Although this term is colloquial and familiar, Aspects of the Novel seeks to fully define and explain what the novel is and how it functions. Forster begins with a standard definition: A novel is a work of fiction of not less than 50,000 words. He admits that this standard definition is insufficient, though, and he then defines the novel largely by what it isn’t—a novel is not poetry, or history, or drama. While Forster finds this second definition sufficient for the discussion, it is important to note that the book as a whole extends that definition to include the aspects Forster discusses. Namely, a novel has a story that is distinct from its plot; it has people in it—characters—that are distinct from real people because their actions are in service of the plot and the themes of the novel. Additionally, the novel is made beautiful by pattern and rhythm. Finally, the novel evokes universality and acts on the imagination by suggesting or depicting the impossible. Forster says the novel is the most human of all art forms and he believes it has the potential to change human nature itself.

In Forster’s introduction, he argues that he is not acting as a “true” or “genuine” scholar when he explores the aspects of the novel. A scholar, he explains, is “the man who chooses a worthy subject and masters all its facts and the leading facts of the subjects neighbouring” (22). To achieve true scholarship, the scholar must not simply understand a single subject, like the novel itself, but must also understand everything that goes into the construction of the subject and anything that may modify the subject. Forster insists that he is not a scholar but is instead a pseudo-scholar. In contrast to genuine scholarship, “Pseudo-scholarship is, on its good side, the homage paid by ignorance to learning” (23). There are necessities to practice something akin to scholarship to gain certifications, degrees, and some increased understanding. However, Forster says, when the pseudo-scholar “comes to criticism […] he follows the method of a true scholar without having his equipment” (25). The pseudo-scholar lacks the command of knowledge that the true scholar has developed and, as a result, present criticism that essentially accomplishes nothing. Therefore, Forster insists that a pseudo-scholar like himself cannot consider periods of literature or literary movements since he lacks the knowledge of a true scholar. Instead, he must focus only on the subject of the novel rather than the surrounding classifications.

Homo Sapiens is the scientific term for the species of primate commonly known as human beings. Forster uses this scientific designation to create his own complementary species: Homo Fictus. Forster says that Homo Fictus is the human being only found within the novel. Chapter 3 in Aspects of the Novel explains that people are central to the novel. Additionally, Forster distinguishes between real people and fictional people based on their motivations and actions. Homo Sapiens must eat because of hunger, must sleep because of tiredness, and desires coupling because of an evolutionary drive to reproduce. Homo Fictus, on the other hand, eats because the novel’s plot requires a dinner, sleeps to dream of metaphors, and falls in love to evoke the truth of human connection. Although Forster only uses these terms once, they stand in for all the literary terminology that could be used instead, and they fully evoke his point about the difference between characters in novels and real people.