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May 22, 2024 โ€ข 17 tweets โ€ข 6 min read โ€ข Read on X
Why settle for one Great Book, when you can get *three*?

A thread of the Best Classic Literary Trilogies:

(You'll want to bookmark this for your summer reading list) ๐Ÿงต๐Ÿ‘‡ Interrupted Reading by Camille Corot, 1870
15. The Space Trilogy (1938-1945)

C.S. Lewis's "Out of the Silent Planet," "Perelandra," and "That Hideous Strength" blend science fiction with Christian theology to explore the corruption of human nature and the possibilities of redemption. The Great Comet of 1680 over Rotterdam as painted by Lieve Verschuier
14. Sword of Honour (1952-1961)

Evelyn Waughโ€™s "Men at Arms," "Officers and Gentlemen," and "Unconditional Surrender" are hilarious satires of the British establishment and military mismanagement during World War II.

This is Waugh at his most absurd and most tragic. Romantic Landscape with Ruined Tower by Thomas Cole, 1832 - 1836
13. Cairo Trilogy (1956-1957)

Naguib Mahfouzโ€™s "Palace Walk," "Palace of Desire," and "Sugar Street" chronicle three generations of the al-Jawad family through the social tumult of Egyptian society from ~1919 to 1944. A street in Cairo by Ivan Bilibin, 1921
12. Theban Plays (~429 BC)

Though technically not written as a trilogy, Sophoclesโ€™s "Oedipus Rex," "Oedipus at Colonus," and "Antigone" are now often read as one.

They tell the combined story of Oedipus's tragic fall, and the multigenerational fallout for his family. Oedipus and the Sphinx by Gustave Moreau, 1864, Metropolitan Musuem of Art
9. Durtal Trilogy (1891-1898)

J.K. Huysmans began his career associated with the greatest excesses of the French decadent movement, before converting to Catholicism.

In "La-Bas," "En Route," and "La Cathรฉdrale," he tells of a protagonist who follows a similar spiritual path. Michelangelo, The Torment of Saint Anthony, c.โ€‰1487
10. The Prairie Trilogy (1913-1918)

Perhaps better classified as a triptych, rather than a trilogy, no works better capture the spirit of the American frontier and its people than Willa Cather's achingly beautiful "O Pioneers!," "The Song of the Lark," and "My รntonia." Jules Breton, The Song of the Lark, 1884
9. Transylvanian Trilogy (1934-1940)

Miklรณs Bรกnffy's "They Were Counted," "They Were Found Wanting," & "They Were Divided" is a story of the Hungarian aristocracy's decline on the eve of WWI.

Politically traditionalist, artistically avant garde, Bรกnffy is a fascinating writer. Ruins of Greek Theatre at Taormina, 1905, by Tivadar Csontvรกry Kosztka
8. Divine Comedy (1308-1320)

Originally written as one continuous work, but often read today as three separate volumes, Dante's "Inferno," "Purgatorio," and "Paradiso" follow the soul's journey from the depths of hell upwards to โ€œthe Love which moves the sun and other stars.โ€ William Bouguereau - Dante and Virgile
7. USA Trilogy (1930-1936)

An ambitious, experimental work, John Dos Passos's "The 42nd Parallel," "1919," and "The Big Money," tells the story of a changing America, by interweaving 12 fictional life stories with newspaper clippings and narrative stream of consciousness. Cliff Dwellers (1913), oil on canvas by George Bellows
6. Night Trilogy (1956-62)

"Night," "Dawn," and "Day", the first a memoir, the latter two works of fiction, are inspired by Elie Wiesel's personal journey during and after the Holocaust from darkness to light. Night, by Edvard Munch, 1890
5. The Border Trilogy (1992-1998)

Cormac McCarthyโ€™s "All the Pretty Horses," "The Crossing," "Cities of the Plain," marked by lyrical prose and stark violence, tell of the coming-of-age experiences of young cowboys in the rugged landscapes along the U.S.-Mexico border. A Dash for the Timber; 1889, Frederic S. Remington
4. Oresteia (458 BC)

Aeschylusโ€™s trilogy, composed of "Agamemnon," "The Libation Bearers," and "The Eumenides," is a foundational text in Western literature.

It traces the fall of the House of Atreus, starting with the murder of Agamemnon and his son Orestes' quest for revenge. Orestes Pursued by the Furies by William-Adolphe Bouguereau
3. The Beckett Trilogy (1951-1953)

Samuel Beckett's "Molloy," "Malone Dies," and "The Unnamable" are dark, abstract comedies that are cornerstones of modernist literature.

They're books about "the battle of life... life shown near battleโ€™s end, bearing its lifetime of scars." The Absinthe Drinker by Viktor Oliva
2. The Lord of the Rings (1954-1955)

J.R.R. Tolkien's iconic trilogy, comprised of "The Fellowship of the Ring," "The Two Towers," and "The Return of the King," follows Frodo Baggins on an epic quest, exploring themes of friendship and the battle between good and evil. Lena dances with the knight, 1915, by John Bauer
1. Kristin Lavransdatter (1920-1922)

This trilogy by Sigrid Undsetโ€”consisting of "The Wreath," "The Wife," and "The Cross"โ€”tracks the life of a woman and her family in medieval Norway.

