Why You Should Read These 4 Classics in Greece

The ancient Greeks pioneered genres of world literature like philosophy, the epic poetry, and tragic drama, but this is not the sole reason you want to read the classics in Greece. My recommended reading from a Greek author is Homer’s The Odyssey, one of the earliest extant European literary works (I may talk about that reading experience in depth later). My first time attempting this classic (and Homer’s The Iliad) was in college, and, truthfully, I barely understood it then. I had a professor who helped me focus on the themes and structure of the epic poem and that was helpful.

The Odyssey is a Greek epic. Epic poetry is a narrative poem, usually thousands of lines, that is mostly focused on the struggles and experiences of heroic figures dealing with supernatural forces. In this case, it’s Odysseus and the Trojan War. Epic poetry entertains but also preserves history and cultural values. In fact, when you walk around Greece, you see how the ancient Greeks were all about preservation. I suggest reading The Odyssey in Athens, while sitting on the rocky outcrop of the Acropolis of Athens, above the city of Athens.

I read The Odyssey because as Italo Calvino said in “Why Read the Classics:” There ought to be a time in one’s adult life which is dedicated to rediscovering the most important readings of our youth.” Over the past few years, I have been rediscovering great books, growing as a reader, reading to uncover themes and lessons I missed before. I have been reading artfully and intentionally.

Why Read the Classics in Greece

So why should you read the classics in Greece? Simply put, reading the classics promote the kind of contemplative thinking that our busy lives do not allow. Also, there are many complexities of this modern world that the classics equip us to handle.

Imagine reading alongside ancient ruins, Byzantine churches, weathered villages. Imagine words quieting your mind enough to observe donkeys, yes, donkeys, transporting people up hundreds of ancient steps in Santorini.

The clear skies, blue waters, hills and heights of Greece bring clarity that helps you read deeply. What I found is that those sustained moments of reading felt artful instead of effortful.

But reading the classics in Greece does not mean reading only Greek classics. If you plan on doing some island hopping, try pairing three classics from Austria, America, and Russia with these Greek islands.

Read First Love in Corfu

Corfu, a Greek island with its Venetian streets and elegantly layered Old Town, is great for atmospheric reading with layered depth. Pair it with a great 19th century novel, like First Love by Ivan Turgenev.

Like Corfu, nothing in this short novel is overstated. It is intense, measured, poetic, and has scenes that move with quiet intention. I love reading Turgenev because he takes you through storytelling in a beguiling way. And just like First Love, when you walk the streets of Corfu, the different layers take you through storytelling in an intriguing way.

When a group of men meet to share their stories of their first loves, a forty-year-old man, Vladimir Petrovitch, details the first time he fell in love. First Love is a recollective novel that captures a boy’s humiliation and infatuation as he awakens to the adult complexities of love. Turgenev once said that it was one of his most autobiographical works and was inspired by his love for someone with whom his father had an affair.

A city surrounded by clear blue waters and numerous hidden spaces to enjoy nature and history, Corfu is a great island for reflective reading. The island feels like an ancient tale retold.

Ivan Turgenev was a Russian novelist, short story writer, playwright, and translator. First published in 1860, First Love is one of the most popular works of classic short fiction and a good place to start if you are challenging yourself to read the classics.

Read Letters to a Young Poet in Santorini

The sea, silence, and endless skies that seem to follow you in Santorini help you clear space for introspection. This vastness helps you ignore the crowds that sometimes overtake Santorini. Rilke’s letters do the same. The heights help you calm the noise and nudge you toward your inner life. I enjoyed Letters for their simple profundity and poetical advice on writing, love, and life.

Letters to a Young Poet is a collection of ten letters written by Rainer Maria Rilke, who was an Austrian poet and novelist. He wrote them to a young cadet, Franz Kappus, who asked him to provide a critique of his poetry. Rilke refused but advised Kappus to experience the world, engage with art, and seek the truths within himself in order to understand himself and his relationship to writing. After Rilke died of leukemia in 1926, Kappus published the letters three years later.

I find this book powerful because of how it embraces solitude as a supercharger and the art form as a necessity. Rilke felt that if things around you seem dull it is because you haven’t found ways to make them interesting or to see things with new eyes. He also felt that creatives should take chances in life, be willing to be different.

Read The Great Gatsby in Mykonos

Similar to Mykonos in mood, The Great Gatsby is about nightlife and glamour. One of the reasons I like Gatsby is because it elucidates how beauty and glamour sometimes mask fragility. This quintessential novel of the Jazz Age is fast-paced and daring. With so many diverse beaches in Mykonos, this could be an entertaining read between swims and beach hopping. The book matches the vibrancy and nightlife of Mykonos.

The elegance of Cycladic architecture in Mykonos is simple elegance, which I find alluring. On the other hand, the elegance in The Great Gatsby is opulent. Set in Long Island, New York, the book is told from the perspective of Nick Carraway, as he interacts with Jay Gatsby, an elusive millionaire who is in love with Nick’s cousin, Daisy Buchanan. Gatsby throws lavish parties that rivals his competitors’, as they live in a time where the wealthy find ways to show off their excess. Gatsby does everything he can in order to woo Daisy and gain respect from her circle of friends. But the central question becomes: who is Jay Gatsby, really? Where did his wealth suddenly spring from?

F. Scott Fitzgerald was an American novelist, essayist, and short story writer. He worked on The Great Gatsby when he moved to Europe with his family. Fitzgerald died in 1940 believing that Gatsby had become a publishing failure, although he viewed it as his greatest work. It wasn’t until 1944, when scholars started to read and publish articles on Gatsby, that the book was revived. By 1974, The Great Gatsby had achieved its status as a literary masterpiece and was a contender for the title “Great American Novel.”