The historical-fiction trend.
Don’t miss Anthony Domestico’s Verdicts post “The Past Is a Foreign Country”:
Reading Wolf Hall and thinking about Paul Lakeland’s post on Ron Hansen’s latest novel has got me wondering: why does it seem as if every “literary” novelist—I hate to use that term, but it will have to suffice—is writing historical fiction these days? Hansen, Tom McCarthy, Peter Carey, David Mitchell—these are some of the most original, inventive writers of contemporary fiction, and each has found recourse to that well-worn genre, historical fiction, within the last year or so….
I have a few ideas about why these writers are finding bygone eras to be of such fertile fictional ground. First, they may be reacting against the legacy of high modernism, the great works of which (Joyce’s Ulysses and Finnegans Wake, Woolf’s To the Lighthouse and Mrs. Dalloway) deemphasized plot and content, finding interest instead in subjectivity and pure form. Writing a historical novel almost necessarily means that you’re going to be interested in things like setting and objective narration—it’s hard to imagine a stream-of-consciousness novel set in the Tudor court—and so, in reclaiming the joys of setting and plot, perhaps writers like Mitchell are trying to distance themselves from a particular formalist tradition.
Read the rest right here.
Grant –
How do you log in to Verdicts? There doesn’t seem to be a place to do it. (I’m writing from a Mac iBook.)
Grant–
Piggybacking on Ann’s inquiry (which I hope you can help her with), I’m have no problems with leaving comments on either blog, but I can’t seem to do the same in any of the “departments.” For example, I tried to leave a comment in response to Thomas Baker’s book review of “Bonhoeffer,” but I couldn’t. A combox opens when I click “Comments,” but my name is shaded in grey (story of my life), and when I click on “Post” nothing happens. Is it necessary to log into each section of the website? Thanks.
I have a knee-jerk dislike of historical novels, at least ones that rewrite history with even mildly propagandizing intent. Most people, I imagine, have a generally poor understanding of history, and when they read a historical novel – or, for that matter, watch a historical movie – I imagine they often come out of it believing that they now have a good understanding of the historical period that’s been used as a backdrop. Perhaps it’s all harmless, but I dislike it, nevertheless. It seems like charlatanism, deliberate deception, and the picture of large numbers of people being taken for a ride is an ugly one.
Rant off :o)
Ann, just click on “Verdicts” at the very top of the home page.
What W. Collier said.
Oops, yes – Verdicts was commentable immediately after the site format change, but it’s no longer. Apologies, Ann – should have checked before saying anything.
Folks, in order for these comments to be useful, you need to tell us exactly what’s happening and what browser and operating system you use.
Sorry, Grant. OK, here’s an example.
Log in.
Click on Verdicts at the very top of the home page.
Click on the header of an item to read it.
Click on “no comments” or “X comments” at the end of the article.
Write something.
Click “submit”.
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Oops – Vista Ultimate, Firefox.
Try logging out. Then Ctrl-R. Then log in again. See if that works.
Grant –
Thanks, but I tried those instructions on my iBook, and theydidn’t work.
I also tried the usual route on this iPhone I’m using at the moment, and it didn’t work either.
Nope, that didn’t do it. Same result: Vista with Firefox, Chrome 11.0.x, and Explorer 9. Also with iPad iOS 4.3.