From Lewis Carrol To H. G. Wells

As new genres in the world of novels fade out of the public eye, new ones arise just as fast. A genre that has taken the world by storm is the dystopian trope. Many new young adult novels have this new genre incorporated into the story, often weaving in themes of sadness or conformity being overcome by rebelliousness and hope. It is one of the newest genres, yet one of the most widely varied compared to older ones. Even novels from 70 years ago, such as Ayn Rand’s Anthem share similarities with the same types of stories from only 20 years ago, like The Giver by Lois Lowry.

Often heralded as the world’s greatest nation, the United States is also considered home to the world’s greatest authors. Reputable authors such as Fitzgerald, Twain, and Steinbeck remain relevant even through the washing waves of time. One such timeless author, Ray Bradbury, ventured the hazardous path of taboo to write of change. Through his novels of innocent youths evolving into children enlightened beyond their years, Bradbury utilizes the motif of time, innocence, and the philosophical movements of existentialism, transcendentalism, and romanticism to describe catastrophic events the American culture could face if existing destitute judgments continue to prevail. Ray Bradbury dared to reveal his voice.

Have you ever noticed that the most popular and successful novels often share many similarities? Have you ever felt as though the variety in the most popular books on the market can sometimes appear bleak? In many cases, this has to do with perspective, or the point of view that the book was written in.

American literature contains many diverse styles, people, and genres. Despite these differences, the collective work of American authors has shaped both the country’s culture and lifestyles. We read to escape or to gain knowledge, but either way, we bring the lessons we’ve learned from literature into our everyday life and share those lessons with others around us. Because of this, authors strive to create a piece with a worthwhile message.

American literature has evolved greatly from the Native Americans to 1870’s. American literature has changed, it teaches us how we have become more independent ourselves. The World on a Turtle’s Back, a myth, The Scarlet Letter, a book in a puritan setting, and A Rose for Emily is a southern gothic story. American literature would not be the same today without these forms of writing. The teachings from these are passed down generation to generation.

Following the contemporary style of fiction, magical realism falls into a category of its own, portraying both the roles of fiction and nonfiction. Magical realism takes the reader into a fantastical world, shaped by the author, based on the author’s surroundings, and life experiences. This essay will provide more insight into this style of writing and how it came to be. Taking cited works from multiple sources, this essay will allow one to see examples of excellent works in the style of magical realism. From its origins, to the authors that made this style of writing popular, it will be informing to anyone looking to learn more about magical realism.

Books stacked on shelves like a game of Jenga, essays and poems scattered throughout the unfilled crevices. These are prosaic, mundane sights for a student. Some of those books will be forgotten, destined to acquire an impressive collection of dust on some nondescript mantlepiece; those are not the novels that matter, regardless of their place in history. The novels that truly matter are the stories that change one’s perception of the world around them. In the past twelve months I have had the pleasure, nay the honour, of reading so many of those metamorphic pieces of literature.

There is only one word that comes to mind when asked to describe H.G. Well’s version of the future in, The Shape of Things to come, and that is, in simplest form, Utopia. Well’s describes a world in which all it’s people are completely unified on every level of existence. The natural instinct humans feel in our present day to achieve money, power, and status does exist in this Well’s future. The people of 2106 are a universally educated population whose main focus and purpose is taking care of one another, the planet, and their continued development as a human race. However, the steps taken to achieve this type of world, was not an easy one.

The article by Hatice Ezberk “The Function of Fantasy as a subversive Genre in Literature” examines the idea of how fantastic literature can bring out an emphasis on how the world transforms through the writers eyes. As fantasy literature grows it can become unclear as to what social norms the literature is trying to juxtapose. Ezberk argues that trying to categorize fantasy literature is a rebellious act as the subgenre’s become too specific and can at times deceive the reader by delivering functions it is not meant to deliver. Ezberk argues through other works by establishing that the concept of realism is not valid in fantasy literature as it becomes too vague. Instead fantasy literature takes the reader away from a world they know and into a world where it is heart desire to be. The concept of subversive literature is that it gives a reader encouragement to think creatively while reading and to

On a general level, an author holds a significant importance to their piece. A single person can vividly imagine the world being created inside the story based on how far the author is willing to delve into minutiae areas, and this trait stems from living through similar encounters. Fiction can be created from experience, thus opening the range of plots, storylines, details, and a multitude of other important traits to any good piece. How many times have we wondered where an author was able to create a vividly imaginable, but strikingly real world with non-existent people? A writer creates from what they know, either from reading another story or an experience that personally happened. The individual lens that we use to interpret different aspects of life expands when you write, creating a world merely imaginary with a few elements that can hold an attachment to something that occurred at one point. Edgar Allen Poe is a major pioneer for this idea as he puts together a world that his life heavily influenced in regards to social standings. When reading the Cask of Amontillado, the area that drew me in the most was the fundamental meaning behind the twisted idea that not many readers are able to recognize immediately. Using Marxist criticism Edgar Allen Poe templated a conflict between social classes through a malicious, deadly act of revenge by Montresor against Fortunato.

