Italo Calvino's essay, "Why Read the Classics?" contains an implicitly stated thesis. Contradictory to what the title of the essay suggests, the author does not spend the entire time explaining to the readers why they should read the classics, but rather attempts to define exactly what a classic is. He then lets the reader decide, based on this information he has given them about classic literature, why they should read the classics. The whole idea of the essay, or the thesis, states that a classic should be a book that has meaning to the reader, and lasts forever in the reader's mind. The closest Italo Calvino comes to stating this thesis is the eleventh definition he gives, in which he says, “’Your’ classic is a book to which you cannot remain indifferent, and which helps you define yourself in relation or even in opposition to it.” By saying this he tells us that in order to call a book “your classic”, it must not only have an important lasting impression on the reader, but it should also define who you are.
All the definitions and qualities Calvino assigns to classic literature support his thesis, because they all show how special the classics are in relation to all other works of literature. By providing us with all these definitions, Calvino shows us why we should read the classics without explicitly telling us.
Calvino, Italo. "Why Read the Classics?" Why Read the Classics? London: Vintage, 2000. 5-8. Print.
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