K J SOMAIYA COLLEGE OF ARTS AND COMMERCE, VIDYAVIHAR, MUMBAI-77

English Assignment: T.Y.B.A., Paper-VIII (Restoration & Augustan Periods)

SEM-VI: (2021-22)

Name of the Student: RUKAIYA .A. SUTERWALA

Date of Submission: 26 MARCH 2022

Roll No: 32

Class: TYBA

Div: A

Topics:

1) Study, research and write a detailed note on the origin and growth of Novel, as a
literary form, in the 18th century and its overall impact on the literature of the
Augustan Age with special reference to any one of the novels (other than Joseph
Andrews) relating to Restoration & Augustan Periods.

2) You are tasked with the responsibility of interviewing one of the celebrated
Restoration or Augustan Age Poets. Draft the script of the interview in a way that the
interview gives insights into his or her notable collection of works, the significant
themes, the imagery, and any other important aspect of his or her Poetry.
 1) Study, research and write a detailed note on the origin and growth of Novel, as a
literary form, in the 18th century and its overall impact on the literature of the
Augustan Age with special reference to any one of the novels (other than Joseph
Andrews) relating to Restoration & Augustan Periods.

Origin and growth of novel in 18th century, as a literary form, and its overall impact on
literature with special references to the novel “PAMELA” by SAMUEL RICHARDSON

 DEFINITION AND ORIGIN OF NOVEL:

According to The Shorter Oxford Dictionary, novel is “a fictitious prose narrative of

considerable length in which characters and actions representative of real life are portrayed in
a plot of more or less complexity”

Another definition by an anonymous author states that a novel is “a piece of prose fiction of a
reasonable length”.

Both the definitions highlight the word ‘prose’ meaning the common or ordinary spoken
form of language without the presence of poetic rhythmic structure. However, there are a few
novels written in verse as well, such as Vikram Seth’s The Golden Gate and Alexander
Pushkin’s Eugene Onegi. The other aspect of the definition is related to the length. The first
definition points out ‘considerable length’ and second definition states ‘reasonable length’ to
distinguish the novel’s unique feature as a genre vis a vis genre of short story. The lengths of
some novels are similar to the length of short stories and hence a term such as ‘novella’ is
often used for shorter novels.

The word novel is considered to have been derived from the latin word novellus, Italian
word novella (which meant a little new thing) and French word novelle. It was Boccaccio
who first used the term novella storia (short tale in prose) when he first experimented writing
prose. Boccaccio popularized the vogue of collections of novella with his collection of ten
short stories titled Decameron in fourteenth century.

However, the meaning of the word novel meant the kind of short stories written and
collected by Boccaccio until the 17th century. With the rise in the development of novels in
 the 18th century the meaning of the word novel underwent change from short tale in prose to
‘prose narrative of considerable length’ as stated by The Shorter Oxford Dictionary. Thus
with understanding of the definition of novel, it is relevant to discuss what factors or
situations provided opportunities for the rise of the novel in the 18th century.

Therefore novel is a book that tells a story about people and events that are not real.

 RISE OF NOVEL IN 18TH CENTURY:

Majority of the literary critics attribute 18th century as the time period in which novel took its
birth, subsequent growth and development. With adequate literary predecessors such as
Bunyan, Behn, Chaucer, Malory, Cervantes, Boccaccio and numerous other writers of the
17th century, the 18thcentury writers availed opportunities to further experiment and produce
novel as a literary genre. Further the increase in literacy rate, industrial revolution, rise in the
middle class and coming up of libraries created favourable situations for the rise of the novel.
In the new form of literature namely the ‘novel’ the construct of the story departed from the
romance and attempted at verisimilitude depicting the pragmatism and morality of the middle
class people. Alexander Pope’s dictum, “The proper study of mankind is men” influenced the
interest of the people to study human character. Thus 18th century novels explored human
characters with the novelist creating real life characters in their novels unlike giants, dragons
and super human characters in the romances.

 MOST IMPORTANT FEATURES OF 18TH CENTURY NOVELS:

The writers of the 18th century bought out realism. The novels were instruments to explore
and represent the reality of the society. The authors used verisimilitude with books imitating
the real life of the people. The use of first person narrative technique created the element of
realism. Further, unlike the romances, characters in the novels were ordinary men and women
with settings familiar to the readers. In addition, the focus of the protagonist was given on
middle class people. The purpose of the novel was mainly to promote virtuous character in
 people just as Richardson did. Some authors such as Swift and Smollett used satire and
allegory to point out the vices in the society. The pioneer novelists contributed unique aspect
of novel; Fielding popularized epic novels, Richardson with epistolary and sentimental novel,
Defoe with realistic novel, Swift with satirical and philosophical novel and Sterne with
experimental novel.

