The Rise of the Novel

Why have scholars located the emergence of the novel in eighteenth-century England? What historical forces and stylistic developments helped to turn a disreputable type of writing into an eminent literary form?

This Reader's Guide explores the key critical debates and theories about the rising novel, from eighteenth-century assessments through to present day concerns. Nicholas Seager:

• Surveys major criticism on authors such as Aphra Behn, Daniel Defoe, Samuel Richardson, Henry Fielding and Jane Austen
• Covers a range of critical approaches and topics including feminism, historicism, postcolonialism and print culture
• Demonstrates how critical work is interrelated, allowing readers to discern trends in the critical conversation.

Approachable and stimulating, this is an invaluable introduction for anyone studying the origins of the novel and the surrounding body of scholarship.

Autorentext

NICHOLAS SEAGER is Lecturer in English Literature at Keele University, UK.

Inhalt

Acknowledgements
Introduction
Eighteenth and Nineteenth-Century Accounts of the Rise of the Novel
New Criticism toThe Rise of the Novel, 1924-1957
Restructuring the Rise of the Novel, 1958-1985
Cultural History and the Rise of the Novel, 1980-1989
Feminism and the Rise of the Novel
Postcolonialism, Postnationalism and the Rise of the Novel
Rethinking the Rise of the Novel, 1990-2000
Print Culture and the Rise of the Novel, 1990-2010
Thematic Criticism of the Rise of the Novel 1: Family, Law, Sex and Society
Thematic Criticism of the Rise of the Novel 2: Money, Medicine, Politics and Things
Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
Index.