The novel in English has been one of the most influential (and controversial) of modern literary forms.  From the seventeenth century to the publicity surrounding the Booker Prize or the Oprah Book Club, readers and commentators have argued about the value and relevance of prose fiction: are novels ‘good' or ‘bad' for you?; how, why and should we get ‘lost' in a book?; what constitutes a novel in the first place?; does the novel have a future in the electronic age?  This course is an introduction to the novel that explores these questions with reference to a selection of texts, ranging from the early nineteenth to the early twenty-first century.  Novels to be studied will include: Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey, Mary Shelley, Frankenstein, H. G. Wells, The War of the Worlds, Jasper Fforde, The Eyre Affair, Peter Carey, True History of the Kelly Gang.

By satisfying the aims of this course, students will acquire skills in the formal analysis of the novel; familiarity with key concepts in the analysis of fiction such as realism, modernism and postmodernism; familiarity with the range of critical approaches to fiction, and some knowledge of the literary history of the novel.

1000 word essay (25%), and 2,000 word essay (50%), final two-hour examination (25%).

Offered in 2007 and normally in succeeding years

24 hours of lectures and one 1-hour tutorial per week

Jane Austen: "Northanger Abbey" (Penguin Classics)