Thus 18th century novelist gave the novelist of the time fresh avenues and flexibility for
writing novels without having to follow established tradition as classical writers were bound
to. It was an age of revolution and experimentation of writing novels which promoted further
experimentation and creativity giving rise to subgenres or different genres of novel in the post
18th century.

 SPECIAL REFERENCE TO NOVEL “PAMELA” by SAMUEL RICHARDSON :

Pamela, in full Pamela; or, Virtue Rewarded, novel in epistolary style by Samuel

Richardson, published in 1740 and based on a story about a servant and the man who, failing
to seduce her, marries her.

Pamela Andrews is a 15-year-old servant. On the death of her mistress, her mistress’s son,
“Mr. B,” begins a series of stratagems designed to seduce her. These failing, he abducts her
and ultimately threatens to rape her. Pamela resists, and soon afterward Mr. B offers marriage
—an outcome that Richardson presents as a reward for her virtue. The second half of the
novel shows Pamela winning over those who had disapproved of the misalliance.

Pamela is often credited with being the first English novel. Although the validity of this
claim depends on the definition of the term novel, Richardson was clearly innovative in his
concentration on a single action.

Pamela is Samuel Richardson’s great masterpiece. Since the initial publication of Pamela in
1740, it has received extensive attentions. It’s generally accepted that Samuel Richardson’s
Pamela is a prime example of the epistolary novel. However, the first rise of the
psychological novel as a genre is said to have started with the sentimental novel of Samuel
Richardson’s Pamela. Many factors contribute to the success of Pamela, the most important
one is the vivid description of heroine’s psychological activities. It has profound impact on
the later writers and played a significant role in the world literature. Pamela’s inner world is
incompatible, she suffered a lot from the upper class and she was longing for an independent
life and social position. Also she could not cast off the shackle of the patriarchy society.

The point of view of this novel is first person. This point of view is mostly limited and
unreliable due to the nature of an epistolary novel and Pamela's inability to know anything
other than what she witnesses and hears. This point of view is important to the novel due to
the format and the fact that a large part of the premise of the novel revolves around Pamela's
change in feelings toward Mr. B. Without this point of view, it would be impossible to see
Pamela's feelings. This point of view is also important for enabling the reader to see Pamela's
virtue since she can report on her actions and feelings about them, doubly demonstrating her
virtue. There are only two narrative passages in this work, during which the point of view
changes to that of an omniscient and reliable third person narrator.

In Samuel Richardson’s, Pamela or Virtue Rewarded, one of the most overarching themes
was the change and development of social classes and how they affected the main character,
Pamela, as well as the other characters in her life. In the eighteenth century, the concept of
social status and wealth in European culture gave superiority to specific genders and treated
the opposing as lesser than. Due to this social normality, a domino effect was created and
resulted in the constant battle between what is right for their status and what is right for
themselves. Throughout the book, Samuel Richardson makes implications that men should
choose their wives not for their money or social standing, but for their virtue.

Novel of letters:

Pamela or virtue regarded as an epistolary novel, that is, a piece of fiction comprised of
letters. Well, letters give us insight into a character's interior world; if we read a character's
letters, we begin to see how their inner life develops over time. Epistolary novels create
characters who are well-rounded and complex rather than flat and one-dimensional.
Promoting psychological depth, epistolary novels became all the rage in the eighteenth
century and contributed to the growth of the novel as a literary form.

Social change:

The final thing we should know is that Pamela or virtue rewarded reflects anxieties about
society in eighteenth-century England, namely the country's changing class structure. Just
think about it: Pamela starts off as a regular nobody, and she ends up living in a fancy house
with a rich husband. This may not seem like a big deal to us, but the story was quite shocking
for many eighteenth-century readers who weren't used to social mobility. The novel argues
that regardless of her rank, Pamela has innate value; this message appealed to growing
numbers of middle class readers.

PAMELA as a literary phenomenon in 18th century England:

Pamela or Virtue Rewarded appeared in two volumes in November 1740 and soon turned
into what we nowadays call a "best-seller," the first example of that phenomenon in the
history of English fiction. Everybody read it; there was a 'Pamela' rage, and Pamela motifs
appeared on teacups and fans, as Margaret Ann Doody reports in her introduction to a
modern day edition. The novel was praised for its psychological veracity and its moral
influence on the readers.

