We see the novels praised for their elegance of form and their surface ` finish ' ; for the realism of their fictional world , the variety and vitality ( strength ) of their characters ; for their pervasive humor ; and for their gentle and undogmatic morality and its unsermonising delivery . We see the novels praised for their elegance of form and their surface ` finish ' ; for the realism of their fictional world , the variety and vitality of their characters ; for their pervasive humor ; and for their gentle and undogmatic morality and its unsermonising delivery .