Present Tense : A Poetics

The invention of the present-tense novel is a literary event whose importance is on par with the discovery of perspective in painting. From the first novels shaped by interior monologues and the use of the present tense in the tradition of modernism, the present tense has, over the course of its century-long evolution, changed the conditions of fictional narration, along with our conceptions of time in a philosophical and linguistic framework. Indeed, to understand the work of an increasing number of contemporary writers – J.M. Coetzee, Tom McCarthy, Thomas Pynchon, to name only a few – it is necessary to both understand the distinct linguistic and literary qualities of the present tense as well as its historical transformation into a genuine tense of contemporary storytelling.

For the first time in literary scholarship, Present Tense: A Poetics offers an account of a profound development in 20th- and 21st-century fiction.

“This book renews attention to poetics as a worthy field of literary studies by offering a thorough and systematic examination of the narrative and philosophical significance of tense. The manner of delivery is engaging even as it remains scholarly. Fresh, at times daring, in its propositions, this work will no doubt provoke interest and generate discussion.” —Galin Tihanov, George Steiner Professor of Comparative Literature, Queen Mary, University of London, UK

“How do we account for the widespread use of the present tense in contemporary narratives? What has happened to our understanding of time if a fundamental tenet of fictionality-the idea that narratives make present something that happened in the (real or imagined) past-seems no longer operative? Drawing on narratology, cognitive science, deconstruction and philosophy of language, Avanessian and Hennig reconceptualize the relation between time and narrative; what is more, they rethink poetics as an expanded cultural theory concerned with human world-making. An impressive tour de force.” —Andreas Gailus, Associate Professor of German, University of Michigan, USA

“Avanessian and Hennig explore the use of the present tense in novels of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Specifically, they borrow the art-theoretical term ‘altermodern,’ first used by art scholar Nicolas Bourriaud, to categorize contemporary novels that employ a new understanding of the present tense, one that marks a break with previously published present-tense novels that employ classical narration. Avanessian and Hennig further argue that the altermodern novel reflects a new understanding of the novel's relationship to time and changes the reader's understanding of the relationship between narration and time. Although this reviewer does not find the argument entirely convincing, the book includes some smart, well-articulated readings of novels. In fact, one of the strengths of this book is the use of exemplary passages from novels written in English, French, German, and Russian; this study does a great job of broadly surveying novels from many traditions. That said, the authors often bury their arguments beneath overwrought and needlessly complicated prose, and nonspecialists may find the extended discussions of theory (narratology, fiction theory, linguistics, philosophy) difficult to navigate. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students, researchers, faculty.” -J. J. Donahue, SUNY Potsdam, CHOICE