ENGL 252 Aspects of the Novel

Transcription

1 ENGL 252 Aspects of the Novel Dr. Nick Melczarek basic literary concepts & terms

2 A novel is never anything but philosophy put into images. --Albert Camus Every text [...] is a lazy machine asking the reader to do some of its work[.] -- Umberto Eco, Six Walks in the Fictional Woods (3, 49) Tell me one last thing, said Harry. Is this real? Or has this been happening inside my head? [...] Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean it is not real? -- J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (723) Every novel says to the reader: "Things are not as simple as you think. --Milan Kundera, The Art of the Novel (18)

3 (re)reading first reading = plot reading Familiarize yourself with who s whom, what s what, where we re going, etc rereading Now that you know the plot, go back and reread for things you missed, or things you now see differently since you know where everything is headed Make notes at each step, then go back and fill out notes upon rereading.

4 Plot & Story Plot (general sense): what happens, the sequence of events gets characters from A to B Story (general sense): draws out plot s deeper motivations & meaning makes us care about characters getting from A to B If a novel is based on plot, the characters will rigorously refuse to come to life. --Graham Greene, novelist

5 Theme(s) Unlike short stories or short poems, novels are usually long enough to contain many themes Theme bigger, more general categorical ideas what novel is about (but NOT what happens in novel) when asking about theme, I m asking what s this about, what ideas does it concern, not what happens in it so, if I ask what s this about, I m asking about THEME, not PLOT don t give me plot

6 Narration vs. Exposition Narration = telling the plot recounts or describes events/plot (without commentary) Simple narrative: recites events chronologically Plot narrative: doesn t always follow chronology, but follows internal logic of the story itself depending on what kind of story Exposition = explaining the plot explains something through words, rather than just tells it identifies, defines, classifies, illustrates, compares, analyzes goes beyond simple/plot narration and informs readers or offers interpretation outside characters own expressions/statement offers material to help explain plot

7 Setting Where, when, and under what circumstances the plot takes place General What country, what century/decade/year/season? Any important historical events recently take place? Specific Countryside, town, city? Place name? House, castle, bank? Any specific emotions in play at beginning? end? From what social class do the characters come? Setting usually changes through the plot why might it be important? As much as a change in physical scene, what other changes might it indicate?

8 World/text Diagesis = the world inside the novel that the author creates and that the characters move around in unaware that they re characters and we re reading about them diagetical Verisimilitude = achievement of the illusion of reality A sense that the diagesis, plot, or characters are plausible (believable, likely) through an appeal to our sense of reality in comparison to the fictional diagesis

9 Imagery & Motif Imagery describes an object, person, or scene and asks us to imagine it in our heads asks us to imagine through the senses: sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell invites interpretation & assigning meaning to that image that exceeds that image itself Ex: a tree may be more than just a tree, while it remains just a tree for the narrative NB: an idea is not an image. Something must appeal to our imagination of the physical senses to be an image. Motif a repeated image, phrase, idea, etc. within a text tracks an idea, theme, mood throughout the text meaning accrues & can change/grow with each repetition can sometimes be linked to a specific character

10 Character Characterization = how the narrative makes characters who they are diction = how characters speak, their wordchoice, vocal mannerisms mannerisms = things characters do/say that allow us to identify them on the page even if they re not named motivation = why characters do/say what they do, what drives them

11 Tone Tone = the attitude the narrator/voice/text takes toward its subject matter to get this, must listen to the text by imagining/hearing the narrative voice in your own head can determine or even change the meaning of a passage (as inflection does vocally) subtle, but important

12 Text(s) Text = what s on the page in front of us; our ultimate boundary for interpretation to avoid confusion, we ll use text instead of story when discussing the work Subtext = themes/ideas going on beneath surface of text, the text s subconscious ideas/topics we can see that text/narrator/author may not be aware of Paratext = material outside the text that influences or informs our reading & interpretation of the text book cover, history, personal experience, etc.