This study elucidates the previously undefined notion of the “archival novel.” It establishes Goethe’s idea of the “aggregate” as a tool for generating order and avoiding interconnection. With sections on “archival narrative” and “archival writing,” the study develops frames for investigation that may well come to shape the basic vocabulary of novel analysis. The book contributes to discussion about the literary genre of the novel as well as to research on Goethe’s work.