The rise of the novel

The rise of the novel

At the end of the 18^th century a new literary genre started developing all over Europe: the Novel.

It was a revolution whose roots were as old as the other literary genres. In fact, this new way of writing borrowed many narrative forms from other genres, such as diaries, biographies of adventurers, travellers' tales and so on.

But now let's focus our attention on the main causes of the naissance and of the success of the novel:

The augmentation of learned people, thanks to the increasing number of schools and the introduction of the compulsory school system.

The proliferation of newspapers, such as the Tartler and the Observer, made people more learned and interested, so they started asking for more books and readings to improve their education and cultural knowledge.

People needed a new sort of entertainment, since theatres had been closed.

The need of a new literary genre (apparently) more simple than poetry, but anyway able to convey important messages.

The increase in the number of circulating libraries, which permitted people to borrow books with little expense.

The improvement in printing technology that induced books to be cheaper and faster to print.

Anyway, Novel acquired its definitive organic structure, thanks to some important writers:

DANIEL DEFOE: he created the first "fictional world", combining fictional material with his great realism in describing places. His two most important works are Robinson Crusoe and Moll Flanders.

Robinson Crusoe: this famous novel is based on the real story of Alexander Selkirk, a Scottish mariner, who shipwrecked on the desert island of Juan Fernandez, where he remained four years. Deriving his inspiration from this fact, and adding his own experiences as a merchant and a journalist, Defoe succeeded in building up the perfect portrait of the English middle class man of that period: a self-made man, intelligent, clever, with a great faith in God and strong abilities, that let him overcome any difficulty (Homo economicus).

Moll Flanders: that's to say the story of a prostitute, living in the underworld of London, who manages to regain her respectability, thanks to her strong will and capacities.

He was born in 1660 ( at the end of Commonwealth) by a non-conformist family, and died in 1731.He was a radical for all his life, and a merchant but he went on bankrupt.

He became a formalist, secret agent and a spy (for the governors) than he started to write when he was 60 years old ( it was another way to make money).

He wrote "the review" the first paper: a political review which supported the point of view of Whigs, he wrote also some pamphlets (one of them: "the shortest way with the dissenters").

That was an attack against the persecution: when it was published he was imprisoned and put to the pillory; he was rescued by a Tory's leader but he had to promised that he had never wrote against the Parliament so became a spy for the governors.

1719 - appeared "Robinson Crusoe"

1722 - appeared "Moll Flanders" (autobiography of a woman, she used all that she has as a commodity),in the same year he wrote the "journal of the plague year" (account of the Plague of London), in this journal Defoe pretend to be a witness of the Plague, the journal in fact is like a diary.

ROBINSON CRUSOE - the first model novel of the English literature.

The author didn't say that he wrote the story but he said that he found a manuscript.

This happened because it was the first time that someone write a novel so he was afraid; it's an expectation of a realist history. He want to write real stories containing moral teaching. He want to write for the middle-class.

The novel is constructed in a double form, Defoe make that Robinson wrote the diary when he came there, the diary part was written on the island.

The story is narrated in first person, he is a flat character (he doesn't change)

The protagonists are always alone, Moll Flanders is alone too

The protagonist have to struggle for their bread.

JOHNATAN SWIFT: he improved the realistic way of writing, introducing more and more details.

His most famous novel is Gulliver's Travel, in which he makes a satire against England politics, showing all his loathing of mankind. As Defoe, in writing, he uses a first person narrator, since the novel is under a diary form.

He was born in 1665 in Dublin but with English parents and died in 1745 ( the same period of Defoe).

He had economical problems because the father dead before his birth.

He worked as a secretary for a state man for the Whig part.

In London met a lot of important people and he was the tutor of Ester (called by him "Stella"); he fell in love with her and remember her like "Stella" in his play.

He became an Anglican priest and came back to Ireland and there he became a dean of St. Patrick's Cathedral, than became and died completely crazy.

He wrote a religious satire: "the tale of a tub" , religious division and fanaticism.

It is the story of three brothers who quarrel  for the father's legacy.

The father symbolize Christ who left a message (the tub) and the brothers symbolize the different religious division.

