Becoming "Literature" and the infinite horizon of the field

It's maybe erroneous to regard popularity or sales as a major factor. I know Shakespeare and Don Quixote were mainstream in their day, but current household names like Moby-Dick and the works of Kafka only got their dues much later after the authors' deaths. In addition, the vast majority of popularly read novels over the centuries have been all but forgotten; Shakespeare and Cervantes tend to be more the exception than anything.

Which is not even to mention yet that what we now call YA has been around and successful for a long time as well (Tom Swift, anyone?). The only thing different about today's YA, aside from knowledge of technology, is the label of "YA". The genre has always existed under some label or another.

/r/literature Thread Parent