Whoa, whoa, people. Dr. Bill, you obviously had a nightmarish time that involved required reading--no wonder the idea makes you bristle! I don't suppose the professors could be bothered to make sure that there were enough copies of a particular book to go 'round, before they assigned it.
Tsuwm, you are right: there are different struggles going on here, and not all are necessary. The most obviously unnecessary one is arguing over what maverick meant. We really might benefit from waiting until he can explain for himself, if he chooses. We seem to have gotten on to a track that thinks a 'canon' = 'required'. I am not sure that is the case. Perhaps it might have been more along what this section from Atomica says: "A group of literary works that are generally accepted as representing a field: “the durable canon of American short fiction” (William Styron)." But I don't know.

There is also the lack of consensus on what we were
given to read, vs. what we think we should have been
given to read. Any list of these, as was said in the beginning, is probably never going to be agreed on. So can
we please agree to disagree without getting ugly about it?

I find it fascinating, first to know what others were given, and even more, what made the most impact on them.
There is also the question of: what had the most impact on us personally, vs. are we trying to make up a list that we think others should be given, to make sure they get the best experience we think they can have? Again, I think we're going to have to wait and see if maverick will enlighten us as to which he was looking for.

Anna, I agree that this thread has made me think in ways I haven't before, and I love your point about Carroll.