You can find my version of the list here for free: www.patreon.com/posts/95141707

Self-educated working-class bloke here: So happy to have found your channel! I like peering over the shoulder of those who are more educated and have a look-see at what they're reading. Thank you.

This is honestly a very underrated KZfaq channel. Congratulations, I appreciate your work here and hope you keep improving.

I LOVE this I always appreciate people who passionately talk about literature so it can give me real reactions and recommendations for me to read later

Your knowledge and insight is so fascinating, I feel like I could listen to your analysis all day. Academically stimulating and thought provoking without being gatekeepy, great video!

You definitely have set for yourself a noble quest. And it is kind of you to share with others your insights and personal reflections on literature, particularly poetry, and its study vis a vis Harvard and beyond Harvard as well.. I especially love your references to out of print materials as I do feel literature being for the ages as well as our own time in its surpassing sense, for each of our unique consciousness as individuals as well, it is good to be situated not only in our own time with regard to bibliographic materials. We are not limited to present day commentaries anymore than we are limited to contemporary literature. Good to have as wide and as deep a study as possible. Thank You and hope all your dreams come true regarding your ongoing goals, mission and sphere of influence for the good. A most worthy effort.

Wow! Subscription earned. I’ve been looking for a good poetry channel for years and KZfaq finally sent one that loves the subject as much as I do. I’m going through your back catalogue right now and am loving your Shakespearean sonnet exploration. Thank you for taking the time to make these and I’m wishing you much success as you make plain and enjoyable this wonderful art.

I just discovered your channel. You’re doing something really meaningful here.

I love this channel. It gives genuine literature-scholar feels

This is a gem. So pleased I found it. Thank you.

It’s awesome that you’re sharing this, thank you so much!!!!!

finding this channel feels like a gift! I want to get more into poetry, since I do like it but I don't have that much experience with it as I have with novels or short stories 😊I'm looking forward to watching more content from you

Thank you very much for giving us an insight of literature along history-time. It is very important to understand and appreciate literature the way you expose it for the inexperienced person like me.

I haven't been this excited for a YT video in years

What a great channel. Thank you for the wonderful information. I am going to the library and look up some of these great pieces!

Incredibly outstanding introduction to great works and writers!

I’m a big book nerd and try to read purposefully, thank you for this list. When I went to college, I wish we read books like this. Love thinking deeply and critically. Glad I was able to find you on KZfaq.

So glad I found this video in my recommendations, lately I have been collecting so many books to read some in here were repeats, but there were a lot of ones I still haven't heard about. Classical literature is so fascinating!! Can't believe I slept on it for so long- well I have been reading some classics like the Bible 😂 here and there so maybe I did not neglect reading them entirely, but only now do I understand this big historical context and the differences between all the eras. I enjoyed reading egzistentialism philosophy by Simone, now I am reading Homeric texts. This channel gives great joy.

What an amazing discovery your channel such treasure and delight! Thank you

this channel is such a gem! glad i found you and looking forward to the plans for 2024

Amazing! I studied comp lit at Univerity of Toronto St George and we followed a similar plan of study in 1st year. Funny you should mention Frye, as he was a lecturer at my school. I had the great privilege of perusing some of his library and watched his class on the bible which is archived on DVD and can be rented out at the library. It's refreshing to see a young person such as yourself interested in reading the bible as literature. Sincere bestvwishes

I major in CS but I just love the way you talk. Super relaxing and interesting.

Hello, Adam! Lovely video! Thanks for sharing with us! Happy Holidays! Cheers from Brazil!

I’m a homeschooling mother. I’m reading so many great books to my children and I’m starting a list for their later years in Highschool. This list was helpful. I am going to have to read many of these books myself and then add them to their list. ❤

I wish I had come across such a channel when I was a literature student. You produce very high quality content and provide people with a great roadmap, thank you. It also would be great if you shared a written list of the books mentioned in the video.

