Rise of the Novel
* The wide circulation of printed copies and circulating libraries made the novel a popular genre.
* The first novels were written in the 17th century but novel writing blossomed in the 18th century.
* The aristocrats, gentlemanly class and the upcoming lower middle class became the first readers of novels in England and France.
* Women became active readers and writers of novels.
* Writing was not considered an ideal profession for women so women writers used false name or pseudonyms.
* Novels for young boys aroused the adventure of visiting and conquering new lands.
Rise of the Novel in India
* The growth of the reading public, print and vernaculars helped in the growth of the novel in India.
* The earliest novels were written in Marathi and Bengali.
* Writing became a tool to combat the colonial invasion on Indian culture.
* The first Hindi novel was Pariksha Guru written by Srinivas Das.
* Premchand wove interesting stories in lucid Hindi around the lives of ordinary people.
* In southern India, writers like Chandu Menon and Kandukuri Veeresalingam brought the genre of novel writing.
* In Bengal, the novels were based on historical events or the inner world of domestic life.
Novels in the Colonial World
* Novels developed in Europe at a time when it was colonising the world.
* Many Indian novels criticised the defects in the society and suggested reforms.
* Novels were used by British Administrators to gather information on the social and religious life of Indians.
* Indian writers wrote novels to glorify Indian history and create a sense of national pride in people.
* Premchand depicted collective belonging in his novels by showing characters from all strata of society.
* Novels like Indulekha, showed how Indian readers could successfully blend the western and the Indian lifestyle together.
New Voices in the Indian Novel
* Indulekha, a Malayalam novel, highlighted the marriage debate between the Nambuthiri Brahmins and the Nayars.
* Many writers from the suppressed groups like Dalits and peasants began to voice their their thoughts in writing.
* Vaikkom Mohammad Basheer was an early Muslim Malayalam writer who dwelt on personal experienced and wrote short stories and novels.