English Assignment

History of the English Novel
Definition
The novel is one form of extended fictional prose. It is different from other extended forms of prose such as the allegory ( which functions to teach some moral lesson) and romance (which emphasizes exciting and spectacular events designed to entertain readers). Novels on the other hand focus on character development and arise from the desire to depict and interpret human character. The reader of a novel is both entertained and aided in a deeper perception of life's problems. The roots of the novel come from a number of sources: Elizabethan prose fiction French heroic romance--vast exaggerated narratives about characters who always acted nobly and spoke high-flown sentiment Spanish tales which consisted of episodic adventures held together by the personality of the central figure The word "novel" (which wasn't even used until the end of the 18th century) is an English transliteration of the Italian word "novella"--used to describe a short, compact, broadly realistic tale popular during the medieval period. The novel deals with a human character in a social situation, man as a social being and places more emphasis on character, especially one well-rounded character, than on plot. Another initial major characteristic of the novel is realism--a full and authentic report of human life. The traditional novel has: a unified and believable plot structure sharply individualized and believable characters a pervasive illusion of reality
How Did the Novel in English Come to Be?

There was a public demand for the novel. With the expansion of the middle class by the middle of the 18th century, more people could read and they had money to spend on literature. The early English novel departed from the allegory and the romance with its vigorous attempt at verisimilitude and it was initially strongly associated with the middle class, their practicality, and their morality. There was already a high interest in autobiography, biography, journals, diaries, memoirs. Alexander Pope's saying that "The proper study of mankind is man" led to increased interest in the human character. Novels in the 18th century tended to be considered light reading for young ladies. Initially their focus was on morality and they attempted to provide examples of proper conduct. Later, the 18th century novels developed into loosely structured and semi comical works of fiction. Authors such as William Dafoe established a middle class point of view and a convincing narrative often with first person point of view. Jane Austen was also a contributor to the development of the novel. She wrote highly polished works about social issues such as marriage and money seen from a womans point of view.
Victorian Novel
The novel became the leading form of literature in English in the Victorian era ( 1837 1901). Most writers focused on writing about themes which interested the general public. Some of these novels gave sensationalized accounts of the lives of the working class in an attempt to push for action towards legal and moral change. The novelists of the Victorian era believed that human nature is fundamentally good and lapses are errors of judgment corrected by maturation. They attempted to portray characters that were well rounded and had both good and bad qualities. A major part of the appeal of novels of this time was that they portrayed everyday life that most of their readers experienced. Most of the novels written during this period were long and used complicated language. Charles Dickens was the most well known writer of this period. He wrote extensively about the life of the poor in England. His writing style was easy to understand and he often used sarcasm in his writings.
The romantic novel was another important writing style in this age. Romanticism encouraged a return to nature and also valued the imagination over reason and emotions over intellect. Most novels of the Victorian period were published in serial form; that is, individual chapters or sections appearing in subsequent journal issues. As such, demand was high for each new appearance of the novel to introduce some new element, whether it be a plot twist or a new character, so as to maintain the reader's interest. During this time, authors were paid by the word, which tended to create wordy prose. In part for these reasons, novels are made up of a variety of plots and a large number of characters, appearing and reappearing as events dictate.
20th Century Novel

It is very difficult to get perspective on the literature of our own time because historians usually classify and give labels to it long after the era is over. The 20th century novel is divided into two time periods separated by World War II. These are Modern literature--roughly 1900 or 1914--1945 Contemporary literature--1945 to the present
Many important events took place in this century and had a deep effect on the writers of this time. These events included, among others, the two World Wars, the Cold War and the end of colonialism and communism. There were also many great thinkers of this time who influenced the 20th century novel. Some of these were psychologists like Freud and Jung, others were philosophers or sociologists such as Karl Marx. The great upheavals in societies due to increasing belief in the power of science and the effect of wars led people of this time to develop a way of thinking that was more realistic and less believing of the existence of God. The literature of the Modern period ( before World War II) was subjective, personal and internal. Authors were mainly concerned with portraying the internal thoughts, feelings and emotional struggles of their characters.
Contemporary Literature (1945 Present) The literature of this time period is often referred to as post modern or neo modern literature. The time period that immediately followed World War II was dominated by an awareness regarding the threat of nuclear weapons and the Holocaust. There was a strong resurgence of realistic writing aimed at bringing change. More and more contemporary novels now features the anti-hero, alternately a victim, a rebel, or a bumbling failure. Contemporary authors reflect pluralism. They are preoccupied with perception, and the loss of belief in anything outside the self. Another trend in contemporary novels is the rise of serious fantasy. Writers create worlds where magic exists in real life or they create alternate worlds with fantasy creatures and different realities.

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History of the English Novel

How Did the Novel in English Come to Be?

20th Century Novel

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