Thankfull for KZfaq recommendations - so happy to find this Channel 🌸

What a great channel! Thank you very much for your efforts, selflessness and humility to share whatever knowledge you have in the field of English literatre with those who are interested. A great video as are all the other ones published before and after this one. It would be a great gesture to share with us the updated syllabi of such marvellous university as Harvard

Incredible work. Thank you for this wonderful video

Thank you for sharing this ❤

Really excellent content. This has made me realize that I have neglected poetry. I’m going to use this video as a starting point. Thanks very much. Keep up the good work.

I am holding a phd in german literature studies and just stumbled across this channel, and i am so happy to finally have found content on my subject of expertise (sort of) that is intellectually inspiring. Thank you mate!

This is such an absorbing video to watch as a Polish student of English translation and literature, I love your channel

How interesting as I graduated in 1981 from Ripon College. Several years later I had asked my English teacher, Dr. William Shang, to share with me his top 20 novels of all time. Fantastic list. Read some but not enough. There’s never time! Thanks for the video! 😊

What a wonderful channel where literature and poetry are front and center. ❤

My ears perked up when you mentioned that Marjorie Garber, but especially Walter Jackson Bate, were on the committee. A great teacher and then an even greater biographer! I’ll have to take the list and then bow out. Thank you for this lovely video.

I am a literature specialist- thank you for verifying what I try to express to my students every day ❤

Worthwhile reads as heard here. My thanks. Carry on, 2024! -Seb!

you have such a calm and lovely style of presenting all the works and recommendations. your passion comes through in a very engaging way but still calming, I could listen to this for hours! I’m so happy I got recommended this video and I can’t way to watch some of your other uploads 🤍

What a great video! Thank you!

Just found your channel and I want to thank you so much for this amazing and essential list of readings! Congratulations! One more subscriber!

This gem I just found is amazing! Thanks so much for doing this Adam. Keep up the good work

great video! as an literature student i highly appreciated! ❤️

Hi. My name is John (João), I'm from Brazil, and maybe that's reason enough to motivate someone to question the claim I'm going to make here, but I do believe that you and Benjamin McEvoy have the best literature channels in the website right now. Congratulations for your journey!

This is priceless. Thank you for sharing

What a gem of a KZfaq channel how this is the first time I've encountered it is strange

I've found your channel tonight and I loved it. This viddeo is great! I can fully understand you! I'll be watching more video to keep practicing my English skills :) Best from Brazil.

Excellent review. Thanks

Well done young lad, and I commend you for the 'Dark Academy' aesthetic...up to and including the brownish grey sweater.

Phenomenal video, thank you for sharing the list and carefully going over it with us!! I'm curious what you add to a section on "1980s to present".

i love vids like this, in an hour i learned more than i could in years of school!!!!!

Great video, really enjoyed it

What a treasure trove; thank you for sharing it with such care and detail. For what it’s worth, I like the Seamus Heaney version of Sir Gawain and The Green Knight; we read it each year at Christmas by candlelight (probably the most rarefied thing I’ve ever typed & in no way representative of my day to day life!); my kids will actually listen to it; I think the story is a good one for kids.

Brilliant video!

Great vid. Oh the times, they are, a changin'

I'm an Arabic native & I hold a BA English Linguistics & Literature & English poetry & Arabic poetry alike are of interest, but, I struggled to find an English community or communion of poetry just as us Arabs we really value poetry & we're divided to traditionalists & dissenters in poetry & poetics just as hiw Westerners who are divided to conservatives & progressives in politics. I think as a muslim myself & someone who recites Quranic verses, the bible is familiar to me & the biblical allusions in English literary works are not that uncanny, but Greek & Roman mythology & philosophy & overall classics I need to acquaint myself with, I read the Republic by Plato & I have poetics by Aristotle. There are Classical Arabic texts that had assisted me in my journey with English studies ( I'm a grad of the British Open University by tbe way) & they're relevant to literary criticism, poetics & translation. Apologies for the long comment, but you don't know how it is like how shall I express it a hidden gem maybe to find a passionate & energetic & well knowledgeable specialist in poetry like you, so thank you so much your effort is highly appreciated.

I just stumbled on your channel in my feed, subscribed almost at once! Happy holidays and stay safe everyone!

Sounds like a fantastic project.

Your channel is a treasure trove.

Just about to start my first semester at my lit and languages major, feels so good to find this before it all starts!

