The Art of Fiction: Illustrated from Classic and Modern Texts

Unfortunately, I was never able to take very many literature classes in university, and as a result, I have always felt that Literature was my Achilles Heel. Well, recently I have began writing some fiction of my own and I was looking for a concise, read-able pocket guide to literary concepts. This book definitely delivers all that. Written originally as series of articles for The Independent, Lodge begins each chapter with an excerpt from a novel to illustrate a concept, which he then discusses for a few pages. For example: in Chapter 10, the topic is "Interior Monologue", for which he uses Joyce's "Ulysses". His analysis is never too dry or academic, yet it is very erudite. David Lodge is already a very engaging writer of fiction and this guide is no different.

"The Art of Fiction", not surprisingly, is a popular title. In addition to this entry by David Lodge, identically entitled works (albeit with different sub-titles after the seemingly ubiquitous colon) are available from John Gardner and Ayn Rand (in her case, one more example I suppose that "art" is in the eye of the beholder). I gather that the Gardner and Rand volumes are along the lines of "how-to" manuals for aspiring writers. Lodge's book, however, is written not for writers but rather for readers, especially intelligent devotees of the novel who are not steeped in academic literary theory. THE ART OF FICTION is a collection of newspaper columns (revised for this publication) that Lodge originally wrote around 1991 for "The Independent on Sunday" on fifty different literary devices or principles. Each is illustrated with one or more excerpts from classical or modern texts. For example: "Point of View" is illustrated by means of an excerpt from "What Maisie Knew" by Henry James; "Stream of Consciousness" -- "Mrs. Dalloway" by Virginia Woolf; "Introducing a Character" -- "Goodbye to Berlin" by Christopher Isherwood; "Allegory" -- "Erewhon" by Samuel Butler; and "Metafiction" -- "Lost in the Funhouse" by John Barth. The pieces average four-and-a-half pages, so they are easily digested in five to ten minutes. Lodge's discussion of his various literary topics is well-informed, intelligent, clear and concise. Blessedly, he avoids pedantry. In passing, he offers many brief opinions on matters literary (for example, Henry James is "the first truly modern novelist in the English language," and "the first great surrealist novel in the English language was arguably Alice in Wonderland"). For those who hold college degrees in some field of literature the book probably is overly general and simplistic. However, for many like me, who never took a course on literary theory or involving the nuts and bolts of writing, there is a fair amount about fiction to be absorbed, relatively enjoyably and without feeling like you have returned to school. And a bonus for me: I added a few more novels to my list of "books to read."

"The Art of Fiction", not surprisingly, is a popular title. In addition to this entry by David Lodge, identically titled works (albeit with different sub-titles after the seemingly ubiquitous colon) are available from John Gardner and Ayn Rand (in her case, one more example I suppose that "art" is in the eye of the beholder). I gather that the Gardner and Rand volumes are along the lines of "how-to" manuals for aspiring writers. Lodge's book, however, is written not for writers but rather for readers, especially intelligent devotees of the novel who are not steeped in academic literary theory. THE ART OF FICTION is a collection of newspaper columns (revised for this publication) that Lodge originally wrote around 1991 for "The Independent on Sunday" on fifty different literary devices or principles. Each is illustrated with one or more excerpts from classical or modern texts. For example: "Point of View" is illustrated by means of an excerpt from "What Maisie Knew" by Henry James; "Stream of Consciousness" -- "Mrs. Dalloway" by Virginia Woolf; "Introducing a Character" -- "Goodbye to Berlin" by Christopher Isherwood; "Allegory" -- "Erewhon" by Samuel Butler; and "Metafiction" -- "Lost in the Funhouse" by John Barth. The pieces average four-and-a-half pages, so they are easily digested in five to ten minutes. Lodge's discussion of his various literary topics is well-informed, intelligent, clear and concise. Blessedly, he avoids pedantry. In passing, he offers many brief opinions on matters literary (for example, Henry James is "the first truly modern novelist in the English language," and "the first great surrealist novel in the English language was arguably Alice in Wonderland"). For those who hold college degrees in some field of literature the book probably is overly general and simplistic. However, for many like me, who never took a course on literary theory or involving the nuts and bolts of writing, there is a fair amount about fiction to be absorbed, relatively enjoyably and without feeling like you have returned to school. And a bonus for me: I added a few more novels to my list of "books to read."

I discovered this book 3 or 4 years ago and have read it at least three times -- parts of it more often than that. I use it as one of several texts in creative writing workshops. Lodge's essays are witty, engaging and smart, and the brief excerpts at the beginning of each chapter are wonderful for "mirroring" exercises. My students enjoy the book as much as I do, and all seem to learn quite a bit from it.

This book offers a highly digestible introduction to how fiction works and tempts the reader with some great exerpts from (modern) classics. It's also a nice opportunity to look at literature through the eyes of a professional, both at studying and practicing writing.