Classical Wisdom Speaks The Death of Literary Fiction.... And its Resurrection?
Mar 6, 2024
Joel Bowman, a journalist-turned-novelist known for Morris, Alive and Night Drew Her Sable Cloak, discusses whether literary fiction is dying or due for a renaissance. He explores why humans tell stories, how fiction and nonfiction blur, the role of readers’ imagination, publishing pressures and indie routes like Substack. He also touches on classics, digital distractions, and the enduring power of short novels.
01:05:19
Stories Help Us Live
- Humans tell stories to project narratives onto a screen and make sense of life.
- Joel Bowman links Joan Didion: we tell ourselves stories in order to live.
Fact And Fiction Blur
- The line between fiction and nonfiction is porous because authors filter experience.
- Bowman argues all fiction is autobiographical and autobiography is partially fictional.
Rowling's Rejections Reveal Gatekeeper Misses
- Joel recalls J.K. Rowling's many rejections as evidence legacy gates miss talents.
- He notes thousands of agents likely didn't even send rejection letters to her.
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Intro
00:00 • 2min
Why humans tell stories
02:21 • 4min
Defining literary fiction
05:58 • 5min
Fact versus fiction blurred
11:04 • 3min
Reader vs. writer perspectives
14:07 • 2min
Why literary fiction endures
16:13 • 3min
Writers' motives and publishing realities
19:43 • 3min
Legacy publishing's limitations
22:41 • 3min
Attention spans and cultural shifts
25:42 • 4min
Joyce, Woolf and censorship's lesson
30:10 • 3min
Substack and direct-to-reader publishing
32:51 • 5min
Classics enrich modern reading
37:46 • 5min
Why tragedy and literature matter
42:54 • 3min
Should authors build audience first?
46:09 • 5min
Word counts and form matters less
50:40 • 2min
Buenos Aires' literary culture
52:26 • 3min
Digital distractions and hypertext
54:57 • 2min
Audiobooks versus reading
57:02 • 4min
Short novels can be powerful
01:00:46 • 2min
Night Drew Her Sable Cloak overview
01:03:02 • 2min
Outro
01:04:52 • 27sec
#32156
Night Drew His Sable Cloak
Night Drew Her Sable Cloak weaves together three distinct narratives, following three generations of heroines from the Midwest to the Far East, spanning the width and breadth of the entire 20th Century...As the Spanish flu rages across North America and the Great War draws to a close over on the European continent, a young midwestern missionary stands at the edge of the Pacific Ocean, alone under heaven, and contemplates the impossible mission set before her...A century later, a brand new mother fights for her life in an Argentine hospital, her body in full revolt against her very existence, her premature baby two floors below and a million miles away from her...Between them both, stretched across time and space, a pair of peripatetic parents-to-be traverse the great cities of the world, seeking truth, meaning and a place to finally call home. At once a meditation on the nature of being and a celebration of the incomprehensible unlikeliness of life itself, Night Drew Her Sable Cloak is a novel that brings together eastern and western philosophies to propose a whole new way to look at the world around us.
Joel Bowman
#70955
Morris, Alive
Joel Bowman
#338
• Mentioned in 74 episodes
Infinite jest
wit and humor in Italian Renaissance art
Paul Barolsky
In this book, Paul Barolsky examines the role of wit and humor in Italian Renaissance art, providing insights into the artistic and cultural context of the period.
The work delves into how artists of the Renaissance used humor and wit in their creations, reflecting the broader cultural and social attitudes of the time.
#964
• Mentioned in 35 episodes
Dante's Inferno
Dante Alighieri
Charles Eliot Norton
Inferno is the first part of Dante Alighieri's epic poem, The Divine Comedy.
It narrates Dante's fictional journey through the nine circles of Hell, guided by the ancient Roman poet Virgil.
The poem is an allegory representing the soul's journey towards God, starting with the recognition and rejection of sin.
