Historical Fiction

Dr. Arezou Zalipour January 2010

Arezou Zalipour/PPBL UKM
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Historical, adj.
1. Of, relating to, or of the character of history. 2. Based on or concerned wit
h events in history.
Fiction, n.
a. A literary work whose content is produced by the imagination and is not neces
sarily based on fact. b. The category of literature comprising works of this kin
d, including novels, short stories, and plays.
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Elements of Historical Fiction
Setting: some specific period of the past. Elements A type of realistic fiction.
The plot reflects events or problems of the period. Often, but not always, the
story is based on actual historical events and people of the period. The details
about clothing, tools, and food are authentic to the period.
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Elements of Historical Fiction
form of fiction (not true) based on historical events authentic settings (contex
t) characters portrayed in realistic manner some characters may be actual people
from history, but the story is fictional artistic mix of fiction and historical
fact
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Historical fiction
Depictions of real historical figures in the context of the challenges they face
d. Depictions of real historical figures in imagined situations. Depictions of f
ictional characters in documented historical situations. Depictions of fictional
characters in fictional situations, but in the context of a real historical per
iod.
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A few other permutations of HF
1. Timeshift stories, in which a modern character is transported back in time, o
r more rarely, a historical character is transported to the present, or to a tim
e period not his own.
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A few other permutations of HF
Alternate history or "What if?" stories, usually set in a world in which an hist
oric event did not occur, or occurred much differently, such as a Nazi victory i
n World War II.
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A few other permutations of HF
Historical fantasy, in which characters, even historic figures, are depicted in
historical periods or situations, but along with magic or dragons or some other
element s of fantasy.
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History and Historical Fiction
But what differentiates historical fiction from history? After all, does not all
history contain an element of fiction, or at least speculation?
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Both historian and the fiction writer seek truth.
The difference lies in the level at which they seek the truth, the focus of thei
r seeking. The historian focuses on the events. The fiction writer focuses on th
e persons -- the characters - involved in those events.
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What does a historian tell us? An Example:
A historian tells us, sometimes in vivid detail, about U.S. Marines fighting the
ir way across Iwo Jima, what they did, what their living conditions were like, p
erhaps even something about their backgrounds.
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FYI: Battle of Iwo Jima
The Battle of Iwo Jima (February 19 – March 26, 1945), or Operation Detachment, wa
s a battle in which the United States fought for and captured Iwo Jima (lit. Sul
fur Island) from Japan. The battle produced some of the fiercest fighting in the
Pacific Campaign of World War II (1939-1945).
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What does a historian tell us?
He or she analyzes why they were there, using words like "unprovoked aggression"
or "expansionism" or "imperialism" or "oil embargo" to explain why so many youn
g men had to die for a small island in the Pacific Ocean. He or she may even giv
e us vignettes, descriptions of heroic acts on both sides. A good historian help
s us imagine the roar of battle, the spectacle of ruined earth littered with dea
d, giving us a safe vantage point between and above the lines of battle.
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What does a historical fiction writer tell us?
The historical fiction writer puts us in the battle. We do not watch the young M
arine (soldier) slog his way up Mount Suribachi; we feel his heavy pack digging
into our shoulders, curse as our feet slip in sand and mud, hear the snap of pas
sing rounds (gunshots) and feel his fear as we hit the dirt with him and scrambl
e for whatever cover we can find. We pray with him in the moments before he rais
es his head from the sand and looks around.
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We care about the things he cares about: not expansionism or oil embargoes or na
tional strategy, but his brother who lost a leg at Pearl Harbor, his girl back h
ome, the buddy who was right next to him, but now lies in the dirt not moving. W
e're not just watching the fight; that's our buddy, our girl back home, our brot
her. The writer of historical fiction is first a writer not of history, but of f
iction, and fiction is about characters, not events.
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We finish a history and think "So that's what happened!" We finish a work of his
torical fiction, catch our breath, and think "So that's what it was like!"
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Examples of Historical Fiction
http://www.kimskorner4teachertalk.com/reading
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“The Painting” by Christina Pantoja Hidalgo
The Philippines and Nationhood/Nationalism Jose Rizal, National Hero of Philippi
ne Rizal’s nationalist movement (resistance to Colonial Power) Andreas Bonifacio (
a warehouse worker) Revolution of 1896 led by Andreas Bonifacio
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Jose Rizal
The most prominent advocate for reforms in the Philippines during the Spanish co
lonial era José Rizal s most famous works were his two novels, Noli me Tangere and
El filibusterismo
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A monument, with his remains, now stands near the place where he fell. The statu
e carries the inscription "I want to show to those who deprive people the right
to love of country, that when we know how to sacrifice ourselves for our duties
and convictions, death does not matter if one dies for those one loves – for his c
ountry and for others dear to him."
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The Philippines and Nationhood/Nationalism
A Filipino independence movement grew in the 19th century and Filipinos fought o
n the side of the Americans in 1898 during the Spanish-American War. Rizal’s schol
arship injected historical consciousness into the nationalistic movement.
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Tutorial Tasks
1. Read “Painting” and discuss the elements of historical fiction.
Does it refer to any specific period of the past? Find elements of realistic fic
tion in this story.
What does the plot reflect? Is the story based on actual historical events and p
eople of the period?
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Tutorial Tasks
2. Relate what happened in the history of Philippine and the plot of the story.
3. Describe the historical context of the story. 4. Analyse the characters in “The
painting” and their corresponding figures in the history of Philippine. Can you f
ind any?
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5. Which of the following can be found in “The Painting”?
a) Depictions of real historical figures in the context of the challenges they f
aced. b) Depictions of real historical figures in imagined situations. c) Depict
ions of fictional characters in documented historical situations. d) Depictions
of fictional characters in fictional situations, but in the context of a real hi
storical period.
Main source of the lecture on historical fiction: H. Scott Dalton (2006), “What is
historical Fiction? ”
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