What is at stake in reimagining history through fiction? In this course, we consider the development of historical fiction from the eighteenth century to the present. We will investigate important settings for historical novels, likely including: the Middle Ages as seen through Arthurian legend, the Jacobite uprisings in the Scottish Highlands, the French Revolution, and American slavery. Topics will include: the claims of realism and the powers of fantasy, the relationship of space to time, the rise of nationalism, and the power of fiction itself to shape history. Theories of genre, historicism, and historiography will guide our conversation.
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