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An analysis is presented on the ass novel, or the literary theme of negative metamorphosis of the work's central character, and its exploration of race and social class. Topics include the African historical figure Apuleius, whose narrative defending his lineage may have been a model for Laurence Sterne's work, 'The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman'.

An analysis is presented on the literary audience's tendency to believe in the veracity of a narrative if it is presented in epistolary form, using the works of author Aphra Behn. Topics include the historical status of personal letters as a format for conveying the actual, or true events, and the emphasis on subjective experience as a defining characteristic of the novel.

A selection of 18th-century paintings is presented portraying the act of reading, and interpretations are made regarding how literature was received and assimilated by audiences. Comparisons are made between reading for enlightenment and for entertainment, and the value of non-fictive works and the novel.

An exploration is presented on private subjectivity as a defining characteristic of the novel, as supported by Ian Watt in 'The Rise of the Novel', published in 1957. Topics include narration as an authentic report of experience, rather than an overemphasized expression of emotion.

A comparison is presented between the 18th-century novel and the 19th-century novel, focusing on development of narrative realism, dialogical energy and complexity of character as defined in Ian Watt's 1957 publication 'The Rise of the Novel'.

A comparison is presented between the works of author Mary Davys, which championed non-fictive literature, and the historically evident popularity of the novel as a literary genre. Topics include marketing toward the audience's uncertainty regarding true accounts and author invention during the emergence of the genre.

An analysis is presented on the effects of social class on literary preference, drawing from 'The Rise of the Novel' by critic Ian Watt. The discussion focuses on how individual circumstances direct one's relationship to reality and fiction, and how this in turn classifies the individual within both a social group and a literary audience.

An evaluation is presented on literary critic Ian Watt's 'The Rise of the Novel', published in 1957. Topics include the accessibility of tracing the novel's origins and its development along with historiographic and epistemological contexts.

An argument is presented supporting author Daniel Defoe as a legitimate contributor to the voice of the female character in literature. The argument is based on literary critic Ian Watt's definition of character and narrative realism in his 1957 publication, 'The Rise of the Novel'.

An overview is presented on the genre of the novel, focusing on criticism of author Daniel Defoe and methodologies presented by literary critic Ian Watt. It is posited that criticism should not be compartmentalized based on assumptions of the writer's intention, but should acknowledge that writers could intend contradictory or incompatible interpretations.

The continuance of the novel as a genre suited to an ordinary or popular audience is presented, focusing on critic Ian Watt's 1957 work 'The Rise of the Novel'. Topics include the genre's emphasis on the individual, and therefore it's relevance and importance to individual readers.

An appreciation is presented on Ian Watt's 'The Rise of the Novel', which was published in 1957. Topics include the book's emphasis on character, plot, and personal perception of reality as a novel's defining traits, as they constitute the work's placement in history and society.

An analysis is presented on the 1957 publication 'The Rise of the Novel', written by literary critic Ian Watt. Watt's skill and incisiveness in linking the emergence of this genre with historical and social modernization is discussed.

An overview is presented on the history of literary criticism, focusing on the 1957 publication of Ian Watt's 'The Rise of the Novel'. Lasting influences from this work include realism as the defining characteristic of the novel.

Bernhard Schlink's novel The Reader begins as a coming-of-age story, an education sentimentale. ELEANOR WACHTEL: BERNHARD SCHLINK: Being read to makes literature even more of a gift. A German radio [...]

Novelist Samuel Richardson's character Clarissa Harlowe highlights the complexities in representing a Christ-like figure. Clarissa is emblematic of the spiritual realm, a passive and virtuous woman subjected to the cruelties perpetrated by sinners of the less than perfect human world. Her passivity fosters a theme of redemption similar to that of Christ in the biblical account.

Chekhov's Rothschild's Fiddle was first published in 1894 and there are similarities between its beginning and the beginning of A Country Doctor, where the basic premise of the beginning is disproved during the course of the story. The sentimentality in Rothschild's Fiddle is balanced by a cold selection of details and measured distance between characters and the truth. Chekhov establishes a precise balance between the ridiculous and the heartbreaking.

Kafka's tale of a country doctor in A Country Doctor, features a closing sentence that directs the reader back to the beginning of the story to investigated where the doctor made a mistake that could not be rectified. The reader may find it difficult to locate the point at which a twist of events takes place, as there are no sudden change of gears, but more an intangible blurring of reality.

In January, 1908, in response to Algernon Methuen's request for 'a general definition of the stories' that he could use to advertise the forthcoming A Set of Six Conrad wrote: [...]

Nathanael West's 'The Day of the Locust' is used as an example of the prototypical modern Hollywood novel. The author argues that the novel's cynical characters knowingly participate in and see through the mass culture surrounding them.

The author discusses the work of Flannery O'Connor from a psychoanalytical viewpoint. O'Conner's attitudes toward sex and religion are examined, along with her reaction to the popular culture of the day and her apparent failure to acknowledge the psychological aspects of her work.

There is a sense of ambiguity connected to a consideration of a work of fiction as being or not being philosophical. This vagueness pertains to the various definitions attached to the word 'philosophical' and the variation in ideas regarding that which counts as a philosophical work, position or thought. Therefore it would be beneficial to develop one specific view of how works of fiction can be philosophical.

