The Twentieth Century English Novel

Download or read book The Cambridge Companion to the Twentieth-Century English Novel written by Robert L. Caserio and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2009-04-30 with total page 299 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The twentieth-century English novel encompasses a vast body of work, and one of the most important and most widely read genres of literature. Balancing close readings of particular novels with a comprehensive survey of the last century of published fiction, this Companion introduces readers to more than a hundred major and minor novelists. It demonstrates continuities in novel-writing that bridge the century's pre- and post-War halves and presents leading critical ideas about English fiction's themes and forms. The essays examine the endurance of modernist style throughout the century, the role of nationality and the contested role of the English language in all its forms, and the relationships between realism and other fictional modes: fantasy, romance, science fiction. Students, scholars and readers will find this Companion an indispensable guide to the history of the English novel.