/lit/ - Literature

What would be the "de facto" list of literary masterpieces in the English Language?

Other than Joyce and Shakespeare.

>>17345305
Milton, Chaucer, Spenser

I am interested in finding books for a B2 (basic fluency) level in German.

What would be some good options? Considering that I will probably not be able to grasp the well known literary works?

What about history books (which will hopefully be easy to read). Anything decent?

>>17345305
Dickens, Austen, Marlowe, pretty much all of the Romantic poets

>>17344315
ci sono italiani qui? sto imparando la tua lingua e vorrei sapere libri facili. (scusa per il mio italiano male, non scrivo spesso)

>>17345390
I can recommend Ferdinand von Schirach's trilogy of short stories (Verbrechen, Schuld und Strafe). Those should be easy enough to read.

>>17344315
Why are we still pretending there's anything worth reading from nigger countries? So sick of this shit.

>>17345390
If I'll remember I'll rec you some tomorrow.

>>17344315
People interested in Dutch/Flemish literature should check this out:
https://www.dbnl.org/
It's a collection of Dutch language works that are free to read. (I think all of them are in the public domain).

>>17345505
*blocks your path*

>>17345594
For Dutch language learners, there's this useful book as well:
http://alexalejandre.com/language/dutch_essential_grammar.pdf
As you can tell from the url, it's a "crash course" of Dutch grammar.

>>17344315
this needs to be a permanent thread
>>17345495
I would also like to know

>>17345624
>this needs to be a permanent thread
Thanks buddy.
I will try to.

I would appreciate some recommended links to that we start a format like /sff/ has.

>>17345646
>I would appreciate some recommended links to that we start a format like /sff/ has.
Wikisource and Project Gutenberg have many public domain works in other languages.

>>17345507
>If I'll remember I'll rec you some tomorrow.
>>17345496
Vielen Dank!

>>17345594
>People interested in Dutch/Flemish
Are there any significant difference between those?

>>17346017
To be honest, my understanding of the Dutch language is rather rudimentary, but by "Dutch/Flemish" I meant both works written by writers from the Netherlands+excolonies, and Flanders. I don't think there's much difference between the two in terms of language. The ""Nederlandse Taalunie" (Dutch language authority) is present in both nations.

bump

>>17344315
>USA in that map

>ficciones for argentina
>not los siete locos

You had one job.

>>17346017
There are differences, but mostly in the spoken language so you won't find many differences in writing, unless it's written in vernacular.

>>17345495
In ordine da autori di fiabe per bambini ai più complessi:

Gianni Rodari

Carlo Collodi (Pinocchio)

Elsa Morante (l'isola di arturo)
Dino Buzzati
Emilio Salgari (Le tigri di mompracem)

Stefano Benni

E da qui in poi vai dove ti porta il cuore... Dante, Eco, Calvino, Leopardi, Petrarca, Machiavelli, ce ne sono quanti ne vuoi, ma i primi che ti ho scritto sono un Buon orientamento

>>17346017
differences in word usage, obviously difference in pronunciation, vocal tics, etc. But put a Dutchman and a Flemish in the same room and they're able to have a conversation.

t. Dutchie

What is some good reading material for a relative beginner in Spanish? I'm mainly looking to increase my vocabulary right now.

>>17345495
This >>17347094
might be a good start. I personally think Buzzati is the greatest italian novelist; Benni is utter trash though. Don't fall for the Dante meme: it barely resembles modern italian.

>>17348371
Harry Potter translations kek

>>17348371
It really depends on what you like.

I just don't think that translations are a good starting point.

Als Schüler und Student habe ich Deutsch gelernt, aber seit dem Ende meines Studierens habe ich die Sprache night benutzt, und ich möchte wieder lesen. Was sind gute oder klassische Bücher auf Deutsch, die nicht besonders schwierig sind? Pic unrelated, den konnte ich nie verstehen.

