June 25, 1999

The Great American Novel Hypothesis

It is rumored that everyone at some point in life fancies him or herself as a writer. More importantly, he or she will accomplish the literary dream of a book that comprises all of life and whatnot... ergo as known here in the states as the Great American novel.

Even though I say American, this feeling is universal. There is a universal appeal for storytelling, and no culture that has ever developed did not have some means of describing realities (either fictional or historical) different from the now. All of us also enjoy a person who can tell a really great yarn. The trick is that we don't all enjoy the same sort of tales and babbles.

This is the point. Each individual Great American Novel or Great British Novel or Great Finnish Novel or Great Aboriginal Novel is uniquely our own and tells a lot about us. Is your story about a hero who survives the perils of war? Is it about a person's psychological turmoil? Is it a pioneer woman who defines herself as she raises herself in a savage wilderness? Is it a man whose life becomes a journalistic hunt for the answer to a mystery? Does your hero suffer? survive? die? find love?

There are so many questions to ask... so many facets of your life for you to explore. Even if you don't write it, think about your Great American novel.