[demonrail666]

It's been under threat since the early 20th Century, with the coming of cinema, but has continued regardless to produce key works that do as much to define their era as anything in other media, but the numbers seem to be decreasing. Does the novel still have a cultural place in today's world?

[gmku]

Yes.

[!@#$%!]

does it have A cultural place-- but of course.

does it have THE same place it held in the XIX century? but of course not.

you have to consider competition from the explosion of the "non-fiction" book, plus films (drama and documentary), and now computer games?

i've actually been thinking about this for some time with regards to film. it seems that it's current pervasiveness is the mark of its impending demise-- well not demise, but it's bound to be bumped off the top pedestal in favor of something else-- interactive forms seem to be the future of something, but they are yet too primitive to truly present a challenge. im thinking AIs-- interacting with madame bovary instead of reading about her for example-- might be a future possibility-- say 50 years from now?

as for the novel-- it hasn't gone the way of the epic poem yet.

[LittlePuppetBoy]

I don't think so. Books are a constant source of inspiration for society.

[atsonicpark]

i thought the internet killed novels.

[Glice]

What an absurd question. Of course it hasn't. Only idiots would think that cinema is in any way better than a book. I mean that entirely sincerely as well.

[demonrail666]

Something doesn't have to be better than the thing it kills. Look at Luke Skywalker and the Death Star.

[atsonicpark]

i think about reading a novel and i play xenogears instead..

[Пятхъдесят Шест]

It may have had its day with the everyday coffee guzzling public, but it would be fair to say that for many, they are as important as they've ever been.

[Pookie]

Originally Posted by atsonicpark

i think about reading a novel and i play xenogears instead..

All that proves is that you're an idiot. There have always been other things to do; 50 years ago you would have thought about reading a book, but decided to pick your arse instead.

The internet has had a huge impact on sales of non-fiction/reference books (why buy a reference book when you can just google your question?), but fiction sales continue to grow (in the UK).

A more pertinent question would be, has the quality declined? And in the age of increased threat to high street book shops (independant and otherwise) from the internet, will there be a place where new novelists and quality novels are given the opportunity to be promoted and sold?

[LifeDistortion]

Novels are just as popular as they've always been, they just don't get the exposure that other media art like television shows and films get. Major cities still hold annual book fairs that draw a good crowd, and many new/current writers do book tours still, and hold readings. You find a good writer who can give a fun reading, someone like a Chuck Palahnuik, then its going to be just as fun as attending a theater to watch a movie. The shy, reclusive writer isn't the norm anymore, because once a book is released they are encouraged by the publisher/agent, to go out and meet the fans, at bookstores like Skylight Books or even a Borders.

[atsonicpark]

haha xenogears has more text than the bible though.

[Dead-Air]

I find the question rather irrelevant, which is meant as an actual answer and not a dis on anyone for asking it or posting it. I really enjoy reading books, and admin at a Science Fiction message board where we discuss them (among other things.) Is "cultural significance" that important compared to whether people who's opinion you appreciate like a book or not? Not for me.

Certainly, novels continue to be a source of inspiration for cinema (that usually doesn't live up to it's source material) and even for video games these days, but then so did the Dukes of Hazard, so I don't think that's particularly a measure of worth. A novel is just one form of media, and it still works for many people. It doesn't usually have the influence on society today of moving image media, but then I suppose something like the Davinci Code does on that sort of mass market level. I am personally not much more interested in reading it than watching Desperate Housewives or American Idol though.

[Pookie]

I agree that books are just one form of media. But it's one that I feel more passionate about than any other, including music.

But my love of books is a personal thing, and I'm also in the lucky position of working with books every day, and so I talk about them every day with other people who love them as much as I do.

[!@#$%!]

Originally Posted by Pookie

I agree that books are just one form of media. But it's one that I feel more passionate about than any other, including music.

But my love of books is a personal thing, and I'm also in the lucky position of working with books every day, and so I talk about them every day with other people who love them as much as I do.

during the 70's/80's some european critics were discussing the "death of the novel" as well as the "death of the author" and other such crap. all of them have now come back to apologize for their asinine predictions of doom with which the literary establishment shot itself in the ass.

while there was a postmodern crisis of the novel, in retrospective it was nothing more than a fit of the hiccups. and while europe (and to some extent north america) was pull its hairs in despair, third-world writers were cranking out great works, and the underground (genres like say science fiction, which dead-air was reminding us of) was undergoing their own earth-shaking revolutions.

the era of experimentation and predictions of disintegration are over though, now again we value interesting characters, compelling plots, and good prose. one of the problems these days however is that most new novels seem to have been written in a hurry, in order to meet the deadlines of merchandising campaigns... that is perhaps why the novel matters less today than before. not that writers never wrote under pressure, but can you imagine another finnegan's wake being published these days?

...and another thing is the same old argument we've been having here about revolutions and what not. while there are still some "committed writers" who address social issues and the like, there is little hope these days that "art will change the world", and so the beautifully heroic pipe dream of revolutionizing the world by revolutionizing literature is all but lost.

however.... things change, times change, and the most interesting books usually come out of times of crisis. right now society is pretty stagnant, except perhaps for technology, and that is why the most interesting work of recent years is not in traditional fiction but in science fiction.

one last thing-- as a former member of a writing program, i think the problem with good writing (as well as other arts) is that the arts, in general, are now under the patronage of universities-- at least in america. which has brought on the most inbred, narcissistic, and self-cannibalizing cultural elite in... history? cookie-cutter fiction workshops, poets who only read other poets and teach other future poets, and the whole debacle that's being discussed in the arts thread. it is tricky because nowadays everyone who wants to become "an artist" has to follow the same cloned programs, be it the iowa writers workshop or some mfa in painting or what not. science fiction writers have stayed cleared of that, but since the "cyberpunk revolution" academia has been taking an interest in the genre and i don't know how long (or if in fact it's now in place) until we start getting "science fiction writing programs" that kill the creativity of the whole thing.

anyway, i was up all night & i'm a bit sleepy and tired so that's all of my contribution right now.

[!@#$%!]

well??? nothing???

[Silent Dan Speaks]

Originally Posted by Glice

What an absurd question. Of course it hasn't. Only idiots would think that cinema is in any way better than a book. I mean that entirely sincerely as well.

Well, yeah, but look at the overwhelming number of idiots out there.

I do wonder if the novel is slowly being phased out, but I guess we'll have to sit around and see.

[pbradley]

Most of the mature/older people I know still read quite a lot of novels. Seeing that many of these were kids that grew up watching television and going to the movies, too, I'm assuming that younger people will pick up novels when they mature up.

[lungfish]

highly doubt it.

[Toilet & Bowels]

Originally Posted by !@#$%!

one last thing-- as a former member of a writing program, i think the problem with good writing (as well as other arts) is that the arts, in general, are now under the patronage of universities-- at least in america. which has brought on the most inbred, narcissistic, and self-cannibalizing cultural elite in... history?

very well put. it's strange how and why it has come to this.
and it's also a bit strange that arts/humanities academics are the biggest bunch of idiots in the english speaking world.