Research Catalog

Empirical knowledge in the eighteenth-century novel beyond realism

Title
Empirical knowledge in the eighteenth-century novel [electronic resource] : beyond realism / Aaron R. Hanlon.
Author
Hanlon, Aaron R. (Aaron Raymond), 1982-
Publication
Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2022.

Available Online

Available onsite at NYPL

Details

Description
1 online resource (76 pages) : digital, PDF file(s).
Summary
This Element examines the eighteenth-century novel's contributions to empirical knowledge. Realism has been the conventional framework for treating this subject within literary studies. This Element identifies the limitations of the realism framework for addressing the question of knowledge in the eighteenth-century novel. Moving beyond the familiar focus in the study of novelistic realism on problems of perception and representation, this Element focuses instead on how the eighteenth-century novel staged problems of inductive reasoning. It argues that we should understand the novel's contributions to empirical knowledge primarily in terms of what the novel offered as training ground for methods of reasoning, rather than what it offered in terms of formal innovations for representing knowledge. We learn from such a shift that the eighteenth-century novel was not a failed experiment in realism, or in representing things as they are, but a valuable system for reasoning and thought experiment.
Series Statement
Cambridge elements. Elements in eighteenth-century connections, 2632-5578
Uniform Title
  • Empirical knowledge in the eighteenth-century novel (Online)
  • Cambridge elements. Elements in eighteenth-century connections
Alternative Title
Empirical knowledge in the eighteenth-century novel (Online)
Subject
  • English fiction > 18th century > History and criticism
  • Empiricism in literature
Note
  • Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 07 Nov 2022).
Access (note)
  • Access restricted to authorized users.
OCLC
ssj0002828971
Author
Hanlon, Aaron R. (Aaron Raymond), 1982-
Title
Empirical knowledge in the eighteenth-century novel [electronic resource] : beyond realism / Aaron R. Hanlon.
Imprint
Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2022.
Series
Cambridge elements. Elements in eighteenth-century connections, 2632-5578
Cambridge elements. Elements in eighteenth-century connections, 2632-5578.
Access
Access restricted to authorized users.
Connect to:
Available onsite at NYPL
Other Form:
Print version: 9781108791649
View in Legacy Catalog