Question

What was the impact of industrial revolution on novels and novel readership

Answer 1

The industrial revolution led to the emergence of a literate middle class and working class. This created demand for books that could be read for leisure. Novels emerged as the form of literature that could be read by the middle and working class for leisure. Hence, the industrial revolution created new classes of novel readership.

The industrial revolution also contributed richly to the subject matter of novels. Many English novelists took up issues like urbanization, exploitation of workers and the poor living conditions of workers as themes for their novels. These issues were created by the industrial revolution.