Load-Bearing Elements – Ideas
Hmm, my bias towards science fiction might be showing. Isn't there a more literary term you could use for this like "theme." Maybe, but that would limit our discourse, Hypothetical Reader. I'll pretend you didn't say that and we'll just move on. Cool! So, when you say Ideas can be a load-bearing element, are you referring to philosophical novels? You mean like Crime and Punishment , Notes From Underground , The Idiot , Demons , or The Brothers Karamazov ? Well, I mean, people besides Dostoevsky have written philosophical novels, but sure. Yeah, but I went on a big Dostoevsky kick after I read Crime and Punishment as the summer reading for AP English. Also, the other example that most people would be familiar with is Ayn Rand, and I never had an Ayn Rand phase. Lucky you! I know, right? Anyway, you've probably guessed that we're going to start out by talking about Crime and Punishment ! So, you've read C&P , right? As f...