Excuse me OP is there a text version of pic related? I can't read the names.

>>17344315
I'm addicted to Latin. I've neglected my other languages because I love it so much. I'm reading Lucan at the moment.

This little nigga wrote the most beautiful French of all time

>>17347094
grazie

>>17348371
http://es.ninemanga.com/

They have german, French etc version of the site too (sadly no latin)

>>17350391
Seconding, best French author by a huge margin, and there's competition

https://openseadragon.github.io/openseadragonizer/?img=https%3A%2F%2Fi.redditmedia.com%2FyeQNM8SNh9VCLdMKdr59kGQ47xjRn-g_g-cqqYzbMlI.jpg%3Fs%3Dff9c748083a2048cd367eb41a1d25cb0&encoded=true

Can you people make a list of what you consider to be the top 5 masterpieces of your native language?

I want to create a repository

>>17345390
I can reccomend Faserland by Christian Kracht, highly entertaining cynical take on snobbish consumer society and should be easily understandable.

>>17351367
English (not in order)
>Ulysses
>Paradise Lost
>Faerie Queen
>A Shakespeare play (which can be it's own argument)
>Moby Dick

>>17349797
Hesse, sowas wie Narziß und Goldmund ist verständlich geschrieben

>>17351396
This is good enough for a starter.

The next thing I would like to know, is if there’s a list anywhere where I can find good books for each learning level. I would then post it here for feedback.

So what are you reading?

>>17344315
A2/B1 level of Spanish?
I'm a native Portuguese speaker, btw.

>>17352722
I think that you can easily aim for a B2 type of book if your native language is Portuguese. I’m not Spanish so you would have to ask another anon for a recommendation.

What is an easy language to learn so that I can start reading in it earlier than let's say, russian.

>>17353039
Is your native language English? If so, here's a list of languages by difficulty:
https://effectivelanguagelearning.com/language-guide/language-difficulty/
Obviously if your native language is something else the list will be different.

>>17344315
>ficciones
That's how I spot foreigners, you niggers know Jack shit about Argentina and its literary tradition. Civilization and Barbarism is the argentinian novel, nothing will surpass its influence, it's the book that defined our DNA.
Fuck Borges.

Quels sont les bons livres français pour le niveau A2/B1?
J'ai déjà lu le petit nicholas

>>17353039
swedish

GET IN HERE BROS.

GIVE ME SOME MORE.

>>17353658
nice, anon, very nice!

>>17353671
Other language proposals are also more than welcome. I forgot Russian too. Just noticed.

>>17352722
Prueba con "El lazarillo de tormes" o "La celestina". Son clásicos breves y bastante claros.

>>17353530
what are some great examples of swedish literature?

What the hell do I put on the German and French?

There's too much quality.

I hate that my book of Japanese essays doesn't put the definitions of words on the same page but in a glossary at the back. Having to flip and find the word in there is bad enough, nevermind getting used to the order of the Japanese alphabet. I'll just grind through these with an electronic dictionary instead

>>17353823
Is the Kindle dictionary compatible with Japanese?

>>17353658
Can we stop making these lists consisting of like three people’s votes

>>17353832
I looked it up and yeah, they have several dictionaries. Kindles are expensive though ehh

>>17353847
Yes, tell me what's wrong with it and we can have a debate.

>>17353809
You can put any Siglo de Oro's writer in Spanish. I recommend Gongora's "Soledades" and Calderon de la Barca's "La Vida es Sueño".

>>17353870
Done

>>17353868
It just seems kind of amateurish when whatever is mentioned is put on the list out of desperation to fill it up at all

>>17353932
How else can I we create a large enough voting sample to create this list? Do a Straw poll?

The intention is clear. Pick out the best works from each different language.

You're free to debate. I think that the list doesn't even contain any controversial books until now.
Also, the list will be changed and books will be removed.

>>17344315
The US would think to kill a mockingbird is on the stage of world literature, wouldnt it?

