[logicchains]

>the practice of writing and publishing genuinely good work is being wiped out.

Most of the best literature in the English language was written before modern IP law was even a thing. There's very little good literature written by authors primarily motivated by money.

[Jtarii]

How much of that literature was written by wealthy landowners who already had little need for money?

[mr_toad]

Well, you needed the means to get an education, since most of the poor in those days were illiterate, which is something of an impediment to becoming a successful writer.

I can only think of one writer off hand who wasn’t a wealthy landowner, although it is a particularly notable example; that of William Shakespeare.

Shakespeare wasn’t poor (his parents seem to be of upper middle class standing), he was able to get a basic (but not a university) education and then pursue an acting career (with perhaps a side hustle as a teacher). Whatever the case he certainly wasn’t independently wealthy before he started writing, he needed to earn a living.

He did seem to be in it for the money (and fame) since he wasn’t just a writer he was an actor, theatre owner, and something of a celebrity, and he did make enough money to become a wealthy landowner by the time he died.

[Tajnymag]

Do you think that in "the old times" authors didn't need money and wrote books just out of a good will?

[boca_honey]

That's just cultural elitism. I hope you meet someone in your life who finds absolute joy in reading young adult romance novels or D&D fantasy books so you can understand how irrelevant "good" literature is. I love Dostoevsky and Verne (and D&D novels, especially those written by R.A. Salvatore), but I would never judge the modern "IPs" that got my daughter into reading.

> best literature

What does that even mean?

[OriginalPenguin]

Everyone has their own opinion as to what the best literature is, just like what the best music is.

But there is also some consensus. For music it would be Beethoven, Mozart, the Beatles, etc.

For literature it would include Tolstoy, Shakespeare, Cervantes, Dickens, Austen, Tolkien, and many more. I would bet it will eventually include Stephen King but it's too early to make that call now.

[boca_honey]

There is no such consensus. Those are just popular answers coming from people with eurocentric tastes over the last couple of centuries. Millions in the global south would swap The Beatles for Celia Cruz or Fela Kuti. People in Asia from the 1700s to this day would tell you Tyagaraja is a way better composer than Beethoven and Mozart put together... he is a literal saint in India, actually.

Not to mention, many people would disregard your answer for putting Stephen King (and Tolkien, to a lesser extent) in the same sentence as Tolstoy and Shakespeare.

There is no "better" anything when we talk about culture. No consensus, etc. There are just opinions.

[dartharva]

I know many (including myself) who would never agree to this "consensus"

[inigyou]

The best music is Goa trance. What you're referring to as "best" is actually classic music (or as I like to call it, classic plus music :P).