4.1 History of Novel – Easy Notes

1. Introduction

1. A novel is a long narrative work of fiction written mainly in prose.
2. The word novella comes from the Italian word meaning “new.”
3. The novel gives an intimate expression of human life in prose form.
4. A novel presents the time, place, nature, people, minds, gestures and activities of society.
5. A novel gives us a clear picture of the society of a particular period.
6. A novel makes society easier to understand than drama and poetry.
7. The main message of a novel is that human life should be virtuous and purposeful.
8. The spirit of the 18th century helped the novel to become popular.
9. The 18th-century novel was influenced by sentimentalism, intellectualism and realism.
10. The fusion of emotions and intellect was an important feature of the period. History of Novel

2. Early History of the Novel

1. About 2000 years ago, Greek romances existed in poetic form.
2. Greek romances were popular between the 2nd and 6th centuries.
3. Early romances mainly contained imagination, ideal love, adventure and marvellous events.
4. Virgil’s Ecologues is one of the early literary works mentioned in the chapter.
5. Malory’s Morte D’Arthur is another important early work.
6. Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales is also mentioned as an important early work. History of Novel

3. First Novels

1. The Tale of Genji by Murasaki Shikibu is considered the first novel of the world.
2. The Tale of Genji was published in Japan around 1010.
3. Don Quixote by Spanish writer Miguel de Cervantes is regarded as the European novel.
4. Don Quixote was published in two parts between 1605 and 1615. History of Novel

4. Rise of the Novel in the 18th Century

1. The Industrial Revolution helped in the growth of the novel.
2. The appearance of newspapers and magazines attracted many middle-class readers.
3. The new middle-class readers had less interest in romances and tragedies.
4. The new readers wanted literature that expressed the new ideas of the 18th century.
5. The spirit of the 18th century was mainly based on realism.
6. Realism rejected excessive romantic features.
7. After 1740, the novel developed as an important literary form in England. History of Novel

5. Role of Middle Class

1. The growth of trade, commerce and the Industrial Revolution created a strong middle class.
2. The newly educated middle class began to consider novels as respectable reading material.
3. Novels presented the realistic picture of everyday life.
4. Novels also presented the problems of common people.
5. The novel expressed the aspirations and longings of the middle and lower classes.
6. The spread of machines gave the educated middle class more time for reading and discussion.
7. Drama and poetry were gradually losing their popularity.
8. The novel combined some features of drama and poetry with new features.
9. The novel became the prominent literary form of the 18th century.
10. The subjects of novels included social, political, cultural and scientific progress. History of Novel

6. Important 18th-Century Novelists and Works

1. John Bunyan wrote The Pilgrim’s Progress in 1678.
2. Aphra Behn wrote Oroonoko in 1688.
3. Daniel Defoe wrote Robinson Crusoe and Moll Flanders.
4. Jonathan Swift wrote Gulliver’s Travels, a famous satire.
5. Samuel Richardson wrote Pamela, or Virtue Rewarded and Clarissa.
6. Pamela and Clarissa are examples of epistolary novels.
7. Henry Fielding was an important novelist of the 18th century.
8. Lawrence Sterne was an important novelist of the 18th century.
9. Tobias Smollett was another major novelist of the 18th century. History of Novel

7. Important Later Novelists

1. Charles Dickens enriched the tradition of the English novel.
2. Walter Scott was an important novelist.
3. Nathaniel Hawthorne was an important novelist.
4. Horace Walpole contributed to the development of the novel.
5. Thomas Hardy was an important English novelist.
6. Wilkie Collins was an important novelist.
7. H. G. Wells was an important novelist.
8. 20th-century novels introduced modern topics, innovative styles and new techniques.
9. 20th-century novelists included E. M. Forster, James Joyce, Joseph Conrad and Henry James.
10. Other important 20th-century novelists included George Orwell, Graham Greene, D. H. Lawrence, William Golding and Anthony Burgess.
11. These novelists wrote about political, social, psychological and other modern issues. History of Novel

