--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Our fiction is not merely in flight from…" description: "\"“Our fiction is not merely in flight from the physical data of the actual world…it is, bewilderingly and embarrassingly, a gothic fiction, nonrealistic..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d5/leslie-fielder-256330_american-literature_our-fiction-is-not-merely-in-flight-from_1659268.jpg" --- # Our fiction is not merely in flight from the physical data… ![“Our fiction is not merely in flight from the physical data of the actual world…it is, bewilderingly and embarrassingly, a gothic fiction, nonrealistic and negative, sadist and melodramatic – a literature of darkness and the grotesque in a land of light and affirmation…our classic [American]…” quote by Leslie Fielder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d5/leslie-fielder-256330_american-literature_our-fiction-is-not-merely-in-flight-from_1659268.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d5/leslie-fielder-256330_american-literature_our-fiction-is-not-merely-in-flight-from_1659268.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d5/leslie-fielder-256330_american-literature_our-fiction-is-not-merely-in-flight-from_1659268.jpg) > ““Our fiction is not merely in flight from the physical data of the actual world…it is, bewilderingly and embarrassingly, a gothic fiction, nonrealistic and negative, sadist and melodramatic – a literature of darkness and the grotesque in a land of light and affirmation…our classic \[American\] literature is a literature of horror for boys”” [Leslie Fielder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-fielder/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. American literature often embraces gothic, grotesque, and horror themes, contrasting light affirmation with dark narratives. **In simple terms:** American lit mixes darkness with light. Key Takeaway Explore contrasting literary tones. Themes literature gothic culture darkness Mood analytical critical Type American literature:1 Books:0 Gothic:1 Grotesque:1 Horror:1 Gothic Fiction:1 Literature Horror:1 Literature Darkness:1 Melodramatic Literature:0 When to use this quote - academic courses - book clubs - creative writing Key Concepts analysis history genre studies Questions to Reflect On - How does darkness serve American identity? - What draws readers to gothic themes? A Different Perspective May generalize diverse works. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-literature/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Gothic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gothic/) [Gothic Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gothic-fiction-274637/) [Grotesque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grotesque/) [Horror](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horror/) [Literature Darkness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature-darkness-741119/) [Literature Horror](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature-horror-741118/) [Melodramatic Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/melodramatic-literature-741120/) ## Related quotes > [“In Gothic fiction, characters must contend with the dead, with active hauntings or with hallucinations of hauntings, as well as whatever other trying circumstances…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-walker/in-gothic-fiction-characters-must-contend-with-the-dead-with-active/) [Brenda Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-walker/) > [I do enjoy Gothic fiction or books about zombies if they are well written and I like vampires.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roddy-doyle/i-do-enjoy-gothic-fiction-or-books-about-zombies-if-they-are-well/) [Roddy Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roddy-doyle/) > [“To me, Gothic fiction is the literary representation of the stormy gloom of the British Isles.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stewart-stafford/to-me-gothic-fiction-is-the-literary-representation-of-the-stormy/) [Stewart Stafford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stewart-stafford/) > [“At its heart, Gothic Fiction is the introvert's "Hero's Journey" where heroes and heroines must navigate the uncharted territory of the mind in order…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barrymore-tebbs/at-its-heart-gothic-fiction-is-the-introvert-s-hero-s-journey-where/) [Barrymore Tebbs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barrymore-tebbs/) > [“I reckon I got to light out for the Territory ahead of the rest, because Aunt Sally she's going to adopt me and sivilize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-reckon-i-got-to-light-out-for-the-territory-ahead-of-the-rest/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Here is one of the fundamental defects of American fiction--perhaps the one character that sets it off sharply from all other known kinds of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/here-is-one-of-the-fundamental-defects-of-american-fiction-perhaps/) [H. 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Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-l-brooks/) > [All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called Huckleberry Finn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/all-modern-american-literature-comes-from-one-book-by-mark-twain/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“Still, it strikes me that, taken together, they do make an argument, and it is this: the rise of American democracy is bound up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/still-it-strikes-me-that-taken-together-they-do-make-an-argument-and/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) [Browse all 144 American literature quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-literature/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Our fiction is not merely in flight from the physical data of the actual world…it is, bewilderingly and embarrassingly, a gothic fiction, nonrealistic and negative, sadist and melodramatic – a literature of darkness and the grotesque in a land of light and affirmation…our classic [American] literature is a literature of horror for boys”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Leslie Fielder" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-fielder/our-fiction-is-not-merely-in-flight-from-the-physical-data-of-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "American literature" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-fielder/our-fiction-is-not-merely-in-flight-from-the-physical-data-of-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d5/leslie-fielder-256330_american-literature_our-fiction-is-not-merely-in-flight-from_1659268.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d5/leslie-fielder-256330_american-literature_our-fiction-is-not-merely-in-flight-from_1659268.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d5/leslie-fielder-256330_american-literature_our-fiction-is-not-merely-in-flight-from_1659268.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Our fiction is not merely in flight from the physical data of the actual world…it is, bewilderingly and…” — Leslie Fielder", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Leslie Fielder", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-fielder/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Our fiction is not merely in...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-fielder/our-fiction-is-not-merely-in-flight-from-the-physical-data-of-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-fielder/our-fiction-is-not-merely-in-flight-from-the-physical-data-of-the/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```