The Art of the Novel: Essays on the Art of Fiction

New York: Vintage Books, 1934. First Edition, First Printing. Very Good Hardcover in a Good Dust Jacket. Very Good/Good.

Black cloth; the bindings are tight and square. Text clean, light even toning. Modest shelf handling wear. Rub with loss on last page on rear endpage on edge center. The dust jacket is price-clipped and has handling wear with loss on the lower spine and rubbed corners now in a new protective Mylar sleeve. 8vo; 8 inches tall; 348 pages. [enotes]. In the "The Art of Fiction," Henry James holds the view that fiction is an art that cannot be governed by a set of rules. According to the author, fiction is a genre that should not be confined by a set of guidelines since they will make it less of an art.

Moreover, James argues that fiction cannot be limited by morals since it prevents the artist from exploring his or her creativity. A work of art is an expression of an artist's feelings, which should not be restricted by morality.

Also, he notes that artists must be able to create from their own imagination and not only from personal experience. James recognizes fiction as an art that requires a natural ability that cannot be taught.

Background Information:

Henry James was an American-born British author. He is regarded as a key transitional figure between literary realism and literary modernism and is considered by many to be among the greatest novelists in the English language.