Parascandola 1
Ali Parascandola
Daniel Anderson
Intro to Fiction
July 22, 2010
Forms of Fiction
Fiction is a term that applies to many different forms of text aside from novels, referring
in literature to work that is not based in reality but rather in imagination. While novels are an
effective manner of storytelling, they are only one way among many. All forms of fictitious text
generate and discuss specific themes but novels, short stories, graphic novels, and film do so
through different methods. Film and graphic novels explain themes in a more visual way, while
short stories and novels do so with use of the writing itself. These modes of fictional storytelling
fit alongside one another on a spectrum of openness to interpretation, with short stories at the
most open end and film as the least open form.
As a result of there being great visual and auditory aspects to film, the possible
interpretations of a story by an audience are more restricted. Films can tell many different types
of stories and can be any length, but successful films all make proper use of cinematography,
scenery and costume, character development, and dialogue. Character development in film as
compared to other types of fiction is the least flexible, but the integrity of characters is always
open to question. Instead of simply describing the setting, films visually show it which requires
much less imagination from the audience; however, aspects of the setting can reveal some ideas
throughout the story. Color and music, for instance, are often used to signal the mood of the
scene and also can give clues about a character’s attributes. For example, in the film adaptation
of The Road, color is used to differentiate between joyful flashbacks of the wife and the grim
Parascandola 2
reality of life on the road. The music in The Road also adds to the mood of each scene, such as
in the house of cannibals when the music works to create a feeling of danger as the “bad guys”
come closer. What limits the openness to interpretation of film the most is the filters that the
story goes through to become the final product that the audience sees. A director projects his or
her interpretation of the story in the directing and actors also give their interpretations of
characters in their acting. A film can be compared to the mental picture that a reader imagines
while reading a story, however, instead of there being many different possible images available
for a scene, there is one.
Graphic novels are more open to interpretation than film, but less than textual novels or
short stories because the visual imagination that a reader requires to read a strictly textual novel
is limited when graphics are added. Graphic novels tell stories by using pictures alongside
narrative text. In this way, the setting is shown rather than described, as it is in film. Color plays
a role in graphic novels as it does in film, such as in Watchmen where the color of thought and
dialogue bubbles changes when Rorschach or Dr. Manhattan is the focus. Color can symbolize
characters, as described previously, or the mood. Graphic novels obviously do not have the
auditory aspect to them that films have, so music does not play a role in setting the mood. Also,
because there is no sound involved in reading a graphic novel, readers do not hear characters’
voices and therefore have more room to interpret them. Interpretation of characters is one of the
main differences in the openness to interpretation of films and graphic novels. For instance, in
the film adaptation of Watchmen, Rorschach is somewhat defined by his raspy voice that adds to
the uncertainty of his integrity. The voice of Dr. Manhattan also adds to his character, as his
monotone illuminates his emotional distance from humans. While the graphics of graphic novels
leave less character emotion to the imagination of the audience than do textual novels, audiences
Parascandola 3
are still able to imagine more than they are in films where these emotions are visibly and audibly
acted out.
What is shown in graphic novels is only described in textual novels, but this does not
necessarily mean there is more or less room for interpretation in either medium, only that there is
more room for imagination in textual novels. Novels tell the same type of story as graphic
novels: an extended tale that leads up to a concluding event with many meaningful events
throughout the story. Characters are given time to develop and have many layers of
interpretation to them. Ability for readers to indentify themes in graphic novels versus textual
novels is roughly equivalent, as each medium uses different methods aside from the story itself
to display the themes. Graphic novels often include details in the images provided to illustrate
recurring themes, such as the image of the clock that is evident in Watchmen that symbolizes
urgency. Textual novels highlight themes with descriptive imagery, dialogue, and events, such
as the cannibalism in The Road that is representative of the destructive tendencies of human
nature. Each of these mediums obtains vast openness to interpretation, as the reader is still able
to interpret what such images and narrative stands for and what the themes mean.
There are many different distinctions between short stories and novels, aside from the
obvious fact that short stories are shorter. Along with the length of short stories goes the type of
stories that they tell. Short stories typically lead up to a single meaningful event, often with
descriptive events recounted earlier in the story. For example, in “A Rose For Emily” the
narrator describes the myth surrounding Emily as a result of certain events that happened
throughout her life, such as her relationship with Homer and her refusing to pay taxes. However,
the entire story leads up to the main event of Emily’s death. In short stories, the deepest meaning
is typically held in the details rather than in the plot itself, whereas the details of novels act more
Parascandola 4
for description and the plot holds the most meaning. In “A Rose For Emily”, the detail of the
long strand of gray hair on the bed at the end of the story is imperative to understanding that
Emily had slept with Homer’s corpse long after he’d died. The actual concluding event of the
story—Emily’s death—was not the source of meaning, but instead the information that was
gathered from the details of that event—the fact she slept with Homer’s corpse—offered
meaning to the story. Another important difference between the storytelling of short stories and
novels is the types and numbers of themes short stories discuss and how they do so. Novels
usually have more complex plots where many different themes are discussed, while short stories
focus on one or two main themes that the reader uncovers with more use of their imagination.
For instance, in “A Rose For Emily” the main theme could be interpreted as desperation, which
is revealed by the gray hair that the reader can infer the meaning of. Short stories often have
abrupt endings without explanation, which adds more room for interpretation because the ending
is not explained like at the end of a novel.
Fiction as a large genre comes in many different forms, such as the forms discussed
previously, and can serve many different aims. Fiction can entertain, teach, and challenge ideas
depending on the content and form of the work. While novels are a largely utilized form of
fiction, the definition of fiction encompasses much more than novels alone and there are limits to
the novel as there are with all forms of fiction. Each form of fictitious text has a different
historical background, with film being the most recent and technologically advanced outlet for
fiction. Fewer people today are reading novels and short stories than ever and more are watching
films to be entertained. With society being faster-paced than ever, audiences increasingly want
to be entertained rather than use their minds and imaginations to interpret text themselves. As
Parascandola 5
technology advances, one has to wonder how fiction will fare and how much imaginative ability
audiences will be allowed.
McCarthy, Cormac. The Road. New York: Vintage Books, 2006. Print.
Gibbons, Dave and Moore, Alan. Watchmen. Toronto: DC Comics, 1995. Print.
Faulkner, William. “A Rose for Emily.” The Hudson Book of Fiction. Ed. Sarah Touborg. New
York: McGraw Hill Higher Education, 2002. 160-67. Print.
“Definition of Fiction.” Brainy Quote. BrainyMedia.com. 2010. Web. 22 July 2010.