As it is known, in order for a person to become more intellectually developed, he only needs to read 10 books. The problem from now on is just to find exactly those correct and useful books. Many take years to find the best works, thousands of books and millions of pages read, while others turn to the Internet for help. In this article you can find the top ten best works of classical literature that can make your reader more intelligent and wise.
Walter Scott "Ivanhoe"
If you want to delve into the romantic pathos of the Middle Ages, then bypassing the book by Walter Scott "Ivanhoe" would be an unforgivable mistake. Here the author tells about the castles and their sieges, political subtleties of vassal relations. Naturally, he could not do without the beautiful ladies and brave knights fighting for their hearts.
It is believed that this particular work contributed to the romanticization of the Middle Ages.The book describes the historical events of England, occurring after the Third Crusade. Of course, the author did not go without fiction and artistic improvisation, but this only made the book more interesting and fascinating.
Mine Reed "Headless Horseman"
A unique and well-known adventure novel - “Headless Horseman”. This book is multi-layered, as there was a place for everything in it: love and mysticism, detective and romantic motive. Thanks to such cunning interweaving of plot lines, an intrigue is created that captures the breath from the first pages of the book and does not let go until the very end. The main question that every reader wants to get an answer is - who is this headless horseman?
Oscar Wilde "Portrait of Dorian Gray"
This work is considered the most famous from the author, because only this book is truly breathtaking, takes it deeply for the living. This phenomenon has become possible due to the well-developed image of the main character. In the book, Dorian Gray looks like a snob and an esthete of incredible beauty in the eyes of his reader, which creates a strong contrast to his constant development of inner ugliness. Each reader will win the image of the protagonist, gradually losing morality, because his overall portrait from the first to the last page gradually changes.
Theodore Dreiser "American tragedy"
This work is considered to be the underside of the American dream - an endless desire for universal recognition and respect, wealth and a high position in society. However, the book shows that for many the way up is closed due to various reasons that cannot be overcome.
The main character - Clyde Griffiths, who rises from the bottom, trying to get into high society. In an instant, a man faces a problem when his ideals collapse and in order to achieve his goal he has to step over himself and break the law. Whether a person can not become a puppet in the hands of fate, if he can beat himself - all this can be learned by reading the book to the end.
Vladimir Nabokov "Lolita"
The author of the book is known for all his passion for the game with words, thereby creating a bright and sonorous syllable, florid descriptions and an original form of speech. The language of "Lolita" also turned out to be multifaceted and interesting, due to which the novel does not seem boring. This novel caused a huge scandal, because this is the first book of classical literature devoted to pedophilia (the main character is sexually attracted to a girl of 12 years old).
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe "Faust"
The author of the book is a world-famous thinker, poet and founder of German literature, whom everyone knows from the work of Faust. This novel by Goethe wrote throughout his life, and he based the book on the famous myth about Dr. Faust that he sold his soul to the devil and gained eternal youth. Mephistopheles and Faust made a deal, if the hero magnifies a moment, he will lose his soul. Whether the devil succeeds in seducing the doctor with tests is the answer in the pages of the book.
Leo Tolstoy "War and Peace"
Probably, many will call the novel “War and Peace” the most famous and great work of world literature. This book is a real epic, covering world events, all classes of humanity, ranging from ordinary soldiers to the emperor and the royal family. There are more than 500 characters in the book, thanks to which the author demonstrates the psychology of the Russian people and its spirit, which is impossible to break.
Julio Cortazar "Playing Hopscotch"
This book is considered a classic, a kind of model for postmodernism. The author goes beyond the usual prose than makes you read a book from beginning to end. The novel can be read in two ways - classical (from beginning to end) or according to the author's method, following his prompts and jumping from one part to another to find the key to the cipher.
Homer "Iliad" and "Odyssey"
As you know, Homer is a famous thinker and an ancient Greek poet who created two unique works of his own.Odyssey and Iliad are the first poems in the world that can simultaneously be attributed to at least four genres, namely family drama and action, thriller and fantasy.
Here the reader will find for himself a number of fascinating historical events and facts, get acquainted with the philosophy of that time and survive with the heroes all that is covered with the gloom of history. These historical books contain everything from the abduction of a girl to the Trojan War and the triumphal return of Odyssey. Together with the heroes of the books, the author will have to go through a series of ordeals and battles in order to emerge victorious from them.
Leo Tolstoy "Anna Karenina"
Anna Karenina is a married woman whose life the author tells about in the pages of this novel. The main character will be in love with officer Vronsky, which is why she will have to endure not only hardships, but also great disappointment and pain. It is believed that this is the most famous work of tragic love. A large-scale picture will tell us about the life of the Moscow and St. Petersburg nobles of the nineteenth century, combining the philosophy and psychology of Russia of that time.
