The definition, characteristics, classification, origin and development of novels? China's classic novels.

Novel is a major style in the four-part division of literary genre. It is a literary genre that reflects life and expresses ideas by shaping characters, telling stories and describing the environment.

Definition:

Novel refers to a literary creation genre that is juxtaposed with prose, poetry and drama in the sequence of language, literature and art, and refers to a literary creation genre that takes narrative things as the creative technique and typicality as the aesthetic feature.

It is a literary genre that focuses on shaping characters and reflects social life through the narrative of complete stories and the description of profound environment. It is a literary work with complete layout, reasonable development and aesthetic principles running through the theme.

It can also be said that the novel is a literary genre that reflects the social life and personal inner world by describing the plot and environment and portraying characters as the main means.

Classification:

According to the length of the space:

Minifiction

Novels are shorter than short stories, which fully conforms to the reading habits of busy people in the rapidly changing modern society. Almost every day, people give new terms and definitions to this kind of novels. For example, short stories, short stories, short stories, micro-information novels, one-minute novels, a pack of cigarette novels, pocket novels, focus novels, primary school novels, thumb novels, mini novels and so on. , too numerous to mention, too numerous to mention, even specialized literary researchers find it difficult to distinguish their definitions, so ordinary people are more likely to be confused, so in general. It is generally believed that the length of short stories should be less than two thousand words. Because the theme is often a fragment of life experience, which can be headless and tailless, can be headless and tailless, or even headless and tailless. The climax is put at the end, and it ends as soon as it comes out, creating an artistic conception with lingering sound. Because it is shorter than short stories, the text needs to be more concise, and it is best to know the theme. Although an unexpected ending can attract people's attention, the essay should be foreshadowed, and more attention should be paid to whether it can impress readers than to surprise them.

short story

It is generally believed that novels with a length of several thousand to more than 20 thousand words will be classified as short stories. In its characteristics, there is the so-called three unifications-one person, one place and one time, that is, reducing the role, narrowing the stage and shortening the time flowing in the story. In addition, although they tend to cherish ink like gold, it is generally believed that short stories should conform to the original definition of novels, that is, there should be enough details to describe them, which is by no means an abridgement or outline of novels.

medium-length novel

Generally speaking, novels between 30,000 words and100000 words, and a few with a length exceeding100000 words, are regarded as novellas rather than novels. Generally speaking, it is a novel that is easy to succeed. Because for people who are new to the creative field, writing long stories is easy to fall into the predicament caused by most plots, while writing short stories is either monotonous with too few turns or too many turns. At this time, it is a widely recommended suggestion to consider changing the original idea into a novella.

long novel

Generally speaking, it is not appropriate to regard a novel as a novel with too few words. The novel reflects a lot of things and is very rich in content. It is difficult to become a novel with too few words (unless a few words are extremely rich). The word number of novels is the most uncertain, and the word number gap is the biggest. There are hundreds of thousands of words (this is the bottom line of novel words), and there are also millions or even millions of novels. This kind of novels can also be divided into short stories (generally between100000 and 300000 words), novellas (generally between 500000 and 600000 words), novels (generally over 800000 words), super novels (generally up to1500000 words) and giant novels (often millions of words, like more than two million words and three). If the author intends to express the complex relationships that are common in life, he must use such a large space. Usually, even novels with relaxed style will have serious themes, otherwise it will easily fall into a state of disorder or disorder. When beginners write long stories, they should pay attention to the overall response to the theme and the rigor of the structure to avoid repeated contradictions or omissions.

According to the novel plot type classification:

There are martial arts novels, romance novels, romance novels, mystery novels, mystery novels, historical novels, military novels, science fiction novels, online games novels, fantasy novel, modern revised novels, military historical novels, overhead historical novels, travel novels, magic novels, YY novels, honey trap novels, mafia novels, fan fiction, and light novels.

