Fiction_L Archives Epistolary novels Dates: 10/22/99,10:36 AM  through  10/25/99,1:25 PM  (3 postings) Search for: Select one or more indexes to search: 2011-current     2009-2010     2004-2008    1995-2003    (Matches from each index will be displayed separately in the results page.) Return to October 1999 thread menu   |   Fiction_L Archives Menu

FROM: "Leser, Debbie" <[removed]@rolling-meadows.lib.il.us>
REC'D: 10/22/99, 10:36 AM

Could someone give me a definition of Epistolary novel. Does it always have
to be in letter form? Can it be in the form of a diary, as in "Into the
Forest" by Jean Hegland? It may not be in letter form but she is writing to
who ever reads the diary.
Debbie Leser
Rolling Meadows Library
Rolling Meadows, IL.

FROM: "Joanna Hazelden" <[removed]@chipublib.org>
REC'D: 10/22/99, 11:54 AM

FROM: "Leser, Debbie" <[removed]@rolling-meadows.lib.il.us>
REC'D: 10/25/99, 1:25 PM

Joanna,
Thanks for the definition of epistolary novel.
Debbie Leser
Rolling Meadows Library
Rolling Meadows, IL.

----------
From: Joanna Hazelden[[removed]@chipublib.org]
Reply To: [removed]@maillist.nslsilus.org
Sent: Friday, October 22, 1999 1:55 PM
To: [removed]@maillist.nslsilus.org
Subject: Re: Epistolary novels

<<File: ATT00000.html>>
This is an excerpt from "Literary Terms: A Dictionary" by Karl Beckson:

epistolary novel: A narrative in the form of letters. Popular in the eighteenth
century, the epistolary device was notably successful in Samuel Richardson's
Pamela (1740) and Clarissa Harlowe (1747-48). The form enabled Richardson
conveniently to reveal his heroine's private thoughts and feelings while
advancing the plot.

I also remember reading that Richardson used this format to teach the etiquette
of writing different types of letters, and that the subject was so popular it's
original purpose was lost. This, I believe, was also the origins of the novel
itself.

Joanna Hazelden
Literature & Language
Harold Washington Library Center
The Chicago Public Library

A more modern example would be "Les Liaison Dangereuses" by Choderlos de
Laclos.

"Leser, Debbie" wrote:

> Could someone give me a definition of Epistolary novel. Does it always have
> to be in letter form? Can it be in the form of a diary, as in "Into the
> Forest" by Jean Hegland? It may not be in letter form but she is writing to
> who ever reads the diary.
> Debbie Leser
> Rolling Meadows Library
> Rolling Meadows, IL.

Return to October 1999 thread menu   |   Fiction_L Archives Menu

The Webrary® and Fiction_L are services of the Morton Grove Public Library "Webrary" is a registered trademark of the Morton Grove Public Library. All rights reserved. Copyright of Fiction_L postings belongs to their respective authors; postings may only be reused with the author's permission. Compiled lists (compilations of titles or authors from earlier postings on a particular topic) may not be reused for commercial purposes. To use a compiled list for non-commercial purposes, please credit "Subscribers of the Fiction_L mailing list." All other content is ©2012 Morton Grove Public Library, 6140 Lincoln Ave., Morton Grove, IL 60053-2989, (847) 965-4220.