Notes on the Novel |
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More complex as well as longer than short stories, novels are works of fiction of substantial length in which characters engage in a series of actions leading to the resolution of a conflict or the transformation of an individual or group. The narrative or sequence of events often involves a search for something such as truth, God, love, an object, or a person. The narrative may focus less on action and more on subtle characterization or a process of development or discovery. Novels are characterized by verisimilitude so that the setting seems current and realistic even when the time is the past or future and the location is another planet. Literary attributes of the novel are similar to those of short fiction, so online Fiction Notes are helpful in thinking about long fiction. Novels usually have more characters and more crises than short stories. The plots and subplots, however, have coherence through character, setting, action, language, or meaning. Epistolary novels are written as letters, either correspondence among several people or, in some novels, letters by only one person. The earliest novels in English, for example, Pamela by Henry Fielding, were written in this style. Among the best known epistolary novels are Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelley and The Color Purple by Alice Walker. Resources A good starting point for online literary research is my Literary Research and Resources Website, which has links to my annotated Literary Resources Online, including Voice of the Shuttle with its extensive online resources for research in all the humanities. Selected early and recent literary criticism is listed there.for educational purposes only |
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