according to versions literary magazines and Internet portals, looks like this:
Under no circumstances should this list be considered a reference. In some ratings and polls, the first place may not be Bulgakov, but Leo Tolstoy or Alexander Pushkin, and some of the listed writers may not be at all. Ratings are an extremely subjective thing. It’s better to make a list of your favorite classics for yourself and focus on it.
The meaning of Russian classical literature
The creators of Russian classics have always had great social responsibility. They never acted as moralizers and did not give ready-made answers in their works. Writers put before the reader difficult task and made him think about her decision. They raised serious social and public problems in their works, which still affect us today. great importance. Therefore, Russian classics remain just as relevant today.
Many of us have school days There remains the conviction that for the most part Russian classics are rather boring and unimaginably drawn out works of several hundred pages about the hardships of life, mental suffering and philosophical quests of the main characters. We have collected Russian classics that are impossible not to read to the end.
Anatoly Pristavkin “The golden cloud spent the night”
“The golden cloud spent the night” by Anatoly Pristavkin- a piercingly tragic story that happened to orphaned twin brothers Sashka and Kolka Kuzmin, evacuated along with the rest of the pupils orphanage during the war in the Caucasus. It was decided to establish here labor colony for land development. Children turn out to be innocent victims of government policies towards the peoples of the Caucasus. This is one of the most powerful and honest stories about war orphans and deportation. Caucasian peoples. “The Golden Cloud Spent the Night” has been translated into 30 languages of the world and is rightfully one of the best works of Russian classics. 10th place in our ranking.
Boris Pasternak "Doctor Zhivago"
Novel Boris Pasternak "Doctor Zhivago" who brought him world fame And Nobel Prize– in 9th place in the list of the best works of Russian classics. For his novel, Pasternak was sharply criticized by representatives of the country's official literary world. The book's manuscript was banned from publication, and the writer himself, under pressure, was forced to refuse to receive the prestigious award. After Pasternak's death, it was transferred to his son.
Mikhail Sholokhov " Quiet Don»
In terms of the scale and scope of the period of life of the main characters described in it, it can be compared with “War and Peace” by Leo Tolstoy. This is an epic story about the life and destinies of representatives of the Don Cossacks. The novel covers three most difficult eras of the country: the First world war, the revolution of 1917 and Civil War. What happened in the souls of people in those days, what reasons forced them to stand up different sides barricades of family and friends? The writer tries to answer these questions in one of the best works of Russian classical literature. “Quiet Don” is in 8th place in our ranking.
Stories by Anton Chekhov
A generally recognized classic of Russian literature, they occupy 7th place on our list. One of the most famous playwrights in the world, wrote more than 300 works different genres and died very early, at 44 years old. Chekhov's stories, ironic, funny and eccentric, reflected the realities of life of that era. They have not lost their relevance even now. Its peculiarity short works– do not answer questions, but ask them to the reader.
I. Ilf and E. Petrov “Twelve Chairs”
Novels by writers with a wonderful sense of humor I. Ilf and E. Petrov “The Twelve Chairs” and “The Golden Calf” take 6th place among the best works of Russian classics. After reading them, every reader will understand that classical literature is not only interesting and exciting, but also funny. The adventures of the great schemer Ostap Bender, the main character of the books by Ilf and Petrov, will not leave anyone indifferent. Immediately after the first publication, the writers' works were received ambiguously in literary circles. But time has shown their artistic value.
In fifth place in our ranking of the best works of Russian classics - "The Gulag Archipelago" by Alexander Solzhenitsyn. It's not only great novel about one of the most difficult and terrible periods in the history of the country - repressions in the USSR, but also autobiographical work, based on personal experience the author, as well as letters and memoirs of more than two hundred camp prisoners. The release of the novel in the West was accompanied by loud scandal and persecution launched against Solzhenitsyn and other dissidents. Publication of The Gulag Archipelago became possible in the USSR only in 1990. The novel is among best books century.
Nikolai Gogol “Evenings on a farm near Dikanka”
Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol is a universally recognized classic of world significance. The crowning achievement of his work is considered to be the novel “Dead Souls,” the second volume of which was destroyed by the author himself. But our ranking of the best works of Russian classics included the first book Gogol – “Evenings on a farm near Dikanka”. It’s hard to believe that the stories included in the book and written with sparkling humor were practically Gogol’s first experience in writing. Pushkin left a flattering review of the work, who was sincerely amazed and fascinated by Gogol’s stories, written in a living, poetic language without feigned affectation and stiffness.
The events described in the book take place in different time periods: in XVII, XVIII XIX centuries.
Fyodor Dostoevsky "Crime and Punishment"
Novel “Crime and Punishment” by F. M. Dostoevsky takes third place in the list of the best works of Russian classics. It has received the status of a cult book of world significance. This is one of the most frequently filmed books. It's not only deep philosophical work, in which the author poses to readers the problems of moral responsibility, good and evil, but also a psychological drama and a fascinating detective story. The author shows the reader the process of transforming a talented and respectable young man into a killer. He is no less interested in the possibility of Raskolnikov’s atonement for his guilt.
Great epic novel Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy "War and Peace", the volume of which has terrified schoolchildren for many decades, is actually very interesting. It covers the period of several military campaigns against the strongest France at that time, led by Napoleon Bonaparte. This is one of the brightest examples of the best works of not only Russian, but also world classics. The novel is recognized as one of the most epic works in world literature. Here every reader will find his favorite topic: love, war, courage.
Mikhail Bulgakov "The Master and Margarita"
Topping our list of examples of the best classical literature is the amazing novel. The author never lived to see the publication of his book - it was published 30 years after his death.
The Master and Margarita - so complex work, that not a single attempt to film the novel has been successful. The figures of Woland, the Master and Margarita require filigree accuracy in conveying their images. Unfortunately, no actor has yet managed to achieve this. The film adaptation of the novel by director Vladimir Bortko can be considered the most successful.
Classic Literature Foundation in different times filled with outstanding geniuses of their peoples and their era. We love them for the opportunity to plunge into the world of the distant past, which is why classical literature remains popular at all times.
Classical literature: general characteristics
It happens that a certain mood makes us pay attention to classic books, because the most famous works often the best. Not in vain, because it was these best works that inspired others famous authors- representatives of subsequent popular generations in literature. Golden classic, an eternal series of books, will be a salvation for those who are not seduced by modern literary works, because it was the authors from this list of classics who were genre pioneers long before the postmodern era arrived, and literary world flared up with all the genre diversity that was difficult to even imagine in the conventional 19th century. Nevertheless, all this became possible precisely thanks to the classics, as evidenced by numerous reviews.
Books of world classics: list
As you know, classical works are not just books, but also markers of an era, which are considered exemplary examples of how the best writers saw their literary heritage. Moreover, most often the problem classical works resonates with the worldview of an entire generation, which makes the mass reader love these books with all his soul. This is also the reason that these books are often included in school curriculum different countries, because such works help to understand what a whole cross-section of society was thinking and breathing in a specific time frame.
This list contains just some of the best examples of classic literature. But if you are wondering what to read from the literature included in the golden fund of world culture, then here you will definitely find something for yourself.
