Description
Book SynopsisPhelan's compelling readings cover important theoretical ground by introducing a valuable distinction between disclosure functions and narrator functions.
Trade Review"A well-known, prolific scholar of literary theory, Phelan takes on a difficult subject here. 'Character Narration' refers to narratives in which the 'speaker' of the narrative is not the author-writer but a character within the narrative. Phelan has found significant, meaningful aspects of this type of narration, and he explores all of them in this subtle, detailed book."—Choice, February 2005
"Of the many books dealing with the intricacies of narrative technique, and the impact of stories (especially the ethical impact), James Phelan's is the best I've read. It should be studied by every student of fiction. Unlike most current works on narration, this one makes me wish I could have read it before writing my own works on these issues."—Wayne C. Booth, Professor Emeritus, University of Chicago
"This is an admirable book—solidly grounded in narrative theory, both subtle and sensible in its analyses of specific texts, and, above all, humane and gracious in linking the rhetorical and ethical elements of reading. The appendix, in which some famous literary character-narrators engage in a dialogue, is clever, and the glossary of critical terminology is clear and helpful."—Robert Scholes, Brown University
"Living to Tell about It makes a significant contribution to our understanding of a kind of fiction central to the study of modern, and particularly modern American, literature. James Phelan's definition of 'character narration' and the apparatus he creates for understanding it are useful and suggestive, and I predict they will be widely adopted."—Harry E. Shaw, author of Narrating Reality: Austen, Scott, Eliot
"Living to Tell About It is a wonderful blend of theory and criticism. Lucid, precise, and generous, it illuminates the functioning of character narration."—Gerald Prince, author of A Dictionary of Narratology
