What is the origin of the novel?

The novel is a literary genre alongside poetry, prose and dramatic literature. The earliest origin of the Chinese novel is the myths and legends of the ancient times. The formation and development of the novel in ancient China was later than that of poetry, and developed with the rise and prosperity of urban commerce and handicrafts. In the Tang Dynasty, "novels began to be written intentionally" (Lu Xun). The basic characteristic of the novel is to reflect social life in a wide range of aspects with the help of fiction and imagination through specific depictions of characters, plots and environments. Character, plot and setting are the three elements of a novel. It can be free from the limitations of time, space and real life, freely use all kinds of expressive methods, flexibly change the angle of narration, through the language, action, appearance, psychological activities of the characters, as well as the description of natural scenery and social environment, to y and carefully characterize all kinds of characters, and to completely, adequately, and concretely show the social style and spirit of the times in a certain era. Classification of novels In terms of the subject matter of the era, there are historical novels, modern novels, etc. In terms of the content of the subject matter, there are war novels, science fiction novels, etc. In terms of the form of language, there are vernacular novels, literary novels, etc. Usually, according to the length and capacity of the works, as well as the different ways of structure, they are divided into three categories: long, medium and short. China's ancient novels have a long history and fine tradition. From the novels of the Wei-Jin and North-South Dynasties, to the Tang Dynasty's legends, the Song and Yuan dynasties' novels, and the Ming and Qing Dynasty's novels, it has formed a colorful and splendid art gallery. "Since the May Fourth Movement, the modern novel, with Lu Xun as its founding father, has seen even greater development.

Novels can be categorized into war novels, romance novels, science fiction novels, detective novels, historical novels, biographical novels and so on.

Lu Xun called "Journey to the West", "Fengshen Bang", and "Three Treasure Eunuchs of the West" "divine and magical novels".