8. Immigrant Authors

1. An immigrant author is a writer who moves to and lives permanently in a foreign country.
2. Salman Rushdie is an immigrant author from India.
3. V. S. Naipaul is an immigrant author from Trinidad.
4. Kazuo Ishiguro is an immigrant author from Japan. History of Novel

9. Women Novelists

1. The contribution of women novelists to English literature is very important.
2. Frances Burney wrote the novel of manners Evelina.
3. Ann Radcliffe is famous for Gothic novels.
4. Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein, a novel based on science and technology.
5. Jane Austen became one of the most influential women novelists.
6. Emily Brontë wrote Wuthering Heights.
7. Charlotte Brontë wrote Jane Eyre.
8. George Eliot, whose real name was Mary Ann Evans, wrote novels showing psychological insight.
9. Virginia Woolf was a pioneer of the Stream of Consciousness technique.
10. Agatha Christie became famous for crime novels.
11. Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple are famous detectives created by Agatha Christie.
12. Harper Lee, Margaret Atwood, Toni Morrison and Alice Walker further enriched the tradition of women novelists. History of Novel

10. Indian English Novel

1. Rajmohan’s Wife by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyaya is considered the first Indian novel in English.
2. Rajmohan’s Wife was first serialized in The Indian Field.
3. Indian English novels mainly focused on nationalistic ideas and social issues.
4. Mulk Raj Anand, R. K. Narayan and Raja Rao are known as the major trio of Indian English novelists.
5. Anita Desai helped to change the course of the Indian English novel.
6. Nayantara Sahgal contributed significantly to Indian English fiction.
7. Arun Joshi contributed to the development of Indian English novels.
8. Manohar Malgonkar was another important Indian English novelist.
9. Amitav Ghosh, Vikram Seth and Upamanyu Chatterjee added new features to the Indian English novel.
10. Salman Rushdie, Aravind Adiga, Arundhati Roy, Kiran Desai and Kiran Nagarkar are important recent Indian novelists.
11. The Indian English novel has undergone great changes since its beginning.
12. The future of the Indian English novel is considered bright. History of Novel

11. Novella

1. The word novella comes from the Italian word “novelle.”
2. A novella is shorter than a full-length novel but longer than a short story.
3. A novella is a well-structured short narrative.
4. A novella is often satirical or realistic in tone.
5. A novella usually focuses on one incident or issue.
6. A novella generally has one or two main characters.
7. A novella usually takes place in a single setting.
8. Heart of Darkness was written by Joseph Conrad.
9. The Turn of the Screw was written by Henry James.
10. Billy Budd was written by Herman Melville.
11. Death in Venice was written by Thomas Mann.
12. Seize the Day was written by Saul Bellow.
13. The Pearl was written by John Steinbeck. History of Novel

12. Six Elements of Novel / Novella

1. Theme

1. Theme is the central idea of a novel.
2. The theme can be expressed briefly as the main truth or message of the novel.
3. The theme is developed through events, characters and setting. History of Novel

2. Plot

1. Plot is the story or sequence of events in a novel.
2. Plot is created through conflict.
3. Conflict may be internal or external.
4. A plot may be simple or may contain several interwoven subplots. History of Novel

3. Character

1. Characterization is connected with the behaviour of characters in the story.
2. Important characters are described in greater detail than minor characters.
3. The main character of a novel is called the protagonist.
4. The protagonist may be called the hero or main character.
5. The character or force opposing the protagonist is called the antagonist.
6. The antagonist may be a person, entity or internal/external force. History of Novel

4. Setting

1. Setting is the background in which the story takes place.
2. Setting includes place, period, time, climate, weather and lifestyle.
3. Setting affects both plot and character. History of Novel

5. Conflict

1. Conflict is the struggle between opposite forces in a story.
2. Conflict creates interest and curiosity in the plot. History of Novel

