Right on. I'd add that the value of having such a large and diverse canon is that each person finds their own branch or branches that eventually ramify down to

Right on. I'd add that the value of having such a large and diverse canon is that each person finds their own branch or branches that eventually ramify down to tiny twigs unknown elsewhere on the tree, but that have immense personal beauty and significance. The value of canonical taxonomies in lit isn't that all the books are good, but that there's something in them somewhere for anyone. But not necessarily all of it for everyone.