The Novel, Who Needs It?

Joseph Epstein argues that fiction, particularly the novel, is essential for understanding human behavior. He shows how the novel operates above the level of ideas and probes the eternal mystery of human nature. He also discusses how memory works differently in the reading of fiction and suggests that novels should carry ratings. The knowledge one acquires from reading novels differs from all other kinds of knowledge, as it is about human existence itself. Epstein also notes that many intellectuals have been devoted readers of fiction, despite current elements in the culture that militate against its production.

Format: Hardback
Length: 152 pages
Publication date: 31 August 2023
Publisher: Encounter Books,USA

Joseph Epstein's book "The Novel, Who Needs It?" argues for the primacy of fiction, specifically the novel, among all intellectual endeavors that seek to describe the behavior of human beings. Epstein contends that reading superior fiction arouses the mind in a way that nothing else quite does and that the novel at its best operates above the level of ideas in favor of taking up the truths of the heart. He recounts how we read fiction differently than much else we read, noting that certain novels are best read at certain ages and suggesting that novels, like movies, might do well to carry ratings. The knowledge one acquires from reading novels differs from all other kinds of knowledge, for the subject of all superior fiction is human existence itself, in all its variousness and often humbling confusion. The spirit of the novel entails questioning much that others consider home truths, and many important philosophers, social scientists, jurists, and other intellectuals have been devoted readers of fiction. The book also takes up current elements in the culture that militate against the production of first-rate fiction, such as the rise of online reading, the expansion of creative writing programs, the artistically discouraging effects of political correctness, and the pervasiveness of social media.

Weight: 326g
Dimension: 148 x 306 x 19 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781641773058