20M - The Modernist Novel Lesson
The Modernist Novel
The History of the English Novel
The English novel peaked during the time period of Victorian literature. Many sub-genres have developed from the English novel. View the presentation below to review the history and rise of the English novel:
20th Century Modernist Novel
Modernism in literature started a little into the 1900's and ended around the mid 1900's after World War II ended. The novel, already popular from Victorian literature, continued to reflect the thoughts and feelings of surrounding society during the time period. The unintended consequences of death and despair caused by World War I led people to no longer trust institutions such as the church or the government. Even history had continuously glorified war, but after war time atrocities, history was no longer trustworthy, either.
Without institutions to lean on, the focus on the individual and finding true strength and answers in the inner self was the focus during Modernism. Modernist novels also reflect the effects of industrialization and the continued incorporation of technology in society. Modernist writers often abandon typical characters or plot structure. The plot structure of the novels often mirrors the confusion or inner thoughts of the individual with fragmentation (no chronological order of events), stream of consciousness (uninterrupted flow of a character's inner thoughts), or multiple character viewpoints during the story. View the example of stream of consciousness from American novelist William Faulkner's As I Lay Dying:
In the example above, notice how the narrative lacks punctuation and any kind of structure in order to mirror a person's actual thought patterns and truly represent the inner thoughts of the individual.
Characteristics of Modernist Novels
Realistic in Presentation- Presents a realistic image of the world during the time-not just the sordid aspects of society but
pessimism replaces the optimist of Victorian literature
Reaction against Victorian Literature- Strong reactions against political, religious, and social views (including industrialization)
Focus on the Individual - Belief that the world is however the individual perceives, so the point of view is subjective and normally the perspective of one character's distorted view
Themes from Effects of War- Themes of loss, alienation, and despair
Break from Typical Literary Structure - Stray from the chronological plot fragmentation, stream of consciousness, and multiple character viewpoints in the structure of the novel
Psychological in Nature - Focus on Freud's ideas concerning the subconscious or innermost self
Literary Criticism
When attempting to understand various texts, we naturally will interpret the text in a certain way or from a certain viewpoint. If a group of people read the same work of literature, each person might have a different perspective based on their thoughts prior to beginning. For example, when reading Romeo and Juliet, readers might evaluate the text from Juliet's point of view and focus on her lack of choice in marriage. Without consciously knowing, the reader may use Feminist theory (the literary theory that focuses on gender roles and women struggling for power in a patriarchal society) to understand the play. However, another reader who finishes Romeo and Juliet might see the text as a power struggle between two wealthy families. This reader unwittingly looks at the text using Marxist theory (the literary theory that examines the struggles among social and class structures).
Readers use literary criticism and literary theory whenever they evaluate a text and there are many different types of literary theories. Literary Criticism is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature influenced by literary theory. Literary theory is the ideas and methods used when reading to reveal what literature can mean. By understanding the different types of literary theory, readers have the ability to easily interpret a text from a certain viewpoint.
View the slides below to learn about the major types of literary theories.
Novel Assignment
In this module, you will read a novel from the Modernist time period of the 20th century. You will select a novel from the list of choices below. You will complete several assignments with the novel you select, so take some time to make your choice. If you have more questions about the novel choices in this list, contact your instructor.
Novel Assignment Choices
Please select a novel from the following options:
Joseph Conrad (1857-1924)
Joseph Conrad was a Polish-British author who wrote many stories depicting the hardship of the human spirit in the middle of an incomprehensible and emotionless universe. Although Conrad is an early modernist, his novels contain elements of 19th century realism.
Heart of Darkness (1899)
Imperialism was a major social issue in British territories abroad. When the British entered a country for a particular good, the local people often became slaves to the British. Heart of Darkness details the journey of a British man as he travels to the Congo and sees the literal and figurative darkness by experiencing the horrors and racism that arose from the ivory trade and British imperialism. Conrad uses the issues in the Congo to parallel the issues in London and reveal how both places are places of darkness due to what the hearts of man have become. Note that Conrad’s novella is a frame narrative.
