Course 2—Lecture - 5

How the Novel Got Its Groove

Scholars quibble over "The First Novel," but most agree that the genre grew out of medieval romances, beginning in the very late 1600's and early 1700's.

Travelogues also played a role in the novel's birth. These were popular, often highly exaggerated accounts of voyages and exploration. Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels came out of this tradition.