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Method
There isn't a single formula or a secret recipe for the successful study of literature. But to do it seriously you should be a deep and attentive reader. This means reading, then re-reading. It means making an active engagement with the book. And it means making notes.

Approach
You can read the novel quickly first, just to get an idea of the story-line. Then you will need to read it again more slowly, making notes. If you don't have time, then one careful slower reading should combine understanding and note-taking

Make notes
Make two types of notes - some written in the book itself, and others on separate pages. Those in the book are for highlighting small details as you go along. Those on separate pages are for summaries of evidence, collections of your own observations, and page references for study topics or quotations.

Notes in the book
Use a soft pencil - not a pen. Ink is too distracting on the page. Don't underline whole paragraphs. If something strikes you as interesting, write a brief note saying why or how it is so. If you read on the bus or in the bath, use the inside covers and any blank pages for making notes.


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Studying Fiction is an introduction to the basic concepts and terms you need for studying prose fiction. It explains the elements of literary analysis one at a time, then shows you how to apply them. Contains stories by Arthur Conan Doyle, Katherine Mansfield, Thomas Hardy, Joseph Conrad, D.H. Lawrence, and Charles Dickens. All of them are excellent tales in their own right. Very popular.






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Separate notes
You will definitely remember the characters, events, and features of a novel more easily if you make notes whilst reading. Use separate pages for different topics. You might make a record of

•characters
•chronology of events
•major themes
•stylistic features
•narrative strategies
Characters
Make a note of the name, age, appearance, and their relationship to other characters in the novel. Writers usually give most background information about characters when they are first introduced into the story. Make a note of the page(s) on which this occurs. Note any special features of main characters, what other characters (or the author) thinks of them.

Chronology of events
A summary of each chapter will help you reconstruct the whole story long after you have read it. The summary prompts the traces of reading experience which lie dormant in your memory.

A chronology of events might also help you to unravel a complex story. It might help separate plots from sub-plots, and even help you to see any underlying structure in the story - what might be called the 'architecture of events'.

Major themes
These are the important underlying issues with which the novel is concerned. They are usually summarised as abstract concepts such as - marriage, education, justice, freedom, and redemption. These might only emerge slowly as the novel progresses on first reading - though they might seem much more obvious on subsequent readings.

Seeing the main underlying themes will help you to appreciate the relative importance of events. It will also help you to spot cross-references and appreciate some of the subtle effects orchestrated by the author.

Stylistic features
These are the decorative and literary hallmarks of the writer's style - which usually make an important contribution to the way the story is told. The style might be created by any number of features:

•choice of vocabulary
•imagery and metaphors
•shifts in tone and register
•use of irony and humour
Quotations
If you are writing an essay about the novel, you will need quotations from it to support your arguments. You must make a careful note of the pages on which they occur. Do this immediately whilst reading - otherwise tracking them down later will waste lots of time.

Record page number and a brief description of the subject. Write out the quotation itself if it is short enough. Don't bother writing out long quotations.


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Studying the Novel explains the difference between 'story' and 'plot', between a symbol and an image - and between 'tone' and 'mood'. Defines 'realism', 'modernism', and 'postmodernism'. Revised, expanded, and updated fourth edition of a study that is readable and entertaining without being simplistic. Structured approach with chapter summaries and information on study skills, plus suggestions for further reading.