>>17353963
>How else can I we create a large enough voting sample to create this list?
My point is that we don’t need lists for everything. We could just talk

>>17353984
The small minds here love their infographics, charts, and "starter packs."

>>17353995
>>17353984

I don't see what's so bad about having a multi-linguistic reading list for people that are genuinely interested in learning other languages.

>>17354006
Not bad just unnecessary. Whatever, if you want to make it make it

Any tips for Thai? I don't think many people learn it beyond for tourism, so most resources are very much about learning common phrases.

Im a language noob, only language j ever taught my self semi-decent latin.

My plan:

Learn alphabet -> learn to read -> read basic childrens books out loud

My partner is native thai

>>17354024
It may be unnecessary for Anglos. Try asking questions about Dutch or Polish literature and the chances you'll get an answer will be diminished.

>>17354041
>My partner is native thai

So get him to teach you.

>>17354058
>him

>>17354058
Oii u cheeky wanker.

How does one teach a language tho? Women just wanna list off a bunch of vovab crap like numbers, colours, fruit. I want to understand how to structure a sentence. Like michel thomas

>>17354109
>Imagine being this new.

>>17351367
German
>Faust
>Hölderlin's Poems (and Hyperion)
>Musil's Man without Qualities
>Rilke's Duino Elegies
>either Schopenhauer's or Nietzsche's works, they are the undisputed masters of this language next to Goethe, maybe take Zarathustra because it's closer to something actually poetic instead of pure philosophy

>>17354117
I was trying to keep up the illusion for everyone, anon

>>17354116
just buy a a1 work book in thai. everything else is pretty trash in my experience.

>>17354109
This, respect trans women's pronouns!

If I just keep reading the Bible in Italian and listening to podcasts will I get good eventually? Is there something else I should be reading or doing?

>>17354130

>>17354237
Practice writing it as well. Without it, your progress in reading and speaking will be slow since you won't be training your mind how to think in it. Start small and progress to writing essays/summaries or description of paintings.

>>17354300
Thanks anon, that's a great suggestion.

I'm learning German, and ironically as it might sound, I understand people from the South better than people in the north. When Everyone tells me it should be the other way around.

Why do "Northern/West" Germans eat words? No "r" pronunciation for example.

Thoughts on his lists by language?
https://www.scaruffi.com/fiction/best100.html

Spaniard here. What level of english do I have to reach in order to be able to read Shakespeare, Milton and Spenser fluently? I'm currently B1 and I can read some Hemingway and Dickens.

>>17354683
C2, and even then it's not guaranteed.

Also, after you reach C1, the difference between C1 and C2 is virtually none. A lot of people in C1 are actually C2 and never do the exam because it's worthless.

>>17344315
This is a post about Arabic literatures. Skip if not interested.

Most people only think of the Quran, Arabian Nights, and maybe Rubbayyat Al Khayam when they think of Arabic literature. But those are really the dregs, the romeo & juliet, tge catcher in the rye of arabic literature. Geniune arabic works are largely untranslated and uncollected. A significant portion of them remain only as oral works among bedouin tribes. Here's a list of what I consider to be the true masterpieces of the language
>Majnoon Layla (Layla's Adorer) and other works by Qays
Pre-islamic masterpiece. Homer, Virgil, and Ovid rolled into one. No decent translation exists unfortunately.
>Lameyat Al-Arab
A young man was insulted and told he was shit at poetry. He stood up and improvised an 800 line poem rhymed in "Lam" (hence the name), which is the hardest rhyme in Arabic by far. In the process, he mounts a full on social critique of Arabic culture. Easily the most technically and philologically impressive work I know.
>The Tales of Antara
Essentially the story of Hercules if Hercules wrote his own poetry. A black slave born to chieftain of the biggest tribe in Pre-islamic Arabia falls in love with the princess of the tribe and proceeds to engage in various heroic acts to win her all as he chronicles his own Aresteia in masterful poetry. A few shit translations out there but the stories hold up.

