Bleedthrough: The Two-Way Traffic between Popular Historiography and Fiction

Gilchrist, Marianne

Abstract

While historical fiction is dependent on historiography, it can exert a powerful hold on authors of non-fiction and their depictions of the past, especially at popular level. Case-studies of characters from the Crusades (Conrad of Montferrat) and the French Revolution (Maximilien Robespierre and his close friends and family) demonstrate how fiction can perpetuate superseded historical interpretations, instead of engaging with current research. They also show how often popular non-fiction relies on images and stereotypes that originate in fictional works. Lines are further blurred by novelists appearing as experts on historical documentaries. While commercial factors play a part, so too does emotional investment, often rooted in childhood reading, as shown in an example drawing on the representation of prehistoric animals.

Citation

Gilchrist, M. (2019). Bleedthrough: The Two-Way Traffic between Popular Historiography and Fiction. Journal of historical fictions, 2(1), 18-44

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Oct 1, 2019
• Online Publication Date: Apr 5, 2019
• Publication Date: Apr 5, 2019
• Deposit Date: Oct 6, 2022
• Publicly Available Date: Oct 10, 2022
• Journal: The Journal of Historical Fictions
• Print ISSN: 2514-2089
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 2
• Issue: 1
• Article Number: 2
• Pages: 18-44
• Series ISSN: ISSN 2514-2089
• Keywords: historical fiction, historical novel, historiography, crusades, French Revolution, Conrad of Montferrat, Steven Runciman, Walter Scott, Gordon Stables, Cecil B DeMille, Maurice Hewlett, Graham Shelby, Judith Tarr, Maximilien Robespierre, Thomas Carlyle, E
• Public URL: https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/4088142