6. Language / Style

1. Style means the language and techniques used by the author to narrate the story.
2. An author may use rich vocabulary and impressive phrases.
3. An author may also use short and simple language called laconic style.
4. The author may use linguistic devices to make the narration effective.
5. Style creates the texture and impact of the narration. History of Novel

13. Types of Novel

1. A realistic novel presents believable characters and everyday experiences.
2. A realistic novel usually presents characters with mixed motives rooted in social life.
3. A picaresque novel comes from the Spanish word “picaro,” meaning rogue.
4. A picaresque novel presents the adventures of an eccentric or disreputable protagonist in episodes.
5. A historical novel is set in a period earlier than the time when it was written.
6. An epistolary novel presents its story through letters, correspondence or other documents.
7. The word epistolary comes from the Latin word “epistola,” meaning letter.
8. An epistolary novel may also use diary entries.
9. A Gothic novel contains elements such as terror, mystery, horror, supernatural events, death or haunted buildings.
10. An autobiographical novel is based on the life of the author.
11. In an autobiographical novel, the author may change the names, places or details of real life.
12. An autobiographical novel may or may not use first-person narration. History of Novel

14. More Types of Novel

1. An allegorical novel has more than one level of meaning.
2. The surface meaning of an allegorical novel is different from its symbolic meaning.
3. The symbolic meaning may be political, religious, historical or philosophical.
4. A utopian novel presents an imaginary society with ideal qualities.
5. A dystopian novel presents an imagined society with undesirable or problematic conditions.
6. A psychological novel focuses on the inner life and thoughts of characters.
7. Stream of Consciousness presents the continuous flow of thoughts in a character’s mind.
8. The term Stream of Consciousness was coined by William James.
9. William James used the phrase in his book Principles of Psychology (1890).
10. In Stream of Consciousness writing, thoughts are presented as they occur in the character’s mind.
11. Bildungsroman is a German word connected with growth.
12. A Bildungsroman presents the mental, spiritual and character development of a protagonist from childhood to adulthood. History of Novel

15. Pulp Fiction

1. Pulp magazines became popular during the first half of the 20th century.
2. Pulp magazines printed entertaining fiction on cheap pulp paper.
3. The pulp fiction era helped to develop detective novels and science fiction. History of Novel

16. Science Fiction

1. Science fiction is a type of speculative fiction based on imaginative science and technology.
2. Science fiction may include future settings, space travel, time travel and parallel universes.
3. Science fiction may also include extraterrestrial life.
4. Science fiction explores the possible effects of scientific and technological developments.
5. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is considered the first novel based on science and technology in the chapter.
6. Science fiction developed strongly during the second half of the 19th century. History of Novel

17. Detective Fiction

1. Detective fiction is a subgenre of crime and mystery fiction.
2. Detective fiction usually presents an investigator solving a crime.
3. The crime may often be a murder.
4. The detective may be a professional or amateur investigator. History of Novel

⭐ Most Important One-Line Revision

• First novel of the world: The Tale of Genji — Murasaki Shikibu — 1010.
• European novel: Don Quixote — Miguel de Cervantes — 1605–1615.
• First Indian English novel: Rajmohan’s Wife — Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyaya.
• Major trio of Indian English novelists: Mulk Raj Anand, R. K. Narayan and Raja Rao.
• Pioneer of Stream of Consciousness: Virginia Woolf.
• Stream of Consciousness term coined by: William James.
• Principles of Psychology: 1890 — William James.
• Frankenstein: Mary Shelley — science and technology.
• Evelina: Frances Burney — novel of manners.
• Gothic novels: Ann Radcliffe.
• Jane Eyre: Charlotte Brontë.
• Wuthering Heights: Emily Brontë.
• Crime novels: Agatha Christie.
• Famous detectives: Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple.
• Picaresque: Spanish picaro = rogue.
• Epistolary: Latin epistola = letter.
• Six elements: Theme, Plot, Character, Setting, Conflict, Language/Style. History of Novel