Kung fu story

There are also martial arts novels, represented by Jin Yong, which can be regarded as male romance and inspirational novels.

romance novel

(including many, such as harem, travel, city, youth campus, etc.)

romance novel

An independent branch of romance novels; Some people say that it is one of the predecessors of romance, that is, the legend of Tang Dynasty; Contemporary masterpiece "Tarim River")

detective fiction

(Reasoning is largely suspense)

suspense novel

(Suspense is reasoning to a great extent)

historical novel

Historical novels are usually separated from military novels. Strictly speaking, historical novels mainly describe historical figures and events. )

military novel

(mainly military war)

science fiction

There is a lot of scientific content, not fiction.

Internet novel

(the product of the new era, originated from online games)

Fantasy novel; Fantasy novel

It is very different from science fiction. Many of them are imaginative and most of them are oriental.

Ye Yan's novels

(similar to romance novels)

Overhead historical novels

(Chinese mainland's new novel, characterized by overhead history)

Back in time novel

(It is also a novel of Chinese mainland's new school, which is characterized by the crisscross of time and space. )

Magic novel

Almost equal to fantasy, but magic is more westernized.

YY novel

(non-mainstream novels)

Slant novel

(originated in Japan)

Mafia novels

(the product of the new era, derived from martial arts novels)

fanfiction

(Works re-created on the basis of TV series, animation and games)

Lighthearted novel

The most promising novel system in modern times originated in Japan.

An exchange of novels (infinite flow's novels)

(Infinite terror comes from zhttty)

Note 1: It is generally believed that both mystery novels and mystery novels originate from the development of crime novels and are separated from two different types of novels. The difference between mystery novels and detective novels is not significant, and they can be classified into one category. Generalized mystery novels include horror novels (horror suspense), supernatural novels (supernatural suspense), adventure novels (adventure suspense) and so on.

Classification by written language:

Pure literary novels

popular fiction

According to the content of the work:

Realistic novels

Surreal novels (such as magic novels, supernatural novels, etc.). )

Classification by writing style:

Traditional novels (including note novels, legendary novels, storytelling novels and Zhang Hui novels)

Network novels (including online games novels, gangster novels, air novels, etc.). )

Classification by written language:

Ancient vernacular novels

Contemporary Ancient Vernacular Novels (Re-supporting Korean Room)

China's Classical Novels (Liaozhai)

vernacular novel

Local novels

According to the work carrier classification:

Comic novel

Electronic novel

About electronic novels, including mobile phone novels, it is a novel writing or reading form with mobile phone as the carrier, which is spread; Taking the mobile phone as the creative way refers to the leader of thumb culture creating novels through the mobile phone keyboard, also known as mobile phone novels.

According to the writer's personal classification:

First person novel

Third-person novel

epistolary novel

Dialogue novel

Diary novel

By length/words:

Short stories: thousands to 20,000 words.

Medium-length: about 30,000 to100,000 words.

Novel:100000 words or more

Miniature novel: more concise than short stories, thousands of words.

The number of words is only approximate, and there is no specific boundary between the two levels.

According to genre classification:

Classical novel

satirical novel

Realistic novels

Modernist novels

Critical realistic novels

Romantic novel

Naturalistic novels

Formalism novel

Expressionist novels

Existentialist novels

stream-of-consciousness novel

New novel school

Magic Realism

By age:

Classical novel

Modern novels

Contemporary novels

Classification by process:

uninterrupted

The whole novel

Features:

1 unique perspective, seeing the big from the small.

2 characters, distinctive personality.

3 portrayal of the soul, incisive.

4 plot arrangement, ingenuity

Describe the environment, set off the clouds and hold the moon.

Fiction is the essence of this novel. "Capturing the emotional experience of characters' lives" is the artistic content that the novel tries to explore. The more fresh, subtle, unique, accurate and profound the feeling experience is, the more novel it is. "Fiction" and "capturing the emotional experience of the characters' lives" are the things that can best reflect the essence of the novel. When portraying characters in novels, a real person can be used as a model, and some other people's stories can be integrated. For example, Lu Xun said, "The model of a character is never dedicated to a person. Often, his mouth is in Zhejiang, his face is in Beijing, and his clothes are in Shanxi. It is a patchwork role. "In any excellent novel, there are always unforgettable typical characters. People can see and understand many people's faces through these typical art mirrors. Stories come from life, and are the refinement of real life, which is more concentrated and representative than real life. Events and contradictions in real life have a beginning and an end, ups and downs, and there is a certain development process, so the plot of the novel also has paragraphs and processes. This process is generally divided into four parts: beginning, development, climax and ending. Sometimes there are prologue and epilogue. In a work, the arrangement of the plot depends on the author's artistic conception and does not necessarily follow the natural order of events in real life. Sometimes a part can be omitted, and sometimes it can be reversed or staggered. Fiction, like composition, also pays attention to description and material selection. A good novel is always immersive, not as boring as a scientific report. The author can always impress this story firmly in the reader's mind with beautiful writing, vivid description and incredible imagination. These are some characteristics of traditional novels.