He wrote also a political satire: "the modest proposal" about the Irish situation: during the Elizabeth reign the England was Anglican while Ireland was Catholic, the principle Irish activity was agriculture and Elizabeth gave the land to her family. This persons became rich because of the land, so the Ireland was divided in two: high classes who had the lands and were English and Anglican and the lower classes who were workers, pours and were Irish and Catholic.

With this satire swift found a solution for this problem: the poor have to send their children to the rich so this person can it them and the pours have the money to live.

GULLIVER'S TRAVELS - it's divided in 4 books and every one represent a travel in a country.

Travel literature is important in England because English people is trader.

First travel: the island of a very small, brave and well organized people. They are also narrow mind because they were in war and the reason was how to cut a hard boiled egg (it symbolize that the war's reasons are stupid).

Second travel: the country of giants, they are wise and here Gulliver become himself a satire.

Third travel: the place is called Laputa, there are a lot of invention. He is in the palace of the king and ask him a lot of questions about the society ( Swift made a critic to the society but under an another point of view).

Fourth travel: the lost country where the human being live like animal and there's the evolution of horses.

The narrative detailed very precise, the narration is very realistic, he describe strange people in realistic setting.

Jonathan Swift studied in Trinity college in Dublin. In 1689 he left Ireland

because of civil war and moved to England. He worked for sir W.Temple, a

diplomat of wide colture. Here he had the opportunity to meet many political

personality and to use  the library to develop his literary talent. He stayed

with sir Temple till his death, working in support of the Whigh party. In 1704

he pubblished "A tale of a tube", a satire on religious superstition and fana-

ticism. He was Irish but he always consider himself Englishman. In 1724 he

pubblished the "Drapier's letters" where he criticised English misgovernment

of Ireland. In 1726 Swift pubblished "Gulliver's travels". This work reflect

the values of his age. Infact in this period there reality: was a rational appro-

ach to nature. His satire is not only the expression of his personal pessimism

but it shows also the dehumanaising effects of the absence of rationality in

human nature. The story had the porpose to seem a real travel account of

doctor Lemuel Gulliver. This is a kind of a minute realism which contrast with

the impossible and fantastic situation of the story. Swift uses realistic conven-

tion to make his satire more effective and to involve the reader in his fictio-

nal world. He uses the first person narrator who is himself the target of satire,

infact this book is a bitter satire on human irrationality and the political si-

tuation in England. In this way Swift exposes mankind defects.

SAMUEL RICHARDSON: he was very interested in the psychological analysis of characters and brought a modernisation to the epistolary novel genre. His masterpiece is Pamela or the Virtue Rewarded, a novel written as a collection of letters. The story is about a young lady, Pamela, who works as a maid in a rich family, where her master tries to seduce her. Since she's a very clever girl, Pamela doesn't accept her master's advances, because she fears he'll leave her alone, after reaching his goal. Her virtue is rewarded at the end of the story, when she him.

This novel is prolix and sentimental. Richardson wrote it on the request of a famous printer, who wanted a book able to learn poor people, and most of all poor women, about morality.

With Pamela, Richardson contributed to the creation of a standard female character.

Richardson was born in 1689 and died in 1761.

He was the son of a joiner (lower than the middle-class).

He went to London to work as an apprentice by a printer and he became a printer too under the House of Lord .

At 50 years old he wrote his first novel: "Pamela", this book is in 4 volumes :letters written by a girl to her parents to describe her distress she had to support: she had to resist to her master's attempt to seduce her, but she is a virtuous girl. At least her master merry her.

The second novel he wrote was: "Clarissa", the longest book (7 volumes): violence and death of Clarissa.

Richardson was a representative of this emarginated little class, he shared the ideas of this middle-class. He is considered the inventor of the epistolary novel.

As a printer he prepare a book of letters for every occasion: marriage, birthday, ext., ext.

Pamela was born from two ideas: 1-Richardson read on paper about female slaves seduced by their masters, 2-being a printer he decided to write a book of letters for everyone who can't write it (for marriage, birthday, Easter,.).

