Aspects of the Novel by E.M. Forster

Published 1927 · 45,026 words · about 2 hours at an average pace · Education & Reference, Essays & Criticism, Media & Technology, Nonfiction

How hard is Aspects of the Novel to read?

Aspects of the Novel scores 35 out of 100 for difficulty on ReadingRate, making it moderately challenging. The score is a weighted composite of nine measures: four of how hard the prose is to parse, five of how hard the meaning is to extract.

Vocabulary: 35 out of 100
Literary vocabulary but conversational register.
Sentence structure: 32 out of 100
Abstraction: 42 out of 100
Theoretical categories illustrated with examples.
Information density: 42 out of 100
Moderate. More discursive than systematic.
Narrative indirection: 100 out of 100
Topical lectures in clear sequence.
Symbolic density: 12 out of 100
Analytical rather than symbolic.
Ironic distance: 22 out of 100
Forster's trademark gentle irony.
Resolution withholding: 80 out of 100
Each lecture reaches clear conclusions.
Structural complexity: 18 out of 100
Seven lectures, each on a distinct topic.

How Aspects of the Novel is regarded

Aspects of the Novel holds a literary regard score of 67 out of 100, weighing its place in the canon, its critical reception, its influence on other writers, and the standing of its author. Regard is measured separately from difficulty: a demanding book is not necessarily an admired one.

About the author

E.M. Forster