İNGİLİZ/AMERİKAN EDEBİYATI I

The novel as a literary genre creates a fictitious world made up of emotions and imaginations. It is a kind of gate opened to different worlds. It leads us to imagine, cry, laugh and experience distinct emotions which prevail in the deep human nature. Indeed, it is a tool to evoke emotions and it appeals to the human nature entirely. It also helps us to build up empathy and sympathy towards the imaginary characters that accompany us in this distinctive world. It also encourages us to develop a critical awareness towards the world and life if we can look through a true perspective.

The novel is often described as an extended work of literature. In its basic terms, novel is defined as “an extended work of written, narrative, prose fiction, usually in story form” In another definition, it is “a fictitious prose narrative of considerable length and complexity portraying characters and usually presenting a sequential organization of action and scenes”.

Although the traces of novel date back to ancient times, the novel took its modern form at the beginning of the 1500s.

In the 20th century, the novel genre has been influenced by the great events of the century such as World War I, The Great Depression, World War II, The Cold War and the advances in technology. Questioning the existence of God, the supremacy of reason in human affairs and the nature of reality affected the novel as a literary genre. The literature of the 20^th century gave importance to the self, the nature of consciousness, and the processes of perception. Novels in this century are often subjective, and personal and internal.

In Epistolary Novel, the story is told through letters written by one or more of the characters. It presents an intimate view of the characters’ thoughts without the interference of the author and contributes to the dramatic atmosphere of the novel. Samuel Richardson’s Pamela (1740) is an example of epistolary novel.

Gothic Novel: In this type of novel, the atmosphere of the novel is created through supernatural and mystic elements like monsters, ghosts and demons. The plot includes secret, mysterious murders and the heroes are marked with a seal of demonic lot. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (1817) is an example of a gothic novel.

Realistic Novel; This type of novel is sometimes referred to as “the novel of manners”. In this type of novel, characters are usually complex ones with mixed motives often rooted in their social class. These characters interact with other characters and undergo plausible and everyday experiences. Thomas Hardy’s Far From the Madding Crowd (1874) is an example of realistic novel.

Dynamic Character: This character type experiences changes and develops throughout the story.

Conflict may be emotional, physical or ethical, but it gives way to a kind of tension that the characters resolve and struggle against. There are four types of conflict:

1. Human- versus- Human       

2. Human- versus- Society          

3. Human-versus- Nature                

4. Human-versus-Himself

Omniscient Point of View: The story is told by a god-like narrator who knows all, hears all, and sees all in this type. We can enter the mind and inner thoughts of the characters. The narration is not restricted to only one of the characters.

Cervantes’s Don Quixote (1605) can be considered as one of the earlier examples of the genre. A is the correct answer.

Some of the important examples of Victorian novel are Charles Dickens’s David Copperfield. B is the correct answer.

In the 20th century, the novel genre has been influenced by the great events of the century such as World War I, The Great Depression, World War II, The Cold War and the advances in technology. E is the correct answer.

The Metamorphosis was written by Franz Kafka in 1915. C is the correct answer.

In "Epistolary Novel", the story is told through letters written by one or more of the characters. A is the correct answer.

In "Gothic Novel", the atmosphere of the novel is created through supernatural and mystic elements like monsters, ghosts and demons. B is the correct answer.

Round Character: This character type is complex and many sided. It has multiple qualities. D is the correct answer.

Protagonist is the central character in the story. C is the correct answer.

In the exposition stage, we are introduced to the story, the characters and the setting. A is the correct answer.

There are four types of plot structure we may come across in a novel. These are:Linear Plot Structure, Triangular Plot Structure, Circular Plot Structure and Open-ended Structure. E is the correct answer.