Fiction brings us the news of ourselves, as literature always has and always will. That’s “entertainment,” in its deepest and most satisfying form. That’s pleasure, meaning, passion, glimpses of profoundest truth, the salvation of art. “The Jungle” may have sparked reform, but I daresay “Mrs. Dalloway” has changed more people’s lives.

But as long as people use language, tell stories and want to know about themselves, they will read fiction. The novel is a sturdy old contraption that continues to outlive its mourners.