Includes bibliographical references (pages 64-69).
Contents:
1. Introduction -- 2. Novel divides: characters and people -- 3. Novel connectivity: female characters and women's emancipation -- 4. Conclusion -- References.
Summary:
This Element sheds new light on the ubiquitous yet complex notion of mimesis. By systematically comparing the social dynamics of the Dutch population at a given time with the social dynamics of characters in Dutch literary fiction published in the same period, it aims to pinpoint the ways and the extent to which literary fiction either mirrors or shapes the societal context from which it emerged. While close-reading-based scholarship on this topic has been limited to qualitative interpretations of allegedly exemplary works, the present study uses the data-driven tools of social network analysis to systematically determine the imitative elements of the social dynamics of characters within larger-scale, representative collections of books of literary fictions--back cover.
Series:
Cambridge Elements. Elements in digital literary studies, 2633-4380
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.