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This is a tricky one because so much of what goes into a book remaining in print or in the public eye is to do with the opinion of a few high-rankers - those who decide on curriculums etc. So many good books from the past have been largely forgotten. And the attributes that are seen as valuable in a book change over time too. What makes a classic can be a very personal and subjective thing, but the more opinions overlap on certain books, the more cemented its status as a classic becomes.

I think age is part of the requirement. I would think 30 to 50 years would be enough time to see if people are still interested in reading it.

I agree with Carrie me. It doesn't have to do with age. A classic leaves a message or story that transcends time.

I define a classic pretty simply, by its organic capability to survive the test of time without being injected with non-organic material.

I would say it has the be at least 20 years old. It also needs to convey a profound message, spark a lot of discussion related to this theme, and overall, make people contemplate something.

more often than not, overrated texts by celebrated white men.

If I will define a classic book then i press my definition on the expectation we have over something weightier we need to angage in the book,suc that a book being classic it has all the features which you expect such a book to have.# very important

I feel that a classic is a book that is constantly talked about, movies and television shows are based off of it, and people making references to it. I also think there is a "yearly" limit meaning that if it older than 10 years and is still hitting all of the 3 points I mentioned, then its a classic

I do not really define it as per a set time, I define classics as books that can be relatable, accessible, and enjoyable across generations.

Great book since it covers present and past,it can also be used in future.Jorge Sette has discribed the meaning of classic so very well.l love the book

I have a "classics project" up and running, to read, at least, a classic a month, so the definition of "Classic" is something I am constantly pondering, exploring online lists. The list is as follows;

1. Therese Raquin- Emile Zola (1867)
2. The Trial- Franz Kafka (1925)
3. The Turn of the Screw- Henry James (1898)
4. Tender Is The Night- F. Scott Fitzgerald (1934)
5. Animal Farm- George Orwell (1945)
6. Nostromo- Joseph Conrad (1904)
7. Jane Eyre- Charlotte Brontë (1847)
8. The Sound and the Fury- William Faulkner (1929)
9. Candide- Voltaire (1759)
10. The Metamorphosis- Franz Kafka (1915)
11. The Naked and the Dead- Norman Mailer (1948)
12. The End of the Affair- Graham Greene (1951)
13. To The Lighthouse - Virginia Woolf (1927)
14. Myra Breckenridge- Gore Vidal (1968)
15. Madame Bovary- Gustave Flaubert (1856)
16. The Bell Jar- Sylvia Plath (1963)
17. The Beast Within- Emile Zola (1890)
18. Mrs. Dalloway- Virginia Woolf (1925)
19. Decline and Fall- Evelyn Waugh (1928)
20. Orlando- Virginia Woolf (1928)
21. Jude The Obscure- Thomas Hardy (1895)
22. Villette- Charlotte Brontë (1853)
23. The Human Factor- Graham Greene (1978)
24. Silas Marner- George Eliot (1861)
25. Adam Bede- George Eliot (1859)
26. Far From The Madding Crowd- Thomas Hardy (1874)
27. Kim- Rudyard Kipling (1901)
28. Middlemarch- George Eliot (1872)
29. Lord Jim- Joseph Conrad (1900)
30. Shirley- Charlotte Brontë (1849)
31. Naked Lunch- William Burroughs (1859)
32. The Mayor of Casterbridge- Thomas Hardy (1886)
33. Down and Out In Paris and London- George Orwell (1933)
34. Mr Norris Changes Trains- Christopher Isherwood (1933)
35. Goodbye to Berlin- Christopher Isherwood (1939)
36. Invisible Man- Ralph Ellison (1952)
37. Crime and Punishment- Fyodor Dostoyevsky (1866)
38. The Quiet American- Graham Greene (1955)
39. Blood Meridian- Cormac McCarthy (1985)
40. The Moonstone- Wilkie Collins (1868)

The common thread, I have found, is the examination and elucidation of human character; the quality of the writing is generally impeccably high; there is a challenge in reading these books. Many of these have stood the test of time and rigorous discussion. Age is a secondary consideration; although high regard is accrued over time. There are three books that stand out even from this list of high quality;

Jane Eyre, Madame Bovary and Cime and Punishment

I remember my English teacher telling us that a "classic" is something written during the "Greek" era. I wasn't really sure what she meant. I'd agree that it has something more to do with the quality and impact rather than the age.

I agree that classics are books that are timeless and have an impact on society. As others have said there can be instant classics.

Something unique that maintains its quality and beauty despite the age it has been written.

I agree. A classical book is not defined by age. It is that it needs to be timeless.