antinovel
|an-ti-nov-el|
🇺🇸
/ˈæn.tiˌnɑvəl/
🇬🇧
/ˈæn.tiˌnɒvəl/
against conventional novel form
Etymology
'antinovel' originates from English, specifically the prefix 'anti-' (from Greek 'anti' meaning 'against') combined with 'novel' (from Old French 'novel', ultimately from Latin 'novellus' meaning 'new').
'antinovel' was formed in English in the 20th century by combining the productive prefix 'anti-' with the established word 'novel' (which came into English via Old French 'novel' from Latin 'novellus'); the compound labels works that stand 'against' conventional novels.
Initially used to indicate works 'against' or 'not' traditional novels, the term evolved to refer more specifically to experimental or formally self-conscious novels that subvert narrative conventions.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a novel that deliberately rejects or subverts the conventional elements of the traditional novel (such as linear plot, consistent characterization, or chronological sequence); an experimental work of fiction.
Her new book is an antinovel that abandons linear plot and focuses on fragmented consciousness instead.
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Noun 2
a label used in literary criticism for 20th-century and later works that foreground form, language, or theory over conventional storytelling.
Critics argued that several 20th-century works should be read as antinovels because they emphasize form over plot.
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Last updated: 2025/09/05 11:36