] The word "serious" in JA's time usually refers to
> religion.CS Lewis did a lovely article about JA based on
> this theme.

Actually, poetry would qualify at this time, in the literary distinction which we are trying to draw. To some extent, it still does; we have poet laureates, but no novelist laureates.

] You have to remember that the Novel, as a literary art form,
> was still fairly new, and evolved from poetry and drama,
> rather from philosophical and critical prose. So novels
> were seen as rather frivolous entertainment, and possibly a
> degenrate and dangerous thing.... a thought that JA went to
> town on in the first few chapters of Northanger Abbey.

Evolved from narrative poetry, perhaps--more surely from the poetic romances of the 15th century. And even more surely from the popular narrative tradition, as in the Elizabethan chapbooks, or the 16th century Spanish picaresque novel. But although the novel had many parents, I can't make out that drama was one of them. On the other hand, you get a great sense (from 18th century English authors in particular) that early novelists were uncertain of, & troubled by, the relationship between truth, artistic truth/fiction, and lies. Cf. Fielding's prefaces & interlineations in Tom Jones for some rather interesting discussion of the problem.

YHOS,

Snarkhunter