Herbert George (H.G.) Wells was a man of many passions both strange and ordinary, but despite his eccentricities, he impacted science fiction and fantasy in a profound and noticeable way. As a man who bridged the entertainment gap between the upper and lower classes that existed at the time, H.G. Wells books felt right at home from the 1890’s clear through the Lost Generation (British Writers, Vol. 6, 226). Fantastical plots and relatable language aside, he was also what one might consider a normal man. Despite his being repulsed by monogamy, he wasn’t afraid to speak his mind and indulge in worldly pleasures (British Writers, Vol. 6, 227).

Realism and Modernism are broad categories that cannot be taken explicitly; whereas Realism is concerned with the realistic portrayal of the characters, the universal morality of the story and the strict adherence to literary form, Modernism is an attempt to break free from Realist literature and not be bound by the same rules and traditions. It is intended to shock the reader, as T.S. Elliot says, “to startle and disturb the public” (Companion 3). Modern authors were living in a time of crisis during revolutions and wars where there was no stability; the institutions and Christian faith they were raised in did not provide answers so they searched for meaning elsewhere, like James Joyce, or questioned if there was any meaning at all, like Samuel Beckett. These crises are reflected in the Modern novel through various methods which attempt to present a realistic picture of a chaotic world. Some authors employed elements of Realism, like Hemingway, but in modernist writing there is always more perspicacity beneath the surface, as Michael Bell asserts, “Several of the greatest works of modernist literature are characterized by such a double awareness. They use realist representation, indeed they often use it consummately, yet within an X-ray awareness of its constructed, or purely human character” (Companion 10). Applying Bell’s X-ray awareness to the Modern novel reveals that one of the most important facets of traditional literature is upended; the protagonist is not a

An author’s background and past life has a vast influence on his or her writing and can be the foundation of their material. Imaginary Homelands by Salman Rushdie depicts the criteria for a successful or unsuccessful work of literature. His input on an author having past correlations, separate identities, and memories to right their novel is shown in the writings of Art Spiegelman’s Maus series. Spiegelman demonstrates that the connections from where you are from, the identities you have, and the memories you hold have an immense impact on an author’s narrative.

Realism and Modernism are not explicit categories; whereas Realism is concerned with the realistic portrayal of the characters, the universal morality of the story and the strict adherence to literary form, Modernism is an attempt to break free from Realist literature and not be bound by the same rules and traditions. Rather, it attempts to shock the reader, as T.S. Elliot says, “to startle and disturb the public” (Companion 3). Modern authors were living in a time of crisis during revolutions and wars where there was no stability; the institutions and Christian faith did not provide answers so they searched for meaning elsewhere, like James Joyce, or questioned if there was any meaning at all, like Samuel Beckett. The Modern novel reflects these crises through various methods in an attempt to present a realistic picture of a chaotic world. Some authors employed elements of Realism, like Hemingway, but in modernist writing, there is always more perspicacity beneath the surface, as Michael Bell asserts, “Several of the greatest works of modernist literature are characterized by such a double awareness. They use realist representation, indeed they often use it consummately, yet within an X-ray awareness of its constructed, or purely human character” (Companion 10). Applying Bell’s X-ray awareness to the Modern novel reveals that one of the most important facets of traditional literature is upended; the protagonist is not a reliable reflection of the author’s perspective.

Throughout the history of man, human beings impose form and order on all aspects of life in order to reassure themselves there is a grand design behind life’s seeming uncertainty. Evidence of this desire are social constructions such as religion and time. However, the strong need to understand the word through concrete systems is also seen in smaller details of daily life, such as fiction novels. The average person enjoys realistic fiction, or fiction that mirrors what one perceives as the “the human experience.” One method that fiction uses to enforce this desired reality is the use of a single overarching storyline, or metanarrative. The era of Postmodernism upended this notion that a novel should only have one grand metanarrative, and this upending is based in a reality closer to one’s lifespan where experiences are not singular or linear, but an amalgam of events and memories which overlap, shift priorities, and transcend strict chronological time. Two Postmodern novels that challenge the concept of a single metanarrative by including various micronarratives, employed to confuse what story takes precedence over the other, are Vladimir Nabokov’s Pale Fire and Italo Calvino’s If On a Winter’s Night a Traveler. Nabokov employs the concept of intertextual conversation between different sections of the book in Pale Fire while Calvino makes use of the reader’s self-awareness of their role as an active participant in the reading of If On a Winter’s Night a Traveler to