The Fiction of History

The Fiction of History sets out a number of themes in the relationship between history and fiction, emphasising the tensions and dilemmas created in the relationship. The first part discusses the philosophy behind the connection and distinction between fiction and history and whether history is fiction. Part two talks about the relationship between history and literature. Part three looks at television and film (as well as other media). The final part looks at a particular theme that has prominence in both history and literature, postcolonial studies, focusing on the issues of fictions of nationhood and civilization and the historical novel in postcolonial contexts.