I have just discovered your channel and I am out of my mind excited to get started with my very first book of poetry. I was always intimidated by poetry and thought it was best enjoyed for the really clever and sharp folks. I have been a reader my entire life... some classics, but mostly the current NYT best sellers and non-fiction. My first attempt is going to be Paradise Lost by John Milton.. so excited to give it a go with my annotation supplies in tote as I'm sure I will need them. I am a slow reader and have to look up a lot of words as I go, but I do my best because I love to read . Early in my life, reading was a lifesaver as home life was at times very challenging and I would escape with a book. I can always thank my parents for our home was always full of books, comics, magazines like National Geographic, Time and Life. I can't tell you how Blessed I feel to have found you. God Bless.

Lovely channel! Subscribed ✨

WONDERFUL! Thank you! So many old friends here. I cheered when you mentioned Charles Williams and William Morris. I think that The Book of Common Prayer 1662 is also important (or was) because it informed and coloured so much our spoken English. That was true in Episcopalian America, perhaps to a lesser degree. Thanks for a very educated vlog.

This is so great! ❤

Love your enthusiasm for English lit.

Subscribed. Love this !

Thanks for the video! I just subscribed, keep the good work! Sending good whishes from 🇧🇷

This is great--thanks for sharing.

Thanks for the gems!

Really fascinating to re-think the history of the bible and then how that impacts literature. Thanks for your video ❤

I enjoyed this Poetry while studying Poetry at Harvard in 1983. Thank You for the Flashback.

Marvellous video sir! I do hope the table to your left is a sturdy one! (Since I've been watching your videos and playing some for my high school classes, I've been curious about your take on Harold Bloom. At some point, it would be interesting to hear your thoughts on Bloom's ideas about literary agon and the anxiety of influence, and whether you think his is a fruitful critical approach.)

Why does “Dead Poets Society” come to my mind? 😄 Congratulations for the beautiful room in the background.

00:01 Harvard literature professors' recommended poetry books in 1983 02:21 Understanding the Bible's influence on English literature 06:46 Classical literature's influence on English poetry 09:02 Harvard Literature students in 1983 studied ancient Greek and Roman literature and criticism, including works by Virgil, Aristotle, Hesiod, and Ovid. 13:39 Recommended reading for understanding Old English and Middle English poetry 15:54 Langland's allegory addresses problems leading up to the Protestant Reformation. 20:05 Recommended literature books for Harvard students in 1983. 22:12 Literary works in 1660s England reflect cultural temper and religious anxieties 26:15 Poetic experimentation and innovation in the early 17th century 28:22 Harvard literature students read classical and devotional poetry 32:49 Dryden's essay on dramatic poetry and its influence on English literary criticism 34:47 Classic poetry books forming the foundation of English literary criticism. 38:50 Insight into Samuel Johnson's view of history and humanity. 40:42 Harvard recommends key literature books of the 18th century. 44:47 Harvard Literature students read influential poetry books from the Romantic Period 46:51 Exploration of the idea of imagination through various fields of literature 51:02 Harvard Literature students read and discuss poetry by Ed Gren and Ralph Waldo Emerson. 53:01 Walt Whitman's emergence as a prophetic voice in American poetry 57:31 The Norton anthology of theory in criticism supplements the Harvard list and covers developments in theory and criticism up to contemporary writers. Crafted by Merlin AI.

I just found this channel. Thank you for sharing. You have a new subscriber. Side note, you have a very nice voice.

This is fantastic. I went to a public university in New Jersey in the mid-1990's and we had to read and be familiar with many of these same books.

I am grad Lit student too at Unisyd :3 thank you so much for such a great video!!

Very informative video.

I feel like by finding this channel that i found literally a treasure 🤎 I'm 21 Moroccan, I'm an an English literature student in my third year , this channel is so inspirational, I can't wait for the next videos, thank youuuuuuu so much 🤎🤎🤎

Great video and love the selection. This guy looks exactly like who I imagine when I hear the words "Harvard PhD candidate".

