The Novel, Spirituality and Modern Culture

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Description

If, as Donna Tartt writes, 'the novel in its history and genesis is an emphatically secular art form: the product of a secular society, addressing primarily secular concerns', how can there be any relationship between spirituality and narrative fiction Are there any specific factors in the form of the novel and in modern culture generally which might make the novel an unsuitable medium for the exploration of religious experience and spiritual values, or can the novel take the reader on a journey of spiritual discovery In this book, practitioners of the art of novel-writing - Donna Tartt, Jill Paton Walsh, David McLaurin, Sara Maitland, Catherine Fox, Susan Howatch, T. Davis Bunn and William Horwood - consider the relationship between the novel and spirituality in our society.

Reviews

'As first-hand accounts from jobbing authors, the essays offer a rare commentary on how spirituality (or for that matter religion or theology) informs or is to be located in a given art form ... In providing an introductory essay that brings these voices into debate, Fiddes goes a long way towards orientating the reader to the themes that turn this collection in to a single book.' (Reviews in Religion and Theology) '...thoughtful assessments of the contemporary novel's link to religion and spirituality.' Journal of Contemporary Religion 'The editor provides a superb introduction to the issues explored in this very recommendable book.' Expository Times '...an outstanding volume of essays...an adroit and instructive book, it remains important reading for anyone wanting to understand the endlessly fascinating field of literature and theology.' Southern Humanities Review

Author Bio

Paul S. Fiddes is Principal of Regent's Park College, Oxford