Some Thoughts On The Novel

The author of 120 Days of Sodom, Justine, Juliette and Philosophy in the Bedroom, was also a remarkably astute and insightful literary critic. The Marquis de Sade’s essay, Some Thoughts on the Novel, written in 1800 while he was imprisoned in the Bastille, shows that he truly appreciates and understands the genre he excelled in. In this three-part essay, Sade traces etymology of the term ‘novel’ and then presents a history of the novel. Finally, he gives advice on writing and sets out his conception of the novel.