BASIC GUIDELINES TO STUDY A NOVEL

 When you decide to study a novel you need to have self-discipline and work on a plan for the study to be effective. Enlisted below are some guideline to help you study a novel:

-         You will need to read the novel more than once. Start reading it quickly for pleasure and then read it again slowly and thoroughly.

-         On your second reading, make detailed notes on the plot, characters and theme of the novel. When you read again, you will see new ideas and you will also memorize the details of the story.

-         Some of the characters will develop and emerge distinctly different from others as you re-read the novel. You will also find that your response towards them changes during the course of the novel.

-         Think about how the novel is narrated. From whose point of view are the events described?

-         Does the novel present events chronologically or does the time scheme change constantly? What is the technique applied and why?

-         What part do the settings play in the novel?

-         Are words, images, incidents, repeated so as to give the work a pattern? Do such patterns help you understand the theme of the novel?

-         Does the novel present a just and moral world?

-         Cite exact sources for all quotations whether from the text itself or from critical commentaries when writing a report about the novel. You can also find your own examples from the novel to back up your opinion.