Some critics condemned Pamela  as a representation of the undignified and the low, seeing in
the story of a servant girl "climbing the ladder" of social class, a pernicious 'levelling'
tendency. Pamela has had significant impact on the novel as a literary genre, as an
experiment in epistolary form, as a study of ethics, human (and particularly women's)
psychology, and as a case of early negotiation between literature as education and literature
as entertainment.

Samuel Richardson, the author of the novel, spends a lot of breath at the beginning of the
novel trying to convince the readers that Pamela is based on a true story. The connection
between truth and literature was meant to persuade the readers that the moral of Pamela's
 character's story is "real," and therefore an efficient tool of ethical edification of young
women, who were at the time devouring all kinds of prose, regardless of its moral turpitude.

 CONCLUSION:

The 18th century is known as the "Flowering" period of modern novel. The four wheels of
the novel -Richardson, Fielding, Sterne and Smollett happened to be during this age. In fact,
the seeds of the modern novel were sown during this period. In this period the novel grew
rapidly and rose to its hey-day. This period proved to be the golden period of the novel
because of the some of the contributing factors which are as follows:

1) DECLINE OF DRAMA:

It is notable that the drama grew as Romans people of every age craved for entertainment and
during the Elizabethan and the Jacobian ,this entertainment was provided by the drama ,but
later on ,the drama became artificial and immorals . People needed some other form of
literature for entertainment and so it was the novel which fulfilled their desire and took the
place of drama.

2) RISE OF PERIODICAL ESSAY:

In fact the seeds of the novel were laid in the periodical essay of the Addison and Steele. The
origin of the novel of the character and of the social and domestic novel is found in the pages
of the spectator. The periodical essay paved the way for the emergence of the novel.

3) READY-MADE MATERIAL:

The material useful for the rise of the novel was ready during the early years of the 18th
century. The prose medium useful for the novel was ready in the form of essay. Great writers
like Bunyan and Swift had already created the atmosphere of realism, adventure and
morality.
4) RISE OF THE PUBLISHER:

Like the readers the publisher too emerged on the scene in the 18th century.

5) PROPER FORM OF ENTERTAINMENT:

Unlike the drama and the epic, the novel was a proper form of entertainment. The drama
needed stage and could be shorter. But the novel was free from stage directions .The writers
and the readers were not bound by time. The writers could take their own time to write and
the readers could read the novel whenever they wished to read.

2) You are tasked with the responsibility of interviewing one of the celebrated
Restoration or Augustan Age Poets. Draft the script of the interview in a way that the
interview gives insights into his or her notable collection of works, the significant
themes, the imagery, and any other important aspect of his or her Poetry.

INTERVIEWING A RESTORATION AGE POET- JOHN MILTON

John Milton is an English poet, polemicist, man of letters, and a civil servant for the
Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell. He is an English poet and intellectual
who wrote during the period of political and religious turmoil. He’s best known for his epic
poem Paradise Lost, which depicts the fall of Lucifer and the temptation of mankind and for
various other works too. Milton’s poetry and prose reflect deep personal convictions, a
passion for freedom and self-determination, and the urgent issues and political turbulence of
his day. Writing in English, Latin, Greek, and Italian, he is achieving an international renown.
The following is a transcript of an interview with John Milton, talking about his notable
works, inspiration, themes etc:

Interviewer: Today we are interviewing one of the most renowned poet John Milton. Sir we
are very lucky to have you as our guest. Shall we begin with the interview?

John Milton: I consider myself lucky too. Yes please.

Interviewer: Can you tell us something about your early life and who was your inspiration?

John Milton: I was born in London on December 9, 1608 to John and Sara Milton. I have an
older sister Anne, and a younger brother Christopher, and several siblings who died before
reaching adulthood. As a child, I attended St. Paul’s School, and throughout my lifetime I
learned Latin, Greek, Italian, French, and Spanish. I attended Christ’s College, Cambridge,
graduating in 1629 with a Bachelor of Arts degree, and 1632 with a Master of Arts. As a boy,
I was privately tutored by Thomas Young whose influence was the beginning of my radical
religious views. My father used to compose music which inspired me to write. After studying
Latin and Greek I composed pair of psalms when I was 15 years old. I spend a lot of time in
writing poetry including my first published short poem “Epitaph on the admirable
Dramaticke poet. W. Shakespeare”.

