Reading has always been about either broadening one’s knowledge and vocabulary or for pleasure. However, throughout history, what is considered worthy of being read and serious has set the standard of what is acceptable as “serious” literature. So, despite being a medium for people to tell their stories, to simply put it, reading becomes elitist when one consciously dismisses certain voices, genres and books based on an imaginary standard that does more harm than make reading and writing more accessible. Here is The Bombay Circle Press’ take on when reading becomes elitist.
Looking Down on Certain Genres
Although reading is meant to be for people of all ages with different interests, there has been an underlying rejection of what genres comprise “serious literature”. Most commonly seen in the romance genre—a genre heavily influenced by the female gaze and mostly consumed by a women audience, the genre is often looked down upon because it does not explore deep themes, challenge any societal notions, or simply has a complex plot.
Considering Classics as High-brow and Serious Literature
While classics have laid the foundation for many readers to get into more serious literature, the problem arises when that is set as the standard for serious literature. This goes in tangent with looking down genres whether they are mystery, literary fiction or historical fiction. Why? It might be because of the language used in the classics or because they have transgressed the time and have stories and voices that are relevant even today. But what is hilarious is that some of the so-called classics weren’t even considered serious or high-brow when they were first published. Take Jane Austen for example. Her novels were not consumed for its insight into the Georgian and Regency Era, themes of marriage, womanhood, self-identity and much more. They were simply considered as romance novels.
Focus on White and Euro-centric Books as the Standard
It goes without saying that the novels and novellas that people are most familiar with in the literary canon belong to White and Euro-centric novels. Now, this isn’t to say that their stories are anything short of well-written books, but when that is set as the standard of what is serious and those are the only voices that matter, it makes representation of any marginalized community inaccessible to people, thereby ignoring their struggles. This also goes hand in hand with the idea that anything that is written in English or has a translation in English is considered important.
Dismissing Marginalised Authors and Stories
As mentioned before, elitism is rooted in pushing a certain kind of voice to the fore-front, and in doing so, it increases the marginalization of stories and authors of people of colour, LGBTQ+ communities, different social class, works in non-English languages, and much more. The flip-side to this is alienating the books by an author from a marginalised community as “Other” or an exception to what is set as the “standard”. Thus, ironically, giving them token representation while making them out to be an exception to the cause. The same is also true when the voices of the marginalized are put into a different category despite ticking all the so-called boxes that qualifies them as a “masterpiece” that is equal or better than their White contemporaries.
Whether one prefers literary fiction or crime or fantasy, reading should never be about what is considered serious. Reading, whether for pleasure or knowledge, is rooted in its ability to bring forth stories and voices that would otherwise go unheard and bring a different perspective to life. Literature, at its core, does not exist to alienate genres, authors and books based on what a certain group of people consider to be “serious”.