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Archetype
The canon refers to a list of texts though to be essential to a given literary tradition. One can refer to the English canon or the Western canon, and indeed, in a Western context if someone simply says “canon” this is likely what is implied. However, there are also more specific canons, such as the British canon or canon of women writers. Note that the canon isn’t an actual list and is constantly changing; indeed, some of the fiercest debates in literary scholarship are over which texts should be considered canonical.
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Canon Term Timeline in How to Read Literature Like a Professor
The timeline below shows where the term Canon appears in How to Read Literature Like a Professor. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 7: Hanseldee and Greteldum
As previous chapters have shown, authors frequently borrow from the existing literary canon in their own work. The canon refers to an elusive and ever-changing list of literary...
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Although it has historically been common for authors to “borrow” from the canon, nowadays many indisputably canonical texts will not be familiar to the average reader (most Americans,...
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