The Humanist Principle: A Philosophical Criticism of Characterization in John Barth's Novels

Abstract

The way John Barth's characters try to answer the question of their own identity is the thematic catalyst for the conflicts and crises in his fiction. Some characters come to happier and more purposeful conclusions because they come to who they are and what it means to have that identity; some characters do not come to happy or purposeful conclusions. The characters' answers to the identity question have specific hierarchical values depending upon the completeness of their answers and the characters' fates. These answers and fates differ according to the philosophy the characters embody.