The Novel as a Form of Literature

Transcription

1 The Novel as a Form of Literature I) Elements of the Novel : Plot, Characters, Setting and Point of View Introduction : The term for the novel in English is derived from the Italian novella means literally, a little new thing which is a short tale in prose. The best example of such tales from 14 th century Italy is Boccaccio s Decameron. Etymologically, the novel means short story of something new. It is a fictitious or real tale. Its roots are found in the heroic and adventurous stories medieval period. A novel depicts the social, political and personal realities of human life with clarity and aestheticism which a historian cannot explore. The gems of modern English novel are found in Thomas Moore s Utopia (1516). Thomas Nash paved the way of novel during the Elizabethan period. Mrs. Afra Behn laid the foundation of prose fiction in 17 th century. The novel as a form of literature emerged in the 18 th century and developed in the capitalistic society of the 19 th century and 20 th century. The novelists like Richardson, Fielding, Smollet and Stern glorified this form of England, hence called as the founders or the four wheels of the novel. Later on, contributors, social factors like spread of education, rise of reading class, popularity of periodical essay, democratic spirit and decline of the drama contributed greatly to the rise and development of the English novel. DEFINITIONS R.J. Rees says, Until the 17 th century, the word novel meant a short story of the kind written and collected by Boccaccio in his Decameron. The Shorter Oxford Dictionary defines, A fictitious prose narrative of considerable length in which characters and actions representative of real life and portrayed in a plot of more or less complexity. E.A. Baker in his History of English Novel defines, A prose story, picturing real life or something corresponding thereto, and having the unity and coherence due to plot or scheme of some kind, or to define intention and attitude of mind on the part of the author. Elements of the Novel : 1) Plot Plot is the artistic arrangement of events or actions in the life of the characters in the novel. The action means physical and verbal activities of the characters. These actions include conflict between man and man, man and nature, man and social or religious conventions, or man to himself. Typically, the conflict starts at the exposition or beginning of the story and is later on developed in the middle. At the climax or end, the conflict is settled. The plot is defined 1

2 by the conflict, either internal or external and this conflict makes the novel readable and artistic. So plot is the most important aspect of the novel. The plot of the novel is not a mere framework or mechanism. It is the first principle and the final end of the novel. So it is called as the soul of the novel. It makes the novel interesting and readable. In the traditional novel, we get the pyramidal shape of the plot consist the rising action, climax and the falling action. In his Aspects of the Novel E.M. Forster differentiates plot and story. In his opinion, both plot and story are narratives of events arranged in their time sequence. For example, the king died and then the queen died is a story but the king died and then the queen died in grief is a plot. In both statements, time-sequence is presented but the sense of causality overshadows the second statement. So plot is defined as a structure of actions aiming at emotional and artistic effects. There are several types of plot tragic, comic, romantic, simple, complex. The tragic plot deals with the suffering of the characters while the comic plot creates the laughter. In the tragic plot, we get the conflict between two characters or ideologies where as in the romantic plot, we get the union of characters. W.H. Hudson divided plot into two types loose and organic plot. According to him, there is no artistic unity, nor a logical connection between incidents in a loose plot. The organic plot on the other hand, has a logic and organic unity. The characters and episodes are neatly organized with precision in an organic plot. In short, there are several types of plots but the excellent plot of the novel is really a complex plot having balance and logical connections between the incidents. In the age of capitalism, the novelist presented several socio-cultural problems of the day through the organic plot. However, the life became more and more complex with the passage of time. As a result, the structure of the plot of the novel became more complex. The modern novelist is not satisfied with a simple story or with a well organized plot and an objective narration. He is more interested in the inner life or struggle of the characters. As a result, the traditional concept of plot disappeared from the modern novel. The psychological probing and interior monologue have ousted the well-knit plot altogether. It is true that modern psychological novels have rejected the traditional concept of plot. 2) Characters The novel presents real or imaginative incidents in the life of characters in the form of a story. Actions in the story are carried out by people or characters endowed with human characteristics. These people or creatures are called as the characters in the novel. 2