In terms of difficulty, these are all extremely difficult. Think chaucer combination of subtlety and archaic language though old Arabic is more accessible than Old english.

Good thread OP.

>>17354274
To the Polish books you can add the Trilogy, Pan Tadeusz and basically any drama from the XIX century (like Dziady or Wesele).
And put l'Avare in the French section.

>>17345495
Succhiami il cazzo

>>17347094
Attento con Dante però, se decidi di leggerlo preparati a comprare edizioni annotate e a dover imparare molto riguardo alla storia comunale di Firenze e alla sua vita in generale

>>17354731
Very interesting, haven't heard of these

Based thread

>>17355022

Vero, però è quasi impossibile trovare un'edizione senza annotazioni, quindi non me ne sono preoccupato

>>17348432
Benni is good enough for the intermediate level reader, I picked him because he is not boring. As for Dante, you suggest the equivalent of not reading Shakespeare or Chaucer because their writings barely resemble modern english
Draw your own conclusions

>>17354683
even natives can't read shakespeare for the most part. it has to be read with assistance. most editions have 1 page of text, 1 page of definitions so you know what the archaic words mean.

raw shakespeare would be completely unreadable

>>17355786
>raw shakespeare would be completely unreadable
I feel like that's an exaggeration. The Shakespeare copies I've used have footnotes every so often for archaic words and the like, but the majority of the text is understandable without them.

>>17355817
now imagine highschool students mistaking the long s for an f

>>17355786
No wonder I hated reading as a kid.

>>17354731
Wait, weren't Rubaiyat and Arabian nights written in Persian? Anyway, what are the best sources for learning Persian (Farsi)? I was thinking about Assimil Le Persan but I don't know French.

>>17355786
>raw shakespeare would be completely unreadable

It's not "unreadable." You can get the gist of it even if you don't know what specific words or phrasings actually mean. You make it sound like it's in fucking wingdings and one needs a decoder ring.

>>17344315
No french recs?

>>17356937
There are 25 quatrains that Khayaam wrote in Arabic. As for Arabian Nights, the thousand and one nights are mostly stories of arabic roots with some turkic, and the framing device was from persia. The text itself is however entirely written in arabic.

>>17355786
>Raw shakespeare is unreadable
Seriously? I've mostly read some sonnets, the historical and roman plays, and they're basically modern english. Sure, chaucer and spenser are difficult, but shakespeare is no more challenging than dickens for instance.

Anyone familiar with Israeli literature?

>>17357652
Scaruffi has some Israeli novels on this list.
https://www.scaruffi.com/fiction/bestme.html

For German, what would be an easier work from the 17th or 18th centuries?
I feel like if I push through, I can read the Sorrows of Young Werther but I'd like to get some more practice with some lesser works before I jump straight in.
Thanks.

>>17355786
That's not true at all. Any poorly educated American can read Shakespeare without any trouble.
There are a handful of words and phrases that might warrant a reference but not much more than any other literary work from the 19th century.
There's a reason he's taught in middle school.

Recommendations for works in English with simpler prose? Just read Stoner without a problem, also read some Orwell a year or two ago. Lolita filtered me, every page contained multiple words that I did not understand, and that made it unenjoyable, even if I was able to follow the plot and understand most of the book.

>>17353809
If Ulysses is on this English level, Petersburg by Andrei Bely should be on the russian

>>17345390
are there some german tourist in this muslim festivity? look at the bottom. lmao

>That's not true at all. Any poorly educated American can read Shakespeare without any trouble.

>>17355786
lmao imagine believing this. my nativve language is spanish and i read the fucking cantar de mio cid raz and it's just as old with no complications whatsoever. I imagine it's the same except that that faggot invented words and wrote some boring vanilla shit for women
>>17358209
cope harder brownoid