Fugue and Counterpoint--Does contrapuntal writing really have its place in literature?

"The Conventions of Counterpoint and Fugue" conducts a close analysis of The Heart is a Lonely Hunter and makes accurate, insightful comparisons between the form of the novel and the form of a standard contrapuntal piece. Fuller leads a relatively basic but, as George pointed out, strong argument, clearly defining what is meant by "counterpoint" and "fugue" in the conventional sense then demonstrating with textual evidence how it applies in the less conventional sense: to literature.

My post about this article may be, perhaps, straying a bit too far from the specifics of Fuller's argument but the more I think about McCuller's use of contrapuntal form in a novel which conveys such deep, abstract feelings, the more skepticism I have for this technique's place in literature. I am not at all arguing that McCullers is unsuccessful or even careless in her choice to use strict musical form in order to embellish the content of her novel. Rather, my skepticism is based off the criticisms that many successors of Bach and Mozart who were practitioners of contrapuntal writing--specifically fugue--suffered from. We know that Beethoven amongst Mozart plays an important role in this novel; Mick is touched greatly by the "Eroica Symphony" and hears Mozart in her head all day and night. What is important to know, however, is that Beethoven (in his third period) was criticized for his usage of contrapuntal writing such as fugue (which is present in the "Eroica Symphony" though he was not criticised for this) and variations on themes (the "Diabelli Variations", specifically) which Mozart was greatly known for doing. By this point in the early 19th century fugue, variation, and other strict contrapuntal techniques were associated with connotations of dry academicism and even amateurism; this was the beginning of the Romantic movement in Europe. During this time the usage of music in literature was not uncommon. The application of musical motifs to characters in various novels and as a re-occurring symbol is a technique commonly used by Goethe, one of the most well-known German Romantics. The idea of combining music and literature was far more abstract in this period and the usage of such strict form as McCullers uses would be contrary to the Romantic style of the time. What I am trying to say is that perhaps McCullers's use of musical form (though I am perfectly aware that she is not a Romantic writer) may work in successfully shaping the content of the novel and embellishing certain parts, though I am led to wonder if such strict musical form depletes the amount of expressionism--an aspect I see as vital considering that the feelings of loneliness and disconnect with the world are imensely abstract, too abstract to shape into the form of a fugue--in the novel.