anti-roman: meaning, definition, pronunciation and examples
RareLiterary, academic, arts criticism
Quick answer
What does “anti-roman” mean?
A literary or artistic work that deliberately subverts or rejects the conventions, ideals, and traditional narrative structure of the romance or novel, particularly one that avoids sentimentality, heroism, and clear resolution.
Audio
Pronunciation
Definition
Meaning and Definition
A literary or artistic work that deliberately subverts or rejects the conventions, ideals, and traditional narrative structure of the romance or novel, particularly one that avoids sentimentality, heroism, and clear resolution.
An approach, style, or attitude that is intentionally opposed to romantic, idealized, or conventional storytelling, often embracing the mundane, fragmented, ambiguous, or critical. Can be applied more broadly to describe any creative or philosophical stance that is anti-romantic.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
The term is used more frequently and with a more established critical history in British literary scholarship, often linked to discussions of 20th-century British fiction. In American contexts, it is less common and may be conflated with or substituted by terms like 'anti-novel' or 'metafiction.'
Connotations
In both varieties, it carries a scholarly, precise connotation. In UK usage, it may have stronger associations with a specific post-war literary tradition.
Frequency
Extremely rare in general discourse; almost exclusively found in specialized literary criticism and academic texts.
Grammar
How to Use “anti-roman” in a Sentence
[The/This/His] + anti-roman + [rejects/subverts/avoids] + [conventions/sentimentality/resolution]Vocabulary
Collocations
Examples
Examples of “anti-roman” in a Sentence
adjective
British English
- The author's anti-roman approach left the plot deliberately unresolved.
American English
- Her work displayed a distinctly anti-roman sensibility.
Usage
Meaning in Context
Business
Not applicable.
Academic
Used in literary criticism and theory to classify and analyse certain types of modernist and postmodernist fiction.
Everyday
Virtually never used.
Technical
A term of art in literary studies.
Vocabulary
Synonyms of “anti-roman”
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms of “anti-roman”
Watch out
Common Mistakes When Using “anti-roman”
- Confusing it with 'anti-Roman' (opposed to ancient Rome).
- Using it as a general synonym for 'a bad novel.'
- Misspelling as 'antiroman' without the hyphen.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
They are closely related and often used interchangeably. 'Anti-roman' is a slightly more specific term, often emphasizing the rejection of romantic or sentimental conventions, whereas 'anti-novel' can be broader.
Samuel Beckett's later prose works, such as 'How It Is,' or some of the novels by British author B.S. Johnson, like 'The Unfortunates,' are frequently cited as examples of the anti-roman.
In British English: /ˌænti ˈrəʊmən/. In American English: /ˌænti ˈroʊmən/. The stress falls on the first syllable of 'roman.'
No. It is a highly specialized academic term. English learners at an intermediate or even advanced general level are very unlikely to encounter it unless they are studying literature at a university.
A literary or artistic work that deliberately subverts or rejects the conventions, ideals, and traditional narrative structure of the romance or novel, particularly one that avoids sentimentality, heroism, and clear resolution.
Anti-roman is usually literary, academic, arts criticism in register.
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “In the tradition of the anti-roman”
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think: ANTI-ROMANtic – it's against the romantic, idealised story.
Conceptual Metaphor
STORYTELLING IS A BUILDING; an anti-roman is a DECONSTRUCTION.
Practice
Quiz
In which field is the term 'anti-roman' primarily used?