Using tenses in literary work

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Peace be upon you
Good morning sir,
Well, When writing an essay about literature, a novel for instance, is it preferable to write in the present
(The Literary Present)or in the past tense? or rather it depends on the tense that is used in the question
Thank you in advance.

[M. Samhar AlAbiad]

Good Evening
It depends of course. If the actions you are talking about are in the past, you have to use the past, if not, then mostly it is optional. It depends on your interpretation of the story and the action in it.
Regards

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M. Samhar AlAbiad,  
Thank you sir for your answer, may ALLAH bless you.
Regards,