I am no authority to speak on behalf of the development of the
novel, but regarding the various theories presented in the first chapter of
Ballaster’s Seductive Forms, I can
only conclude that reason and logic would seem to indicate a preference for
Michael McKeon’s theory / understanding of the development of the novel as form
and object.
Ballaster does a wonderful job at expressing the weaknesses of
theories presented by Watt, Davis, and others within the formalism /
historicism/ hybrid theory debate. When reviewing these theories, I struggled
to grasp the complexity of some of these narratives. I also struggled with what
appeared to be a lack of basic logic in terms of the progression of structure
and device. The historicists seem to ignore or undervalue the progression of
literary tradition. The formalists seem to forget that every writer, regardless
of position or gender, are people living in a given time; that as individuals
who exert themselves as writers of the page, they are persons that ultimately
influenced by the events, concerns, moral conditions, etc. of every day life.
Groups of writers are obviously influenced by similar concerns, and thus the creation
or ability to categorically place writers to discuss work has been of
importance in traditional literary studies. Any theory which ignores the
importance of both of these very real and obvious influences on the development
of the novel shouldn’t be taken to seriously.
Perhaps what I find most interesting and compelling, regarding the theory presented by McKeon, is the idea that the novel functions as:
"essentially a problem-solving genre, but one which operates on two inter-related levels, the literary and the social" (Ballaster 14).
This idea breathes truth. If we were to look at the progression of Victorian realism, particularly focusing on the development of such grand novels like Middlemarch or Jane Eyre, we see a very similar and revealing trend. If we were to take a look at 20th century masterpieces such as Orwell's Animal Farm or Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises, the same trend can be noted. Perhaps part of the essence of the novel relies on this very basic relationship between the literary and the social. Of course, that could be problematic if we were to try and examine later, postmodern influences which at times can seem to reverse or go against this trend. Or perhaps I just don't understand the postmodern literary works as well as I should. There is an obvious sense of the social in works like A Visit From the Goon Squad, but at some level it feels to me like some postmodern works have turned away from traditional literary discourse and freed the author for the creation of a new literary discourse. Then again, with the revival of 21st century realism dominating the selves at bookstores, works like Freedom and The Corrections seemingly return to the traditional literary / social dynamic. Perhaps that's part of what makes Franzen's work so damn intoxicating.
How Jonathan Franzen has found his way onto a blog supposedly about 18th century literature is beyond me. I guess that's a fun thing I probably shouldn't do again (Yes I know that's DFW not Franzen. But who cares. I'm trying to be funny here!).
Perhaps Ballaster's most interesting observation to the uninitiated is the tradition in literary studies to ignore or undervalue the status of women writers on the development of the novel. I should confess that I am a white man and often times I unintentionally play a favoritism regarding male writers over women writers when I discuss literature (see above; I could have discussed Virginia Woolf or Jhumpa Lahari -both writers I have read extensively- rather than Orwell and Franzen; but subconsciously I searched for men who I have found influential as a writer; I'm not editing or changing these references as I do think it contributes properly to this point. In fact, had it not been in consideration of this point, I'm not sure I would have noticed the obvious favoritism I just played. This is a problem that ALL men will struggle with identifying.) with friends or in the classroom. In the history of the theory of the novel, it is obvious that these same prejudice haunt the collective imagination of knowledge. In the Broadview Introduction to Fantomina, the author of the introduction points as well to Haywood's disappearance in the canon which could and should probably be reflective of the very same observation made by Ballaster. McKeon's The Origins of the English Novel, then is problematic in its lack of observing the woman author as a woman author (Ballaster 16). In other theories, like Davis' this issue becomes even more apparent when the observation of the development of the novel intentionally disregards writers like Haywood. Furthermore, as Ballaster notes, the feminist formation to regard women's writing as being observations of the condition of women or underwritten with the political attention of escaping the patriarchy doesn't necessarily formulate itself well to a proper and clear understanding of women's role in the development of the novel (19-23). Perhaps consideration should be in order and the re -imagination of women's text considered.
--- jmj
Ballaster's observation on the tradition of women writers' absence from, and decreased value within, the literary canon creates an interesting introduction to those studying the rise of the novel, a genre women extensively contributed to both as readers and writers in Restoration and Eighteenth Century England. It is also interesting to note that the rise of the novel coincides with the rise of women (and other lower-class, non-white-male) readership. That novels were written by women, and for women, at this time, yet the literary gods/upholders of the canon still revised them out, attests to the stubborn habits of favoritism that plague us as we re-integrate women across the literary spectrum.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely agree with you, Kelly! Changes have slowly been coming to the way the canon is perceived. Ballaster's text (along with the Broadview introduction to "Fantomina" is one such example where previously ignored, female writers, are beginning to get some sort of examination and appreciation for their contributions.
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