Short Stories and Short Fictions, 1880–1980 by Clare Hanson
Published 1985 · 64,000 words · about 4 hours at an average pace · Essays & Criticism
How hard is Short Stories and Short Fictions, 1880–1980 to read?
Short Stories and Short Fictions, 1880–1980 scores 54 out of 100 for difficulty on ReadingRate, making it quite demanding. 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: 63 out of 100
- Uses feminist and poststructuralist vocabulary alongside conventional narrative terminology.
- Sentence structure: 57 out of 100
- Abstraction: 73 out of 100
- Theoretical framework engages ideology, form, and canon formation at a high level.
- Information density: 72 out of 100
- Covers a wide historical span with close readings and theoretical argument per chapter.
- Narrative indirection: 14 out of 100
- Direct scholarly argument with clear thesis statements.
- Symbolic density: 11 out of 100
- Symbols are subjects of analysis, not rhetorical devices.
- Ironic distance: 100 out of 100
- Consistent serious scholarly register.
- Resolution withholding: 13 out of 100
- Conclusions drawn explicitly at chapter and book close.
- Structural complexity: 38 out of 100
- Thematic chapters organised chronologically within a clear overarching argument.
How Short Stories and Short Fictions, 1880–1980 is regarded
Short Stories and Short Fictions, 1880–1980 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.