Does Liking Historical Fiction Make You a TOTAL Loser?
For some reason, I feel like my collection of Bernard Cornwell and Ken Follett novels is some sort of guilty secret. They aren’t “cool”, “literary” and they’re certainly not “woke”, but they are a hell of a lot of fun.
Let’s face it; historical fiction gets a bad rep. It conjures up images of geeky middle-aged men in anoraks reading about their favourite 15th-century battle formations, or ladies of a certain age getting their kicks to Mills and Boon style romps through the English Tudor countryside while scoffing chocolates on ancient armchairs behind stained net curtains.
And it’s true. As I get older and slip into middle age myself, I find increasing solace in the adventures of fictional commanders in semi-invented battles from times long ago.
I used to be into literary fiction, but find now that with the grind of everyday life, I need something to take me away from, not amplify and intensify the problems we face in life and the human condition, as much so-called “literary fiction” tends to do.
Why Read Historical Fiction?
So why am I championing this much-maligned genre? Bestselling historical fiction writer and author of ‘Wolf Hall’ and ‘Bring Up the Bodies’ Hilary Mantel said it best, “Historical fiction comes out of greed for experience. Violent curiosity drives us on, takes us far from our time, far from our shore, and often beyond our compass.”
We all have some dim awareness of the past. While many of us are forward-looking, we must also look to the past to understand the present, especially in hard times like these. Ellen Klages, writing on the website Brightly, puts it succinctly; “Good historical fiction opens a dialogue between the past and the present.”
By reading and understanding the attitudes of people in the past, from the treatment of women and minorities as second-class citizens to the beliefs they held to be true about science and technology, we are able to assess our own knowledge and beliefs in contrast. This is a useful analytical tool and allows us to take stock of quite how the world has changed (mostly for the better).
Children Benefit Too
Kids these days often live happy, unaffected lives very much in the here and now, eyes glued to phones and computer games. But it’s important for children to learn that the past was often a dark place. Doing so starts to give them a wider picture of humanity and how many of our actions can be less than savoury.
Often, too, historical fiction is based on sides; two opposing armies, two warring families. By reading stories in this mould, children can start to reflect on their own experiences and take stock of their own beliefs and who they might side with in the story and why. Essentially, good historical fiction encourages them to assess right from wrong in a wider, more significant context.
Finally, as Ellen Klages eloquently puts it, “It’s a fabulous opportunity for parents, grandparents, and educators to be open about their own experiences, to discuss how things have changed in the last 30 or 40 or 50 years — and how they haven’t.” Reading historical fiction with a child or grandchild can be a great bonding experience, encouraging the child to enquire about the past lives of their own family members.
Final Thoughts
So historical fiction may not be the coolest kid on the literary block and it may have a rather fusty reputation, but there are myriad reasons why you should crack the spine of a Cornwell, a Follett or a Gregory. You might actually learn something about your place in the world and you’ll have a damn good time doing it too.
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