The origin of the novel:

One is a fable. For example, Mencius, Zhuangzi, Han Feizi and the Warring States Policy have many fables with distinctive characters, which are novel-like.

The second is historical biography. Such as Zuo Zhuan, Warring States Policy, Historical Records and History of the Three Kingdoms, describe the characters' personalities and plots, or provide materials for novels, or accumulate narrative experience for novels.

The third is the literati notes. This was particularly evident in the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, and most of the literati's notes recorded some anecdotes, anecdotes and materials.

The fourth is folk entertainment. In every dynasty, there were resident speakers and storytellers in teahouses and restaurants. They told a short story (novel) on the basis of scripts every day to attract guests to come back and listen to books every day, hoping to ensure a prosperous business.

develop

China's novels have been baptized by ancient pre-Qin fairy tales, novels of Han, Jin and Six Dynasties, legendary novels of Sui and Tang Dynasties, novels of Song and Yuan Dynasties, novels of Zhang Hui in Ming and Qing Dynasties, modern and contemporary vernacular novels and online novels that have emerged in recent years, and it has been about 3,000 years. According to the historical period of the novel, it can be divided into two stages, that is, before the New Culture Movement, it can be called the classical novel stage, and after the New Culture Movement, it can be called the modern novel stage.

(1) Classical novels sprouted in the pre-Qin Dynasty, developed in the Han Dynasty, formed in the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, formed in the Tang Dynasty, flourished in the Song and Yuan Dynasties, and flourished in the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

During the pre-Qin and Han dynasties, myths and legends, fables and historical biography literature appeared in the society at that time became the source of the narrative of classical novels. Myths and legends already have two basic elements: characters and plots. Fables and allusions scattered in the books of a hundred schools of thought provide useful experience, and historical works have a relatively complete structure, characters and historical background.

During the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, strange novels appeared. Strictly speaking, this is still not a novel, but only the embryonic form of the novel. Shi Shuo Xin Yu is also an excellent work in this period, which brings together many short and pithy stories.

In the Tang Dynasty, the development of ancient novels tended to mature, forming an independent literary form-legendary novels, and China's novels broke away from the historical field and became literary creations. The three love legends in Tang Dynasty are the landmark works of this period.

During the Song and Yuan Dynasties, the development of commodity economy and the rise of market culture brought profound soil to novel creation. Literati processed scripts and formed many script novels and romance novels.

During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, novels began to be created independently by literati. During this period, the writer's subjective consciousness was enhanced. The appearance of A Dream of Red Mansions pushed the development of China's ancient novels to a peak and made unprecedented achievements. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, countless classic works emerged and spread around the world. For example, in the Ming Dynasty, the four wonderful books (Journey to the West, Water Margin, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Jin Ping Mei) were written in two words (warning words, Yu Shiming's words, one surprised at first sight, two surprised at first sight), and in the Qing Dynasty, A Dream of Red Mansions, Scholars, Travels of the Old Disabled and Strange Stories from a Lonely Studio. Preface to Yuan Boying's Poems (Yuan Keli Zi) by Dong Qichang in the Ming Dynasty: "In the past twenty years, I have broken into a circle, immersed myself in a wide range of stories, and caught novels in Mandarin, all of which are users of posts."

During the period of the Republic of China, especially since the May 4th Movement, China was invaded by foreign powers, various social thoughts prevailed, foreign cultures impacted traditional cultures, China's novels developed towards diversification, and various novel themes emerged, among which Yuanyang Butterfly School, the originator of modern romance novels, appeared at this time. The representative figures of orthodox novels are Ba Jin, Mao Dun, Ding Ling, Bing Xin and Lao She.