Interviewer: What is the purpose of poetry according to you?

John Milton: I believe that all poetry serve as philosophical, social, and religious purpose. I
think poetry glorifies God, promote religious values, enlighten readers and help people to
become better Christains.

Interviewer: Which poem is considered to be one of your finest work?

John Milton: “Paradise Lost” is considered to be one of my finest work. The Epic. At the age
of sixteen, I was already aspired to write the great English epic. As I read the classical epics
in school- Homer’s Odyssey and Iliad and Virgil’s Aeneid- I began to fantasize about
bringing such artistic brilliance to the English language. I had considered many topics for his
epic. Paradise lost a very long poem in blank verse. It tells the story of Adam and Eve and
how they are driven out of the Garden of Eden by God because they do not obey him.

Interviewer: As Paradise Lost is considered to be one of your finest work, what are the
various themes, imagery and symbolism used?

John Milton: The main theme of Paradise Lost is the rejection of God’s Laws. This epic work
deals with Satan’s rejection of God’s Law and Satan’s subsequent expulsion to earth where
he seeks to ruin Man. Satan is expelled with a third of the angels (now demons) who chose to
follow him rather than the God. Opposites abound in Paradise Lost including Heaven and
Hell, God and Satan, and good and evil. I have used the imagery of light and darkness to
express all of these opposites. Angels are physically described in terms of light, whereas
devils are generally described by their shadowy darkness. Then dropping of the wreath
symbolizes that his love and attraction to Eve is falling away. His image of her as a spiritual
companion has been shattered completely, as he realizes her fallen state. The fallen wreath
represents the loss of pure love.

Interviewer: What are the various writing styles you use while writing poetry or prose?

John Milton: My poetic style is also known as Miltonic verse, Miltonic epic or Miltonic blank
verse, it is highly influential poetic structure which is popularized by me. My influence is
largely grounded in my later poems: Paradise Lost, Paradise Regained, and Samson
Agonistes. I also intended to write in “grand style”. The style took the form of numerous
references and allusions, complex vocabulary, complicated grammatical constructions, and
extended similes and images. In doing so, I created an artificial style that very few writers
tried it too.

Interviewer: Can you give us some deep insights of the poem “On the Morning of Christ’s
Nativity”?

John Milton: “On the Morning of Christ’s Nativity” is an ode which I wrote in 1629. The
poem describes Christ’s Incarnation and his overthrow of earthly and pagan powers. The
poem also connects the Incarnation with Christ’s Crucifixion. The poem speaks on themes of
coming of age and religion. Scholars often associate the composition of this work with my
age and the birth of Christ. I am celebrating the nativity but also my own entry into the adult
world. This is the first great poem written by me.

Interviewer: What are the main characteristics of your poetry?

John Milton: My two outstanding qualities as a poet are my incomparable sense of beauty
and my matchless “stateliness of manner”. My sense of beauty is to be seen, to advantage, in
my early poems like Lycidas or the Nativity Ode.

Interviewer: As the poem “Paradise Regained” shares similar themes with Paradise Lost, can
you tell us something more about it?

John Milton: Paradise Regained is a poem which was first published in 1671. The volume in
which appeared also contained my closest drama Samson Agonistes. This poem is connected
by my name and more famous epic poem “Paradise Lost”, with which it shares similar
theological themes; indeed its title; its use of blank verse, and its progression through
Christain history recall the earlier work. However, my efforts deals primarily with the
temptation of Christ as recounted in the Gospel of Luke.

Interviewer: What is your message to the young poets who are willing to explore the new
dimensions of poetry?

John Milton: I would like to urge younger poets to publish their works in reputed poetry
magazines first and then only publish a collection of poems. Please do not rush to publish a
book. There is not much scope of making money out of poetry writing, most of the time poets
have to struggle to get a book published. Therefore, I would urge younger poets to find a
daily job to meet their physical needs and write poetry to meet their spiritual needs.

I would like to advise them to keep a notebook, record your observations, learn poetic
devices such as the use of metaphors, rhymes, poetic forms etc. There is no perfect poem.
Every poem is an attempt towards perfection. Every poem can be improved. Try writing a
poem but always make an attempt to rewrite it, revise it, before you send it for publication.
Interviewer: Thank You sir for spending some quality time with us and giving us deep
insights about your major works. It was pleasure meeting you. Have a nice day!

John Milton: You too! God bless you!