Domestic Fiction is a genre. It rose to prominence in the mid-19th century. It is sometimes referred to/denoted by other names as well such as sentimental fiction or women’s fiction.
This type of/such novel (mainly) deals with and focuses on young (people’s) domestic lives, typically middle-class women who are learning to make their way in the world.
So far the plot, as well as the conflict of such fictions, are concerned; they often/generally center around some things. They are:
- Family Life
- Courtship
- Marriage
- Childbearing
Domestic Fiction Common Characteristics
Table of Contents
Domestic Fiction is known for four (4) common features. Those characteristics are mentioned here:
- Marriage or the pursuit of marriage is the first of them. It frequently plays a central role in such fiction. especially as a symbol that the protagonist (heroine) of the novel has learned to temper her own desire as well as ambition for the sake of living in the home
- After that, a troubled domestic situation is the second common trait of domestic novels. In these fictions, the home lives featured as well as short stories (often) involve (I) cases of abuse (II) neglect (III) grief. But, the aforementioned horrors are frequently resolved as the protagonists of these novels become the tender of the home sphere
- Next, these fictions make distinctions between home as well as the outside world. Because, there are various (means, so many) instances of domestic novels in which the outside world is a place chaos, as well as debauchery for that domestic life, is a cure
- The educational journey is the fourth feature of domestic fiction. The protagonist often or frequently goes through a trial by fire as well as traverses a path of realization on her way to domestic bliss for mastering not only herself but her domestic duties as well
How and when did the genre of domestic fiction begin ?
The genre of domestic novel(s) began with Catherine Sedgwick’s u003cemu003eNew-England Tale u003c/emu003e(1822).
Where does domestic fiction derive in part from ?
Domestic fiction derives in part from the 18th century u003cemu003esentimental novel u003c/emu003eor u003cemu003enovel of sensibilityu003c/emu003e.
Who were the (main) practitioners of nineteenth-century domestic fiction ?
(So) many practitioners of 19th century domestic fiction were women authors or novelists. They tried to build/built a word based on their own experiences as well as perspectives
About whom is the domestic fiction u003cemu003eA New-England Tale u003c/emu003e?
A New-England Tale is about an orphaned girl. She becomes a schoolteacher
Who wrote the famous domestic fiction u003cemu003eUncle Tom’s Cabin u003c/emu003e(1852) ?
It was Harriet Beecher Stowe who wrote the well-known domestic novel u003cemu003eUncle Tom’s Cabinu003c/emu003e.