The use of 'The Odyssey' as intertext in 'The English Patient' by Michael Ondaatje is examined. It is claimed that Ondaatje uses a nomad style of writing, comparable to that of nomad philosophers Guattari, Deleuze and Adorno. By challenging the traditional concept of home, Ondaatje becomes a nomad within nationalist literature and literary criticism in Canada.

Although much has been written about various locations and forms of postcolonialism, the empire that constituted the Soviet Union has been little discussed in these terms, and Baltic scholars, both [...]

Towards the end of Tetrachordon (March 1645), Milton reluctantly supplies some sixteen pages of 'testimony' from a range of classical, patristic and renaissance sources which support his case for divorce. [...]

The names of several characters in The Secret Agent are unusually Dickensian: most notably that of the Home Secretary, as unready as his namesake 'Ethelred', and his secretary, the comic [...]

Between 1881 and 1896 William Hale White (1831-1913), creating the persona Mark Rutherford (1830-c.18807) - pseudonym is so weak a term as to be positively misleading, wrote six interlinked fictions: [...]

'The Complete Stories' is a new anthology of short stories by Bernard Malamud. 'The Magic Barrel' and 'The Jewbird' which are Malamud's more notable stories are included in this new book. 'The Puttermesser Papers' is Cynthia Ozick's new novel which is a collection of five stories that seek to find meaning in a God who allowed the Holocaust in His creation as its main theme. 'The Gospel According to the Son' is Norman Mailer's retelling of the story of Jesus Christ. 'The Old Religion' by David Mamet recounts the trial of Leo Frank who was accused of raping a girl in 1915.

First-time novelists such as Ann-Marie MacDonald, Anne Michaels, Wayson Choy, Gail Anderson-Dargatz and Dionne Brand have already been recognized worldwide. The recognition of first-time novel writers can be attributed to their writings which contain different and interesting genre, narrative structure, style and thematic categories. Although publishers encourage writers to observe formal conservatism in writing a novel, these first-time novelists have employed different means in conveying their thoughts to the readers.

Many short stories and novels convey meanings which are concerned with cultural, social and political issues. Some writers of fiction are interested in determining the relationship that exists between languages and social realities. Because of the diverse nature and scope of different fiction, difficulty in categorizing them may persist. Despite the diversity, short stories and novels may convey general ideas which will represent them.

I The body is the great space of the political in Thomas Hardy's work, but it is a space that seems constantly on the verge of erasure. Everywhere we look, [...]

The career of the novelist, Russell Hoban, is surely instructive, although the lessons which it suggests are both ambiguous and speculative. Perhaps, ultimately, they highlight the accelerating fragmentation of the [...]

Askold Melnyczuk's 'What is Told' is a novel illustrating dilemmas faced by the displaced subject in its effort to renegotiate and individual and cultural presences. Melnyczuk's perspective is both individual and socio-historic and he summarizes the varied experiences of an extended family in both personal and historical context, whilst sometimes alluding to their mythology and folklore. Individual and cultural presence is displayed as ongoing and re-visionary.

The development of the contemporary fiction novel is traced from its beginnings in the twentieth century to newer forms such as Thomas Mallon's. His novels such as 'Dewey Defeats Truman' and 'Henry and Clara', are a form of historical fiction.

Ivan Turgenev's novel 'Ottsy i deti' (Fathers and Sons) is traditionally seen as portraying generational conflicts in Russia, and more precisely the relationship between Turgenev and 'Sovremennik' (The Contemporary) journal. However, it is suggested that inspiration for the novel was actually attributable to Turgenev's relationship with his daughter and his own role as a father.

Novels allow the writer and reader to experience a different life from their everyday existence and as such novels cannnot help but lie. Novels allow life to be transformed rather than recounted, while history books and newspaper articles are slaves to life. Stories are written rather than experienced and fiction cannot therefore be truth, with the novel presenting an order dsitinguishable from the never-ending chaos that is real life. The writer may use memory as a foundation for the fantasy, but memories are subjective and are not truth.

Joseph Conrad's short novel 'The Secret Sharer' is a story of homosexual desire between the murderer Leggatt and the narrator, the ship's captain who hides Leggatt in his cabin. This desire constitutes, on the deepest level, the shared secret mentioned in the title. The desire, or sharing, felt by these two men in an enclosed cabin on a solitary ship at sea is contrasted with the social norm of heterosexuality. Society accepts such desire from men in a confined situation, but it demands that this desire be surmounted once the ship reaches shore. Leggatt and the narrator, however, can never obey this demand.

The fictional world of Ivan Turgenev was 'Hellenistic' in character while that of Nathaniel Hawthorne's was 'Hebraic.' Striking similarities are evident in Turgenev's 'The Marble Faun' and Hawthorne's 'Song of Triumphant Love' when the narrative nucleus, symbolic development, ethical ambivalence and incidental detail of their works are analyzed. Both believed that evil can be overcome but cannot be removed entirely. A 'sense of sin' can be detected in the roles of the statuary or of the fauns and satyrs they used in their novels. However, an ethical difference is apparent.