It's an astonishing work and won Undset the 1928 Nobel Prize. "The Bridal Procession in Hardanger" by Adolph Tidemand and Hans Gude, 1848
Which classic literary trilogy is your favorite? Did I miss it? Let me know.

And, if you enjoyed this thread and care about preserving and promoting classic literature, please share it and follow @coffeewclassic for more.

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More from @CoffeewClassics

Feb 17
For President's Day, a reminder:

Of the 45 people who have served as President of the United States, at least 33 studied Latin in school.

Why? Latin Education is Leadership Education.

A brief thread: 1/ portrait of John Adams, c. 1800/1815, by Gilbert Stuart
portrait of James Madison, 1816, by John Vanderlyn
portrait of James Garfield, 1881, by Calvin Curtis
portrait of Theodore Roosevelt, 1903, by John Singer Sargent
For the Founding Generation? Latin proficiency was a prerequisite for higher education.

Adams and Jefferson were reading Cicero, Caesar, and Virgil at a young age.

Ancient Greek was expected, too.

Some, like James Madison, even studied and mastered Hebrew at university. 2/ detail from the School of Athens, 1510-11, by Raphael
Why this focus?

Because true education is about being in dialogue with the past.

And the past is a foreign country.

If you want to understand a foreign country? Learn its language.

Latin, Greek & Hebrew unlock an understanding of Western civilization's foundations. 3/ Cicero Denounces Catiline, fresco by Cesare Maccari, 1882โ€“1888
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Feb 17
Happy President's Day!

In 1771, Thomas Jefferson's brother-in-law asked him what books every gentleman should own.

Jefferson responded with a list of hundreds.

I'll include the full list at the end of the thread, but here are a few gems I think you'll want to check out: ๐Ÿงต๐Ÿ‘‡ portrait of Thomas Jefferson by Charles Willson Peale (1791)
10. Jerusalem Delivered by Torquato Tasso (1581)

This Italian epic melds history with myth to tell the story of the First Crusade and its "deliverance" of Jerusalem from Muslim rule.

An inspiring chivalric tale, it is fundamentally about the clash between love and duty. Image
9. The Adventures of Roderick Random by Tobias Smollett (1748)

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Feb 14
For Valentine's Day, a top ten countdown of the best classic love poems.

Which one's your favorite? And which ones did I miss? Let me know. Hellelil and Hildebrand, the meeting on the turret stairs, by Frederic William Burton (1864)
10. Sonnet #43, from Sonnets from the Portuguese by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

"๐˜๐˜ฐ๐˜ธ ๐˜ฅ๐˜ฐ ๐˜ ๐˜ญ๐˜ฐ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฆ? ๐˜“๐˜ฆ๐˜ต ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ธ๐˜ข๐˜บ๐˜ด..." Image
9. Sonnet #116 by William Shakespeare

"๐˜“๐˜ฆ๐˜ต ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฐ๐˜ต ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ข๐˜จ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ง ๐˜ต๐˜ณ๐˜ถ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ๐˜ด
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Feb 9
On this day, Feb. 9, 1881, Fyodor Dostoevsky breathed his last.

His dying wish?

For his children to be gathered around him and read a story.

It was his final lesson to his children, and it is the key to understanding his work.

Thread ๐Ÿ‘‡ Portrait of the Author Feodor Dostoyevsky, 1872, by Vasily Perov
Dostoevsky's daughter Aimรฉe recounts the scene:

โ€œHe made us come into the room, and, taking our little hands in his, he begged my mother to read the Parable of the Prodigal Son.

He listened with his eyes closed, absorbed in his thoughts..." 2/ Dostoyevsky on his death bed, drawn by Ivan Kramskoy, 29 January 1881
The parable, from Luke's Gospel, tells of a wayward son, who roams far from home, squandering his inheritance.

But, reaching rock bottom, he returns, repentant.

His father welcomes him with open arms:

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Jan 27
On this day, Jan. 27, 1302, Dante Alighieri found himself cast into the wilderness.

Not allegorically. Literally.

But only after losing everything could he find his true life's purpose.

A thread on Dante's midlife crisis, what he learned from it and you can too. ๐Ÿงต๐Ÿ‘‡ 1/ Dante gazes at Mount Purgatory in an allegorical portrait by Agnolo Bronzino, painted c.โ€‰1530
Dante wasn't always *just* a poet. His first vocation was politics. A dangerous game in Florence.

At age 35, he was at the top of the city's political pile.

At age 37? It was all gone.

His career? Over. His wealth? Stolen.

His life? He was an exile, on pain of death. 2/ Dante in Verona, by Antonio Cotti, 1879
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Poems that packed a punch & a message.

So he wrote an epic that made him a literary immortal: the Divine Comedy. 3/ Image
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Jan 23
Let's have some fun and play "Finish that line..." Shakespeare edition.

Answer key at the end of the thread. Share your score in the replies.

Let's start with an easy one.

1. From Julius Caesar:

"Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your ____"
2. From King Lear:

"How sharper than a serpent's tooth it is to have a ____"
3. From A Midsummer Night's Dream:

"Lord, what fools these ____ be..."
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