Who is the father of the novel?
This question is a bit vague because the definition of the word 'novel' is quite broad. It may refer to various types of literary works, including novels, plays, essays, poems, and so on. Therefore, the definition of the father of the novel varies from person to person. In some traditional literary theories, it is generally believed that the novel originated from the short stories of the European Renaissance, such as the plays of William shakespeare and the prose works of the Renaissance. These works are considered the pioneers of the novel because they created the narrative form and structure of modern novels. However, in modern literature, the origin and development of the novel is very extensive, involving a variety of different forms of literary works, including novels, novellas, short stories, science fiction, horror novels, mystery novels and so on. Therefore, there was no definite and universal answer.