Theorizing Plot in the Novel: A Study through Formalism, Narratology, Rhetoric, and Cultural-Context

Abstract

Plot has traditionally been regarded as one of the most slippery concepts in literary theory. From its treatment in Aristotle’s Poetics to modern narratological, rhetorical, and cultural-contextual approaches and theories, it has undergone countless reinterpretations, critiques, and revisions. This paper attempts to provide a historically informed and comprehensive overview of the concept in relation to the theory of the novel, focusing on the four major approaches, namely Formalism, narratology, rhetorical theory, and cultural-contextual criticism. Aristotle, Lukacs, Forster, Bakhtin, Russian Formalists, classical and post-classical narratologists (Genette, Chatman, Bal, Herman), rhetorical theorists (Booth, Brooks, Phelan, Rabinowitz), and cultural critics (Jameson, Moretti, Williams) will be examined as to their definitions and criteria relating to the concept of plot. By identifying the concept of plot as a mediator between form and matter, rhetoric and reception, and reader and writer, this study argues for its enduring theoretical relevance.