A Comparative Study of the Objective Elements Used in Three Novels That Won the Nobel Prize (Anecdotes of Our Neighborhood, Nausea and the Opinions of a Clown)

Abstract

Introduction

In the novel, “description” primarily serves a narrative role, as the author seeks to minimize his intervention and wishes to present himself subtly. This is where the description of things, places, and characters must be so vivid that it narrates the story without the author’s interference or explanation. In modern rhetoric, description is a form of expression related to the impact that the world has on our senses. Considering the importance of the role of description, especially objective description, this research aims to examine and compare the extent of the use of objective elements in the works of Nobel Prize-winning authors. It seeks to answer the question of how contemporary world-class authors have employed description, to what extent, and in what manner they have utilized objectivity, to engage readers more effectively and provide a clearer pathway for writers and aspiring authors. For this reason, three novels have been selected for analysis: “The Tales of Our Neighborhood” by Naguib Mahfouz, “Nausea” by Jean-Paul Sartre, and “The Opinions of a Clown” by Heinrich Böll.

Methodology

This research analyzes objective elements at three levels, inspired by the framework of Mir-Sadeghi and Meymoun (1998: 1) Sensory elements (color, sound, smell), 2) Spatial-temporal elements (movement, location, distance), and 3) Qualitative elements (temperature, material, light). This method is structured and traces back to the early development of the realism movement, which was a reaction against subjectivism and emphasized objectivity; Flaubert stated that the novel should adopt the same methods as science (Seyed Hosseini, Vol. 1, 2006: 277).

Discussion

Objective elements in Nobel Prize-winning novels are used abundantly and are closely related to the story’s environment. These works not only pay special attention to description but also correctly utilize objective elements according to the story’s theme. The use of objective elements varies according to the characters and the psychological and climatic atmosphere prevailing in the story. All objective elements can be observed in all three novels except for taste, which is not found in “The Tales of Our Neighborhood” and “The Opinions of a Clown.” One reason for the lack of attention to this element can be attributed to the central themes in these two stories, which depict poverty in society at that time The authors themselves were not unfamiliar with it during their lifetimes, leading to this element being overlooked. “The Tales of Our Neighborhood” has the highest number of movement elements, which corresponds to the warm climate and the struggle depicted in the story. In this narrative, cold is mentioned less due to the climatic context. The author's personal experiences and mental preconceptions can also be identified as reasons for this dynamism; a poor boy wanders through the streets from morning until late at night, spending most of his time playing, while also being forced to perform physical labor to earn money alongside his family.
In this novel, time receives less attention since, for people in the impoverished society of that day in Egypt, time holds little significance; in contrast to the other two novels, which were written in culturally different environments, time is given more attention and significance. This issue is also observable regarding color; the Egyptian society during Mahfouz’s time, overwhelmed by poverty, could not pay much attention to color, which represents the superficial and luxurious aspects of life. The dilapidated homes and faces have not drawn the writer’s attention in terms of color. Consequently, compared to the other two novels, the element of color receives less focus in this one.
 
 

Conclusion

The elements used and their respective proportions are the result of five factors: 1) the lived experience of the author, 2) the skill and precision of the author’s writing, 3) the intellectual concerns of the author, 4) the society in which the events of the novel take place, and 5) the main character of the novel and the author's internal and external characteristics. Among these, the author’s lived experience and the characteristics of the main character are also derived from and inseparable from the society and environment where the events of the novel occur. In simple terms, the objective elements used in the story are the result of three factors: 1) the skill and precision of the author, 2) the society and environment in which the events of the novel occur, and 3) the lived experience and intellectual framework of the author. “The Tales of Our Neighborhood” and “The Opinions of a Clown” utilize a top-down approach in their descriptions, both of which have a social perspective, while “Nausea,” with its movement from the part to the whole, represents a philosophical and meaningful novel that aligns with the existentialist philosophical perspective, which tends to move from existence toward discovering other aspects of being.