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Chapter 24 - The Novel

from Part IV - Genres

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 May 2024

By
Nicholas Seager
Edited by
Joseph Hone  and
Pat Rogers
Joseph Hone
Affiliation:
University of Newcastle upon Tyne
Pat Rogers
Affiliation:
University of South Florida
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Summary

This chapter explores the uneasy relationship between Gulliver’s Travels and scholarship on the development of the English novel during the eighteenth century. The chapter argues that to approach the miscellaneous Gulliver’s Travels with a rigid and absolute conception of genre is to overlook Swift’s engagement with a range of new and old fictional modes. Placing Swift in context means recognising the doubtful applicability to Gulliver of retrospectively formulated assumptions about the novel, including consistency of character. The final section of the chapter looks beyond Gulliver to consider the novelistic qualities of A Tale of a Tub and the lesser-known Memoirs of Capt. John Creichton.

Keywords

Jonathan Swiftthe novelliterary criticism
Type
Chapter
Information
Jonathan Swift in Context , pp. 190 - 198
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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  • The Novel
  • Edited by Joseph Hone, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Pat Rogers, University of South Florida
  • Book: Jonathan Swift in Context
  • Online publication: 02 May 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108917254.030
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  • The Novel
  • Edited by Joseph Hone, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Pat Rogers, University of South Florida
  • Book: Jonathan Swift in Context
  • Online publication: 02 May 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108917254.030
Available formats
×

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To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • The Novel
  • Edited by Joseph Hone, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Pat Rogers, University of South Florida
  • Book: Jonathan Swift in Context
  • Online publication: 02 May 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108917254.030
Available formats
×