This is a bold and original original history of the novel from ancient Greece to the vibrant world of contemporary fiction. In this wide-ranging survey, Thomas Pavel argues that the driving force behind the novel's evolution has been a rivalry between stories that idealize human behavior and those that ridicule and condemn it. Impelled by this conflict, the novel moved from depicting strong souls to sensitive hearts and, finally, to enigmatic psyches. Pavel analyzes more than a hundred novels from Europe, North and South ...
Read More
This is a bold and original original history of the novel from ancient Greece to the vibrant world of contemporary fiction. In this wide-ranging survey, Thomas Pavel argues that the driving force behind the novel's evolution has been a rivalry between stories that idealize human behavior and those that ridicule and condemn it. Impelled by this conflict, the novel moved from depicting strong souls to sensitive hearts and, finally, to enigmatic psyches. Pavel analyzes more than a hundred novels from Europe, North and South America, Asia, and beyond, resulting in a provocative reinterpretation of its development. According to Pavel, the earliest novels were implausible because their characters were either perfect or villainous. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, novelists strove for greater credibility by describing the inner lives of ideal characters in minute detail (as in Samuel Richardson's case), or by closely examining the historical and social environment (as Walter Scott and Balzac did). Yet the earlier rivalry continued: Henry Fielding held the line against idealism, defending the comic tradition with its flawed characters, while Charlotte Bronte and George Eliot offered a rejoinder to social realism with their idealized vision of strong, generous, and sensitive women. In the twentieth century, modernists like Proust and Joyce sought to move beyond this conflict and capture the enigmatic workings of the psyche. Pavel concludes his compelling account by showing how the old tensions persist even within today's pluralism, as popular novels about heroes coexist with a wealth of other kinds of works, from satire to social and psychological realism.
Read Less
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Good. Shows minimal wear such as frayed or folded edges, minor rips and tears, and/or slightly worn binding. May have stickers and/or contain inscription on title page. No observed missing pages. Former library copy with library markings and/or jacket.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
The previous owner's penned name is on the front endpapers. Some pen markings. Torn/worn dj. Good hardcover with some shelfwear; may have previous owner's name inside. Standard-sized.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Good. Book shows wear from use but remains a usable copy. May include writing highlighting underlining library markings. Listing uses stock photos actual item may vary slightly. Ships via USPS BPM Media Mail may take up to 10 days to arrive. Please contact us if you have any questions or issues with your order!
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Fair. Size: 6x1x9; EX-LIBRARY copy with usual markings. Dust jacket in protective mylar. First page (ffep) removed. Text unmarked, pages clean & bright, binding tight. Good solid copy. Ships Next Business Day.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Very Good + in very good + jacket. Octavo, gray cloth boards in dust jacket, book and jacket are in very good + condition, jacket shows mild edgewear with mild curling, book has review stamp to the bottom edge, 346pp.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
New. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 360 p. In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.