Fabulation
Encyclopedia
In literary criticism
, the term fabulation was popularized by Robert Scholes
, in his work The Fabulators, to describe the large and growing class of mostly 20th century novel
s that are in a style similar to magical realism, and do not fit into the traditional categories of realism
or (novelistic) romance
. They violate, in a variety of ways, standard novelistic expectations by drastic—and sometimes highly successful—experiments with subject matter, form, style, temporal sequence, and fusions of the everyday, fantastic, mythical, and nightmarish, in renderings that blur traditional distinctions between what is serious or trivial, horrible or ludicrous, tragic or comic. To a large extent, fabulism and postmodernism
coincide; John Barth
, for example, was labeled a fabulist until the term "postmodernism" was coined.
Literary criticism
Literary criticism is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often informed by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of its methods and goals...
, the term fabulation was popularized by Robert Scholes
Robert Scholes
Robert E. Scholes is an American literary critic and theorist. He is known for his ideas on fabulation and metafiction.He graduated from Yale University. Since 1970 he has been a Professor at Brown University....
, in his work The Fabulators, to describe the large and growing class of mostly 20th century novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
s that are in a style similar to magical realism, and do not fit into the traditional categories of realism
Literary realism
Literary realism most often refers to the trend, beginning with certain works of nineteenth-century French literature and extending to late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century authors in various countries, towards depictions of contemporary life and society "as they were." In the spirit of...
or (novelistic) romance
Romance novel
The romance novel is a literary genre developed in Western culture, mainly in English-speaking countries. Novels in this genre place their primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people, and must have an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." Through the late...
. They violate, in a variety of ways, standard novelistic expectations by drastic—and sometimes highly successful—experiments with subject matter, form, style, temporal sequence, and fusions of the everyday, fantastic, mythical, and nightmarish, in renderings that blur traditional distinctions between what is serious or trivial, horrible or ludicrous, tragic or comic. To a large extent, fabulism and postmodernism
Postmodernism
Postmodernism is a philosophical movement evolved in reaction to modernism, the tendency in contemporary culture to accept only objective truth and to be inherently suspicious towards a global cultural narrative or meta-narrative. Postmodernist thought is an intentional departure from the...
coincide; John Barth
John Barth
John Simmons Barth is an American novelist and short-story writer, known for the postmodernist and metafictive quality of his work.-Life:...
, for example, was labeled a fabulist until the term "postmodernism" was coined.
Further reading
- Robert ScholesRobert ScholesRobert E. Scholes is an American literary critic and theorist. He is known for his ideas on fabulation and metafiction.He graduated from Yale University. Since 1970 he has been a Professor at Brown University....
, The Fabulators (1967); also expanded upon in Fabulation and Metafiction (1979). - James M. Mellard, The Exploded Form: The Modernist Novel in America (1980).