Recently I read about the plan HarperCollins has to design new covers for its paperback editions of Wuthering Heights. These new covers aesthetically match those of the popular Twilight series, displaying a black background with a bloody-looking red rose. Not only this, but they have emblazoned the cover with, “Edward and Bella’s favorite book!” Upon seeing this new edition, I was quite displeased.
I really hate it when people compare great literature with new books. I’m not saying that newer works will never live up to the classics, but I think part of being a classic is being time-tested. I once quit a knitting club because one of the members was an English professor who constantly talked about how much better a writer J.K. Rowling was than Jane Austen. I don’t think you can really compare the two. And J.K. Rowling is actually a good writer. I’m pretty sure the business majors fulfilling their lit credits in my Intro to Creative Writing were all better writers than Stephanie Meyer.
I feel like a good portion of these kids who have a reading level for Twilight will be very put off if they buy and try to read Wuthering Heights. I’m not sure why this makes me so mad. I guess in some ways it is good, as it will get kids to read a classic and it will make more money. That's good marketing.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment