Is plot a line, an arc, or a shape? None of these. Rather than
thinking of plot as a sequence of events or actions put into place
solely through human agency against the backdrop of setting, this
book questions why we should distinguish between plot and
setting—and indeed, whether we can make such a distinction. After
all, plot, Yoon Sun Lee contends, cannot be disentangled from the
material setting in which it takes place. In The Natural Laws of
Plot, Lee connects the history of the novel and the history of
science to show how plot in the realist novel is given shape by the
characteristics of the physical world—and how in turn, plot
serves as the avenue through which the realist novel participates
in the same lines of inquiry about the world as pursued by the
natural and physical sciences. Lee argues that the novel emerges
and evolves in tandem with the development of scientific practices
and concepts in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Europe to
investigate the idea of a unified and objective world. Drawing on
readings from Defoe, Austen, Scott, and many others, Lee
demonstrates how bodies, human and non-human, behave according to
laws that are built into worlds by plot, and how they are subject
to causes and consequences that can occur independently of
individual action, social forces, or metaphysical destiny. This
interest in representing and exploring how things happen sets the
novel apart from other literary genres, and makes the history of
science integral to the understanding of the history and theory of
the novel, and of narrative. Plot, Lee shows us, is immersive and
powerful, because it satisfies our wish to know how things happen
in a coherent, objective, and possibly real world.
General
| Imprint: |
University of PennsylvaniaPress
|
| Country of origin: |
United States |
| Series: |
Alembics: Penn Studies in Literature and Science |
| Release date: |
September 2022 |
| Authors: |
Yoon Sun Lee
|
| Dimensions: |
229 x 152mm (L x W) |
| Format: |
Hardcover
|
| Pages: |
272 |
| ISBN-13: |
978-1-5128-2340-0 |
| Categories: |
Books >
Science & Mathematics >
Science: general issues >
History of science
|
| LSN: |
1-5128-2340-6 |
| Barcode: |
9781512823400 |
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
