The role and significance of prophecy in novel [Archives:2006/998/Education]
Mohammed Khoshafah
English Teacher
Ibb
The word 'prophecy' is used in various senses. The first sense is to foretell the future of man by people like magicians , astrologers and witches. The second sense for prophecy is ' an appeal for righteous' ,i.e , to advise people to make the right choice between good and bad. Prophecy is an instrument for the prophet who is sent by God to teach people and give them God's messages.
Prophecy has a major place in the novel.. E.M.Forster explains the meaning and significance of the various elements of the novel in his book entitled ” Aspects of the Novel”. The story , the plot , characters , fantasy , prophecy , pattern and rhythm are the important elements of the novel. The reader must know that every novelist reflects some emotions and feelings inside himself in his writing. The novelist often speaks about social problems and tries to analyze , and give solutions to these problems.
Let us take an example that's Forster's ” A Passage to India”. This famous novel deals with the relationship between Indians and British colonialists who came to India. Forster has his own prophecy in this novel. Prophecy here is a tone of voice. It is an accent in the novelist's voice. The speaker or the novelist puts accent on some particular words to show the meaning of his voice. By this way , he draws the attention of the reader or listener and saves him from getting entangled in senseless and useless things. Forster doesn't state his view directly like the preacher. The ideas, visions , views and particular subjects of the novelist are implied in the novel indirectly. And from this implication, the reader tries to understand and catch what the writer wants to convey. The story , the plot or the character must extend itself beyond what it is actually in the novel. What is implied is more important than what is said.
The extension is from the individual to the universal. Forster explores this view expressed in Dostoyevsky's novel “The Brothers Karamazov”, by referring to a character Mitya (who is accused of murder of his father; he is spiritually though not technically guilty). Mitya is suffering at the psychic level. Mitya's suffering becomes the suffering of all men in the world. One man becomes everyman. The novelist explains the suffering of all persons through one man , and this is the extension from the particular to the universal. A novelist is prophetic when he reaches this impersonal or universal level. Dostoyexsky's character asks us to share something deeper than their experiences.
Thus implication is very important aspect in a novel. The novelist develops his prophecy and his vision while dealing with the ordinary life of ordinary people. The individual becomes universal and the ordinary becomes extra-ordinary. The novelist becomes successful if he starts with realism at the individual level and then he makes expansion in order to reach universal level.
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