Hello! What a good way to practice english!!!!! You win a new suscriber. Hugs from Argentina.😊

Oh cool channel ! I am a French and a masters degree in literature. I am glad to expand my knowledge through channels like this

Great talk ❤

16:49 I think about how, if we zoom out to look at a larger picture of humanity (&/or history), it seems to me that it is almost as if all these great poets and authors and writers and teachers were having a conversation across time, discussing themes and then elaborating upon these concepts through words (especially seen through the written word) to find some sort of answer to the question of "What does it mean to be human". To be... or not to be.

Thank you so much, if it isn’t too much trouble, would there be a way for us to get the entire list? Thanks again, I’m greatly enjoying this.

Truly wonderful, years ago I would read the local library loan, "The Oxford Book of English Verse, 1250-1900", a personal favorite and must-have for any poetry lover. My graduate degree is in Near Eastern Studies, which involved reading poetry in the original Persian language, but I love and appreciate poetry from around the world.

This is amazing , thanks a lot !!! I would love to see you collaborating with Ruby Granger :)

Sounds good, I'm off to look at some of these. Quick note: for Seamus Heaney, it's pronounced like hee-nee, and his name would even be unrecognisable as hay-nee if said in Ireland. Pronunciation is very important for Irish names, already forcibly Anglicised by our nearest neighbours, and especially important for a poet whose works are often concerned with colonialism.

Excellent content! I feel like there is a Harvard academic position in your future. I've only started developing an interest in poetry post-retirement but I'm aware of those poets mentioned, had zilch awareness of the poetry criticism texts. Kudos for mentioning women poets of those eras. I have more of an interest in Australian contemporary poets, particularly indigenous and multicultural women poets, if I buy a new collection, I buy their work as a small form of support. But I'm interested in poetry criticism and look forward to watching more of you content.

Thank you.

Hi Adam! I didn’t know you were on KZfaq, so imagine my surprise when your face appeared in my recommendations. I hope you’re doing well, and thanks for making a great video!

I’m thinking towards my undergrad literature thesis, so this list has been deeply interesting to consider! I myself gravitate towards the fractured, fragmented nature of modernist lit, but there’s so much literary history that leads up to that point that this list raises to attention more directly. All the interweaving and building upon that occurs over time makes the writings of Joyce, Faulkner, Eliot, Yeats, Woolf, etc. all the more dense than they appear at first sight. Of course, though, I wish this list looked beyond canonical, majority-White literature to great writing cross-culturally. It’s so easy to see a list like this and devote so much time to such wonderful readings and forget all the other perspectives that have been left out! Also, your cadence here is wonderful! Thank you for the video!

Next year I plan on reading even more books then I even did this year, and this list was very helpful and I really enjoyed it. Also you seem a little too smart to be in Harvard Adam, but I hope it helps you in life.

As a student of literature who is not Christian, this discussion was extremely illuminating. I have read the New Testament, but I will try and read the recommended books from the King James Bible, if God allows it. I read Sufi and Eastern poetry and I feel like they would have also been familiar with the Bible as you have said. World poetry is divine with a mythos for all of mankind, a gift for all readers from all religions. I enjoyed the video a lot and will definitely read as much of the wonderful classic poetry mentioned in this video, many of which I haven't actually read, but definitely have heard of.

Thanks for this

I am enjoying this just as much for ASMR relaxation as the information. Strange.

Last part of my research there are two literary techniques used often in poetry similes and metaphor. Father of American poetry is Walt Whitman. Types of poetry are narrative, lyric , dramatic. First American poet is Anne Bradstreet, she was also pioneering. Most famous American poets Emily Dickinson, Robert frost , Sylvia Plath, Langston Hughes. Themes of American poetry justice ,war , racism , cultural identity. All of us know Harvard University is one of most prestigious universities in the world. As I read there several poet studied at Harvard University such as Henry brook Adams , Charles Ashbery , Stephen Burt , Rafael campo , Thomas gold Appleton , oni Buchan . I hope I learn a lot from your knowledge. Merry Christmas happy new year. Iam so sorry to be little long but reading and writing both are great ways to improve our English as none native speakers. Good luck to you your dearest ones .

Thanks for this. have you uploaded this resource anywhere?

any secret britney homies make it?

Sehr interessantes Video!👌🏼

Superb thank you