PAMELA- she was a honest woman who could have an identity only with the marriage, she is also a testimonial of this period.

Typical tendencies - the barrier between aristocracy and middle-class was breaking (social ladder).

The middle-class was rising: it had the money but the aristocracy had the title so there were marriage between the two class.

CLARISSA- is the story of a woman who disobey to her parents (she refused to marry the man that the father had chosen for her), so she abandoned the father's hose.

He want defend the youth right.

In the novel the feelings are recorded day by day,

From Pamela to Clarissa there's a sort of evolution,

In the novel there are 4 point of view (Clarissa to her friend and Lovelace to his friend)

Richardson is the transition from public oriented literature to privately oriented literature.

HENRY FIELDING: he gave an organic structure to his novels, dividing them into chapters, around a special episode. Moreover, he introduced "round" characters that are characters that develop and evolve during the story, and a third person omniscient narrator.

Fielding most important novel is Tom Jones, a Foundling. It's the story of a foundling, who has a generous but too instinctive nature, and who becomes the protagonist of a series of adventures, obviously with a happy ending.

In this book, Fielding contrasted the conventional morality of Richardson, that he considered too hypocritical (Tom Jones, before discovering himself the son of a nobleman and changing his mind, makes all sort of experimentation and freedom, also sexually. All this is a clear opposition to Pamela's virtue).

Anyway, as Richardson, Fielding had got an optimistic view of society and life in general: he believed in progress and evolution.

Fielding was an aristocratic ( on the contrary of  Defoe and Richardson who were merchants).

He attempted university in Holland but his family had economic problem so he came back to London where had worked like theatre dramatic and wrote many play.

Walpole in 1737 introduces a licensing act by which every play had to be approved before the first show.

He became a politic journalist and a justice of peace.

He was a honest and modern man so he want to reform the justice ( for example he didn't want only punished the crimes but also don't permit them ).

He wrote a satire (Shamela) where satirized the morality of Defoe.

In another story Joseph the Pamela's brother is a servant and when his master died the wife try to seduce him, but him refuted her, he have to come back to London and after this moment begin the life on the road. This play is Picaresque.

In the play called "Jonathan" he satirized the human greatness.

In 1749 he wrote "Tom Jones, a foundling", in this play Fielding give an image of different persons of different social status, every persons speaks with the language of the social class to which begin.

In "Tom Jones" he want underline ipocrity, greed, vanity, but in the same time he want realize the good values: honour, Christian charity, exc., exc.

Tom was a good generous man but he isn't virtuous (he loves a lot of women) and he is an unheroic hero.

The plot is built around Tom's identity and the story is divided in three part:1)- Tom Jones in his youth, in miss Allwerthy home; 2)- his adventure when he left the house; 3)his set in London where Tom's identity was rebuilt.

The plot is also full of changes and dynamics.

The narrator is ancient, who comments in third person in fact each chapter is begun by an introduction made by the narrator.

He don't want to teach something.

Dialogique part prevail.

Laurence Sterne: apart from Sentimental Voyage (translated by Ugo Foscolo), the most relevant Sterne's innovations are in Tristam Shandy, an outstanding work, totally different from the works of the authors contemporary with him.

In Tristam Shandy the plot is non-existent; there's no edifying or reform purpose, but only a deep analysis of feelings, tenderness of heart, a continuous transition from tears to smile, a clever study of characters. The great number of digressions ("digressions are the sunshine, the soul, the life of reading"), oddities, such as blank pages with fingertips, and the chaotic development of the stories make Sterne be considered a forerunner, the father of the Stream of consciousness technique.

He was born in 1740 in Ireland by an armiger and died in 1768.

He moved from garrisons to garrisons, and his youth was full of experiences.

He went to the Cambridge university and became an Anglican priest: married a rich woman, but he had a lot of love story.

Visited France and Italy and abandoned his wife.

He wrote works: 1759 - 1767 "life and opinion of Tristan Shandy".

1768 a sentimental travel book where he describes a sensation translate by Foscolo with "Didimo Chierico".

He wrote a journal to Elisa in which he remembered the love for her.