3 The characters are of two types 1) Major Characters 2) Minor Characters The main action of the novel revolves around the major characters while the minor characters are involved in this action or the conflict. The protagonist or central figure demonstrates the conflict while the minor characters comment upon the conflict. The protagonist is a specific individual with a certain physical appearance, speech, tastes and actions. At the same time he has universal qualities enabling the reader to identify with him as he confronts and resolves his conflict. The characters play an important role in making the novel interesting and readable. They present values and traits of minds through their actions and behavior. These actions show the nature and type of the characters in the novel. In his Aspects of the Novel E.M. Forster explains two types of characters flat and round characters. Flat Characters They are easy to understand. A flat character is a person which is built around a single quality. The personality of the flat characters do not develop. They lack individuality. Round Characters- They are very complex and difficult to understand. Their motives are hard to understand due to their complex personality. There is development in their personality or identity. They are generally found in heroic & adventurous novels. There are two main methods of characterization showing & telling. 1) Showing Method It is also called as indirect or dramatic method as the characters themselves talk about their personality & behavior. In this method, the novelist presents the traits of characters through their actions & development. 2) Telling Method It is also called as the direct method. It is very helpful to reader because every detail of the characters such as their nature, hopes, desires, loneliness & other traits of their personality are made clear through narration & nothing is left to discover on the part of the reader. In this method the narrator describes the qualities of characters. This is more favorite method as it requires the reader to use his brain to understand characters. The novelist can use both the methods in a single work of art. 3) Setting The setting means the location or the place & the background where the actions of the characters are performed or happened. It is an integral part of a novel. It explains period or age of action & the socio-cultural conditions of the day. It also makes the intention of the novelist more intelligible to the readers. In this Aspects of the Novels E. M. Forster explains the nature, features & types of novels. In his opinion, setting provides the specific idea of the 3

4 novel. It helps us to understand whether the novel is rural or urban, social or historical, real or imaginative. These different settings can be found in a single novel. For instance the hero of the Picaresque novel wanders from one place to another so its setting changes. Setting is of two types Social setting and Material setting Social setting It consists life of people in the specific area, their language & their socio-cultural conditions. Ex- Ice Candy Man by Bapsi Sidhwa presents socio-political conditions of India at partition. Material settings Provides detailed description of several places where action takes place. Ex- Daniel Defoe s Robinson Crusoe s action takes place on an Iceland where the protagonist spends the major part of his life. Novelist gives detailed graphic description of the island which provides the mood & idea of the writer. Ex - In Hemingway s The Old Man & The Sea, sea is depicted as the background of the novel. The novelist looks upon the sea as a woman. 4) Point of View It is the mode of presenting the novel. It consists of different modes & techniques of the narration. The narration decides the fame & modes of narration are explained by E.M. Forster in his Aspects of the Novel as- I. The first Person Point Of View - When the incidents or events are presented from the narrator s point of view, it is called as the first person point of view. This mode of narration can fully express the feelings and minds of the major characters. The narrator narrates the life and activities of the others from his/her point of view. II. The Third Person Point of View This view is insignificant because it doesn t develop characters. In this narration, the author assumes getting the story across the reader. So it is popular mode of narration. III.Omniscient poimt of view The feelings, ideas and motives of the characters are narrated by the narrator. Here, not only the narrator narrates the story but also comments and evaluates the other characters. Ex Tom Jones by Fielding, The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy. IV. The Limited point of view - The narrator narrates the story about himself. The incidents in the novel are limited to the feelings of the narrator. This narrative still of the writer is understood through his narrative technique. Ex Stream of Consciousness novels. TYPES OF THE NOVEL 4