James Joyce (1882-1941)
James Joyce was an Irish novelist and poet who was one of the most influential writers of the 20th century. He uses an array of literary styles and often employs stream of consciousness.
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1916)
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is Joyce’s first novel and represents the Modernist style. The main character, Stephen Dedalus, an allusion to the mythological character Daedalus, experiences a spiritual and intellectual awakening as he rebels against the rules and conventions he grew up with. His questioning of the various social and religious institutions results in his self-exile to Europe.
D.H. Lawrence (1885-1930)
Lawrence was an English novelist, poet, playwright, and essayist who wrote about the dehumanizing effects of modernism and industrialization. In his writings, he explores the importance of the individual and maintaining emotional health by exploring the needs of the subconscious. Many of his novels were explicit and could not be published in England.
Sons and Lovers (1913)
Sons and Lovers details the life of a man who has a close relationship with his mother and tries to please her and support her. The novel, influenced heavily by Freud’s “Oedipus Complex” explores how the main character attempts to balance his love for his mother with his love for other women.
Lady Chatterley’s Lover (1928)
Lady Chatterley’s Lover reveals the affair of a young, upper class, married woman, (Lady Chatterley) with a lower class gamekeeper. Lady Chatterley experiences physical and emotional neglect from her husband, so she turns to a different man to meet her needs. As a Modernist novel, Lawrence uses the affair between the couple to represent the focus on the individual and the subconscious desires of humanity.
Ford Maddox Ford (1873-1939)
Ford was an English poet, novelist, critic, and editor who wrote his own fiction as well as literary reviews. His novels reveal a clear break in formal structure and categorize his works as Modernist.
The Good Soldier (1915)
The Good Soldier is set just before World War I begins and details the downfall of Edward Ashburnham, the soldier in the novel, as his perfect marriage and friendships die. Ford focuses on the sordid aspects of life as three characters die and one character goes mad. True to Modernist literature, the novel reveals a series of flashbacks in non-chronological order that create an unreliable narrator.
Aldous Huxley (1894-1963)
Huxley was an English writer, philosopher, and novelist. He wrote several nonfiction books and was a humanist, pacifist, and satirist. His intellect far surpassed others living during this time, and his ideas were futuristic.
Brave New World (1932)
Brave New World is a dystopian novel that anticipates the negative effects of technology in response to industrialization. In the novel, the society is called “The World State”, and the government grows humans in bottles and teaches them to focus on the good of society instead of the needs of the individual. Huxley explores the issues that stem from only serving an institution and emphasizes the need for humans to focus on the individual and not allow technology to blind or control them.
Virginia Woolf (1882-1941)
Woolf was an English writer and one of the most highly regarded Modernist writers of the 20th century. Many of Woolf’s writings are interpreted through the Feminist Theory lens due to her noting the difficulties of females in a patriarchal society.
To the Lighthouse (1927)
Broken into parts and set just before the start of World War I, To the Lighthouse begins with a family on vacation at the summer house entertaining guests. Various events happen to construct the plot, but Woolf writes the novel mainly in stream of consciousness with little dialogue. The novel is more of an inner monologue revealing philosophical introspection of the character and themes of loss and subjectivity.
E.M. Forster (1879-1970)
Edward Morgan Forster was an English novelist, short story writer, and essayist. He often writes about novels that examine class differences in early 20th century British society due to his humanistic nature.
A Room with a View (1908)
A Room with a View is a critique of the repressed culture of early 20th century England. Forster details the struggles of a woman, Lucy, as she attempts to grow as an individual and break free from the strict, old-fashioned Victorian values. On a trip to Italy, she realizes that what was once considered “improper” is actually beautiful, and when she returns home, she attempts to reconcile her new ideology with her old surroundings.
Literary Theory Self-Assessment
RESOURCES IN THIS MODULE ARE OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES (OER) OR CREATED BY GAVS UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED. SOME IMAGES USED UNDER SUBSCRIPTION.