This project led to the discovery of some interesting trends in what content is considered guilty pleasure, why people read and what is considered quality reading. With more time I would have interviewed more people from a variety of reading demographics. Information from English majors would be an interesting comparison with a larger pool. In reflection, I'd also have moved into more detailed questions about genres and opinions on specifc classics they'd read and enjoyed or didn't. My interview pool was unexpectadly similar in opinions regarding reading material, and interviewing more people who favored classics might have aided in the conversation.

 

I've learned that you really shouldn't judge people by what they read, but encourage that process altogether. If it's something they enjoy, they will get something out of it. I'll go forth with more pride in my reading choices and perhaps a willingness to give more genre's a try. 
 

An article in response to Ruth Graham's article, mentioned earlier, by Noah Berlatsky said that, "For all their claims to dislike pat solutions, though, it seems that it's critics like Graham who wants a simplified world. In the name of high-minded, conscientious reading, she has swallowed marketing copy. Good books go over here, neatly labeled “literary fiction” by salespeople, while the less good books go over there, neatly labeled for kids. The history of influential, canonical fiction written for children, from Alice to Narnia, is neatly erased, in favor of another encomium to John Updike."

 

This entire argument is, in my opinion, best settled by Elyse's comments in her article, "In Defense of Romance Novels or Imma Read What I Want". She says, "People who worry about only reading serious literature, in my opinion, are just afraid of the world thinking they are dumb. If you love Faulkner, get down with your bad self. If you read it because of judgment, well, then that’s pretty dumb, isn’t it? I’m only going to get to read so many books in my lifetime. I’d rather they be something I enjoy."

So go forth, and read what you want.