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Works of Daniel Defoe: Critical Commentary

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From: Monarch Notes
Date: 19630101
Author:Defoe, Daniel

Defoe, Daniel
Monarch Notes
01-01-1963
Critical Commentary

The Origin Of The Novel.

Daniel Defoe has attracted a surprising and perhaps disproportionate
amount of interest from the critics. The reason for this interest lies in the
fact that Defoe was writing at the time when the English novel was just coming
into being as a distinct literary form, or genre. Most writers on Defoe deny
him the honor of being the first English novelist. They maintain that a novel,
as well as being an extended prose narrative, must be a coherent story in
which all the parts contribute to the total effect. It must ...

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