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| An anthology called The Discerning Reader: Christian Perspectives on Literature and Theory asks questions about what human beings, created in the image of God, do with words and stories. The essays address some of the raging debates and criticism as well as formulates some original, theologically inspired ideas. One of the anthology's editors, Leland Ryken, believes the debate about what constitutes a classic work of literature has theological as well as aesthetic significance. He says "a classic is excellent, a recognized standard of greatness both in terms of content and form; the work has to have endured, to have been a sort of cultural artifact; it has to affect us deeply, to do something in our lives." |
The Discerning Reader: Christian Perspectives on Literature and Theory (Baker Books, 1996) |
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For further reading on the classics, Leland Ryken recommends the following (quotations are from Ryken):
Leland Ryken, ed., The Christian Imagination: The Practice of Faith in Literature and Writing (Colorado Springs: Harold Shaw, 2002). "A 460-page anthology of essays and excerpts by such authors as C. S. Lewis, Flannery O'Connor, Frederick Buechner, and Madeleine L'Engle on the intersections between literature and Christianity."
Flannery O'Connor, Mystery and Manners (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1957). "A landmark book that discusses how the Christian faith influences a Christian fiction writer."
Leland Ryken, Realms of Gold: The Classics in Christian Perspective (Wheaton: Harold Shaw, 1991). "Defines what a classic is and surveys the perennial issues of literary theory through an analysis of specific Western classics that illustrate those issues with particular clarity."
Contemporary Literary Theory: A Christian Appraisal, ed. Leland Ryken and Clarence Walhout (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 1991). "Whereas The Discerning Reader arranges contemporary literary theory according to its issues or underlying principles, this book provides an anatomy of specific "schools" of theory (for example, new historicism, deconstruction, reader response, etc.), which are both described and subjected to a Christian critique."
Christianity and Literature. "A quarterly journal published by the Conference on Christianity and Literature, this is the best avenue by which to stay abreast of developments in the academic study of literature from a Christian perspective." |
Classics
Literature
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