5 [1] Epistolary Novel - This is a novel written as a series of documents. The usual form of an epistolary novel is letters. In modern times, diary entries, newspaper documents and recordings are also used in these novels. Etymologically, the word epistolary is derived from the Greek word meaning a letter. It became very popular during 18 th century. The epistolary novel demonstrates the series of happening in the life of protagonist. The first epistolary novel is Aphra Behn s Love Letters Between a Nobleman & his Sister. It appeared in three volumes in 1684, 1685 & In 18 th century Samuel Richardson made this form popular in England through his novels Pamela (1740) & Clarisse (1749). Montesquien in France & Goeth in Germany also used & populared this form in their countries. Jane Austen wrote Lady Susan, First Impressions & Pride & Prejudice. It was survieved by several 19 th century novelist. Balzac wrote Letters of Two Brides, Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein (1818), Anne Bronte wrote The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (1848), Bram Stoker wrote Dracula (1897). There are three types of epistolary novels monologic, dialogic & polylogic. In monologue, only one character especially protagonist writes a letter to express his feelings & emotions. In dialogue, two characters exchange letters. In polylogic, there are three or more letter writing characters. [2] Historical Novel The novel which takes its origin, characters & events to from history is called a historical novel. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, a historical novel is a novel that has as its setting, a usually significant period of history & that attempts to convey the spirit, manners & social conditions of a past age with realistic details & fidelity to historical fact. The work may deal with actual historical characters or it may have a mixture of fictional & historical characters. The intention of this novel is to entertain the readers & not to provide historical facts. So they depict imaginative incidents just to glorify or idealize the history. Sir Walter Scott, Leo Tolstoy, Charles Dickens & others developed historical novel to teach & please the readers. The historical novel began & popularized in the 19 th century. Sir Walter Scott is regarded as the first to write the historical novel. He writes Scottish history in his Waverley (1814), Rob Roy (1817), Ivanhoe (1820). George Luckacs mentioned in his The Historical Novel, Scott is the first fiction writer who saw history not just as a convenient frame in which to stage a contemporary narrative, but rather as a distinct social & cultural setting. Victor Hugo wrote The Hunchbalk of Notre Dame (1831). Leo Tolsty wrote War & Peace. In United States, James Fennimore Cooper, in French, Balzac wrote historical novels. 5

6 The main features of this novels are 1) Historical events are at the center so appears as the book of history. 2) Provides the knowledge of history of a period in the past, its social, cultural & political atmosphere. 3) Cultural & sociological history is imaginatively presented. 4) This novel presents the realistic picture of the important events & characters which makes it the national novel. 5) This novel encourages the national spirit & creates love for the nation & its culture. Sir Walter Scott, Leo Tolstoy, Charles Dickens are historical novelists. Ivanhoe, War & Peace, A Tale of Two Cities are the examples of popular historical novels. [3] Psychological Novel A novel deals with mental & emotional lives of its characters & explores various levels of mental activities is called as psychological novel. It is also called as a novel of the Inner Man because it studies motives, circumstances & internal action of characters. The stream of consciousness or interior monologue technique is used in this novel so it is also called as the novel of stream of consciousness. Ex 18 th century traditional novels like Richardson s Pamela & Stern s Tristram Shandy. This novel reached its full potential with the growth of the theory of psychoanalysis of Sigmund Freud in 20 th century. The detailed recording of external events by Henry James, associative memories of Proust, stream of consciousness technique of James Joyace & William Faulkner & the continuous flow of experience of Virginia Woolf made this novel a peculiar product of the modern age. In this novel, plot is subordinate & dependent upon the probing delineation of character. Events may not be presented in chronological order but rather in character s thought associations, memories, fantasies, reveries, contemplations & dreams. Ex Joyce s Ulysses, works of Franz Kafka. This novel is a peculiar product of modern novel. It concerns with the flow of human consciousness. Modern psychological novel began with Remembrance of Things Past (1913) written by Marcel Proust. A Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man (1914) by James Joyce & Pilgrimage (1915) by Dorothy Richardson. These three novelists made a drastic change in the history of the novel. Sigmund Freud s theory of psycho-analysis also supported the psychological novel. The experiments were made in the light of Freud s psycho-analysis & the stream of consciousness become the major technique of the psychological novel. The major features of this novel are 6

7 1) This novel is different from the traditional novel. Well organized plot is the strength of the early novels while the absence of logical arrangements is the feature of this novel. 2) The action moves backward & forward in time. 3) Argues that the character is a process & not a static state. 4) It is concerned with the stream of consciousness & chaotic structure of man & society, doesn t have a specific form & pattern. 5) Neither a criticism of life nor a means of entertainment. It is a rendering of life in all its fluidity, complexity & subtlety. 6) Major traits are preoccupation with time, subjectivity, inwardness, absence of action & the delineation of subconscious. 7) There is no plot, no characterization & no logical arrangement of events so called a reaction against the traditional novel. 8) The chief aim is not to create memorial characters but to find what people are like & to record discoveries. 9) Novelists believed that all reality lies in the stream of consciousness. 10) For traditional writers, stream of consciousness technique is a device for occasional effects but for psychological novelists, it is an end in itself. 11) Interior monologue is the essence. In short, Dorothy Richardson, James Joyce, Virginia Woolf & Proust are the major exponents of this novel. These novelists opened up new horizons of art & attract the readers towards this form of novel. 7