I suspect you did not take it to excess. There are some who would try to find “deeper meaning” in a Louis L’amour novel. I’m not knocking Mr. L’amour or his work, but I think you see my point. When most of the “classics” of English literature were written, literary tastes were far different. It is my opinion that many, if not most, of the great authors of the past could not get published for the last fifty years, at least.
Further, you run up against a fundamental problem: the classics were written when they were a primary source of entertainment. People read them not only for the story, but for the quality of the author’s writing, and expected to spend a lot of time enjoying the book. Not so, today.
(Dark humor alert!) Besides, you were teaching them to think? How did you keep your job? =^}
There is nothing abstract about oil. Just ask any Arab or Texan …