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BRIEF NOTE ABOUT THE LESSON NOVELS

Novel writing began in the 17th century in England and France.The novels which used a series of personal and private letters to tell story are called epistolary novel.Samuel Richardson's "Pamela" is an example of epistolary Novel. The most exciting element of the novel of the 18th century was the involvement of women. The number of educated women had increased. The eighteenth century saw the middle classes become more prosperous. Women got more leisure to read as well as to write. Novels began exploring the world of women, their emotions and identities, their experiences and problems, etc. Many novels of the time were about domestic life. They drew upon their experiences, wrote about family life and earned public recognition. The Indian authors were aware about how Indians were treated by the British and how Indian culture was considered inferior and backward. The Indian novelists used their novels to expose the nature of the British rule and wished to create a pan-Indian identity and a sense of belonging to the nation. Novels like Anandamath inspired Indians with nationalism. Authors like Premchand and Saratchandra, by dicussing socal issues pointed to exploitation of Indian people by the colonial rulers. Novels were written for young readers too. These novels for young boys idealized a new type of men: someone who was powerful, assertive, independent and daring. They were full of adventure set in places far away from Europe. Stories about white-men colonizing the natives and adapting to the strange surroundings appealed to the young boys. Stories for boys involved great historical events, battles etc.


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