Hell is depicted as a realm of those who have rejected spiritual values, with punishments fitting the sins committed.
The journey is a spiritual rescue mission initiated by Beatrice, who represents divine revelation and guides Dante through his spiritual growth and eventual readiness to leave sin behind.
#2187
• Mentioned in 19 episodes
The Sound and the Fury
William Faulkner
The Sound and the Fury is a novel by William Faulkner that chronicles the downfall of the Compson family, former Southern aristocrats, through four different narrative perspectives.
The novel is set in the fictional Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi, and spans several decades.
It is narrated by the three Compson brothers—Benjamin 'Benjy' Compson, an intellectually disabled man; Quentin Compson, a Harvard student who commits suicide; and Jason Compson, a bitter and cynical younger brother—and concludes with a third-person omniscient narrative focusing on Dilsey, the family's devoted Black servant.
The novel explores themes of time, death, and the disintegration of traditional Southern values, using a stream-of-consciousness style that includes frequent chronological leaps and non-linear storytelling.
#12174
• Mentioned in 4 episodes
Death and the Penguin
Andrei Kirkov
#129
• Mentioned in 139 episodes
Paradise Lost
John Milton
Published in 1667, 'Paradise Lost' is an epic poem in blank verse that follows the biblical story of the Fall of Man. The poem begins in medias res, detailing the descent of Satan and his followers into Hell after their rebellion against God. It explores two main narrative arcs: one focusing on Satan's actions and the other on Adam and Eve's story in the Garden of Eden.
The poem delves into themes such as free will, obedience, revenge, and pride, and it portrays the complex characters of Satan, Adam, and Eve. Milton's work is known for its rich language, classical structure, and profound theological and philosophical insights.
#7380
• Mentioned in 6 episodes
Death in Venice
Thomas Mann
Thomas Mann's "Death in Venice" follows Gustav von Aschenbach, a renowned writer, as he travels to Venice and becomes obsessed with a young boy named Tadzio.
The novella explores themes of beauty, art, desire, and the destructive nature of obsession.
Aschenbach's fascination with Tadzio leads to his moral and physical decline, culminating in his death.
The story is rich in symbolism and explores the complexities of human nature.
Mann masterfully uses imagery and language to create a haunting and unforgettable narrative.
The novella's exploration of repressed desires and the consequences of unchecked obsession continues to resonate with readers.
#204
• Mentioned in 103 episodes
Ulysses
James Joyce
Ulysses is a groundbreaking and complex modernist novel that chronicles the experiences of three Dubliners over a single day.
The novel is loosely based on Homer's epic poem 'The Odyssey', with Leopold Bloom paralleling Odysseus, Stephen Dedalus paralleling Telemachus, and Molly Bloom paralleling Penelope.
It explores themes such as antisemitism, human sexuality, British rule in Ireland, Catholicism, and Irish nationalism.
The novel is known for its innovative use of language and narrative techniques, including stream-of-consciousness and multiple literary styles.
It captures the essence of early 20th-century Dublin, providing a detailed snapshot of the city's social, political, and cultural landscape.
What is the future -as well as the past - of literary fiction? It is time for a Renaissance?
Destined for the dustbin of history, to be discarded along with so many quaint anachronisms, or is the genre itself bound for a long overdue renaissance?
Author and self-confessed “hopeless optimist,” Joel Bowman joins us for an in-depth discussion about these subjects in the context of his newest novel – the classically inspired Night Drew Her Sable Cloak.
About the Speaker:
A journalist by vocation, Mr. Bowman’s essays and columns have appeared in numerous news outlets and academic journals in the US and abroad. After two decades writing and speaking publicly about politics, economics and international living, Mr. Bowman turned his hand to fiction. His first novel – Morris, Alive – received critical acclaim from multiple New York Times bestselling authors. Night Drew Her Sable Cloak is his second work of literary fiction.
You can find Joel’s books here: https://joelbowman.substack.com/s/books
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