From the founding of New China to the 1990s, China's novels formed the Mainland School and Shanghai School (including Hong Kong and Taiwan). Mainland novels follow the orthodox vein, while Hong Kong and Taiwan novels develop in the two directions of martial arts and romance, resulting in the Jin Yong era and Qiong Yao era respectively.

(2) Modern novels rose in the Republic of China and flourished in the new century, especially the appearance of online novels in 2003, which subverted the traditional writing and communication mode.

With the popularity of the Internet. Network writers have become a new force in novel creation, and a number of famous network novelists such as Anne Baby, Caishen Ning and Xing Yusen have emerged. Since 2000, the emergence of online literature has subverted the traditional writing and communication mode, and a number of influential novels have appeared, such as The Story of Wukong (where is the author), The Five Elements under the Mountain (the author is a madman) and The First Intimate Contact (the author is rascal Cai). In 2003, the emergence and formation of "Four Little Queens", "Six Little Princesses", "Eight Little Linglong" and the martial arts writers in fantasy novel, represented by the starting point, marked that online novels had become another creative subject besides mainstream literature.

China's classic novels:

Four Great Classical Novels is now recognized as The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, The Water Margin, The Journey to the West, A Dream of Red Mansions and Jin Ping Mei.

Six Talented Books: Zhuangzi, Li Sao, Historical Records, Du Fu's Poems, The Water Margin and The West Chamber.

Ten masterpieces: Dream of Red Mansions, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Water Margin, The Journey to the West's Romance of Sui and Tang Dynasties, Yang Jiajiang, Legend of Eastern Zhou Dynasty, Romance of Gods, Legend of Yue Fei and Strange Tales from a Lonely Studio.

Three words and two beats: wake up the world, Yu Shiming, warn the world, be surprised one moment, be surprised the next.

Five wonderful books: Officialdom Appears, Travel Notes of Lao Can, Evil Sea Flowers, The Present Situation of Monsters Witnessed in Twenty Years, The Scholars.

Legendary novels: Biography of Li Wa, Biography of Yingying, Biography of Huo Xiaoyu, Bedside Story, Biography of Conan Taishou, Biography of Tarim River.

Strange Tales from a Lonely Studio, Midday Rain, Yuewei Caotang Notes, Song Yin Miscellaneous Notes, and A Grass in the Shadow Window.

Historical novels: History of Eastern Zhou Dynasty, Romance against Tang Dynasty, History of the First Seven Kingdoms, History of the Last Seven Kingdoms, Romance of Northern History, Romance of Sui and Tang Dynasties.

Ghost novels: Unfamiliar Records, The Journey to the West, Fairy Tales, Wizard of Oz, Legend of Pingyao, Biography of Borneo, Journey to the West by Sambo Eunuch, Travels to the South, Travels to the North and Travels to the East.

Heroic Legendary Novels: Biography of the Tang Dynasty, Biography of the State of Yue, Romance of Yang Jiajiang, Biography of the Five Tiger Generals in Di Qing, Xue Gang's Anti-Tang Dynasty and Biography of the Tang Dynasty.

Case-solving novels: Bao case, Xinmin case, sea case, forest case and stone case.

Love stories: Biography of Awakening Marriage, Deng, Continued Jin Ping Mei, Xing, Wonders of Ancient and Modern Times, History of Zen Truth, History after Zen Truth, Awakening the 12th Floor, Silent Drama, Two episodes of West Lake and Legend of New White Snake.

Tales of talented people and beautiful women: five beautiful fates, a story of Mei Lan, a cold swallow in Pingshan, a fantasy of flying flowers, a good story and biography, a romance of two phoenix, a song of five phoenix, colorful stone, green peony and a beautiful country.

Wild acid, history and the exposure story of flowers in the mirror.

Chivalrous novels: heroic stories of children, three chivalrous men and five righteous men, small righteous men, big eight righteous men, seven swords and thirteen chivalrous men

Others: Love history, cheat classics, snicker in the forest, how dare you!