scholarly journals History in Contemporary Lithuanian Literature

2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 394-407
Author(s):  
Audinga Peluritytė

The purpose of this article is to show the evolution of the historical novel that began in the era of independence, to highlight the peculiarities of male and female historical narratives, and to capture critical reactions and tendencies of assessment of that kind of novel. At the beginning of independence, the poetic prose of a minimal story was established in Lithuanian literature, which was created by the most prominent Lithuanian prose writers, and the historical novel made its debut as a complex experience of poetic narration. Poetry and prose focused on archetypal narratives, national consciousness and ethnic semantics and were characterized by an abundance of associations, but not by a clear storyline. Among common variations of the male historical novel, we can observe historical novels written by women, which have won both literary awards and readers’ approval.

Author(s):  
Durba Banerjee

RESUMEN España ha visto una nueva ola de literatura publicada en la primera década de este siglo que trata el tema de la Guerra Civil y que se nutre de las preocupaciones y debates que rodean al movimiento de la recuperación de la memoria de la guerra y la posguerra. Este trabajo pretende indagar en la representación de la Guerra Civil en la novela histórica en particular, centrándose en su estructura narrativa fragmentada. El artículo reconoce la yuxtaposición de diferentes elementos del discurso político, periodístico y historiográfico dentro de las narrativas histórico-ficcionales y la estudia según la idea posmoderna de fragmentación. A manera de ejemplo, toma el caso de dos escritores – Javier Cercas y Alberto Méndez – y sus obras Soldados de Salamina (2001) y El impostor (2014), y Los girasoles ciegos (2004) respectivamente. Se utilizan los ejemplos tomados de las tres novelas históricas contemporáneas para demostrar cómo los textos se convierten en sitios de recuperación de la memoria de la guerra y en herramientas de una reconstrucción novedosa pero crítica de la historia de España mediante la adopción de la fragmentación de manera textual, temática y discursiva. ABSTRACT Spain has witnessed a new wave of literature published in the first decade of this century that deals with the theme of the Civil War and that draws upon the concerns and debates surrounding the movement of recover the memory of the war and the postwar. This work attempts to analyze the representation of the Civil War in the historical novel in particular by focusing on its fragmented narrative structure. The article acknowledges the juxtaposition of different elements from political, journalistic and historiographic discourse within the historical-fictional narratives and studies it according to the postmodern idea of fragmentation. For the purpose of explanation, it takes the case of two writers – Javier Cercas and Alberto Méndez – and their works Soldados de Salamina (2001) y El impostor (2014), and Los girasoles ciegos (2004) respectively. The examples taken from the three contemporary historical novels are used to demonstrate how the texts become sites of recovery of the memory of the war and tools of a novel yet critical reconstruction of the history of Spain by adopting textual, thematic and argumentative fragmentation.


Author(s):  
Dari Escandell

Resum: L’escriptor valencià Víctor Labrado (Sueca, 1956) s’ha erigit com un dels grans referents contemporanis en el camp de la novel·la de no-ficció en català, subgènere narratiu que conjumina la intenció metanovel·lesca amb fidedignes discursos testimonials. Ara bé, ¿les obres cabdals de Labrado –peculiars, idiosincràtiques i gens usuals– poden ser considerades també, sense subterfugis ni matisos, novel·la històrica? A grans trets: trames guerracivilistes empeltades d’entrevistes, dosis generoses de periodisme documental i absència gairebé absoluta de ficció. La tècnica i l’estil propi no suposen, però, cap impediment perquè molts llibres seus siguen alhora novel·la històrica, si fem cas dels topoi convinguts per la crítica especialitzada. No debades, aquests exemplars esdevenen, al capdavall, testimoni viu d’un temps passat; vivències i peripècies de gent anònima que rescaten de l’oblit, des de la particularitat més universal, la realitat valenciana d’un segle passat vilment estigmatitzat pel conflicte civil de l’any 1936 i la dictadura consegüent. ¿N’hi ha prou amb això, però, perquè aquesta etiqueta o clixé siga atribuïble també a la resta de la seua obra i trajectòria? El present article analitza a nivell tècnic, argumental i conceptual els llibres essencials de Labrado per tal de determinar quina part de la seua novel·lística sense ficció pot o no considerar-se al seu torn novel·la històrica.Paraules clau: Víctor Labrado, novel·la sense ficció, novel·la històrica, literatura catalana, valencià.Abstract: The Valencian writer Víctor Labrado (Sueca, 1956) has emerged as one of the great contemporary references in the field of the non-fiction novel in Catalan, a narrative subgenre that combines the fictional intention with real testimonial speeches. However, can Labrado’s capital books –peculiar, idiosyncratic and unusual– be considered also, without subterfuges or hints, historical novels? Broadly speaking: are his Spanish civil war plots grafted with interviews, generous doses of documentary journalism and almost absolute absence of fiction, historical novels? Its techniques and style are no impediment to say so, if we pay attention to the topoi agreed by the specialized critic. In fact, these novels become, in short, a living testimony of our past time: they rescue from oblivion the experiences and adventures of anonymous people, from the most universal particularity, and the Valencian reality of a past century stigmatized by the civil conflict of 1936 and the consequent dictatorship. Is that enough, however, to attribute this label to the rest of his literary works? This paper analyses the techniques, the plots and the concepts of Labrado’s essential books to determine what part of his nonfiction novels may or may not be considered historical.Keywords: Víctor Labrado, nonfiction novel, historical novel, Catalan literature, Valencian


Author(s):  
Nele Bemong

Between 1830 and 1850, practically out of nowhere there came into beinga truly 'Belgian' literature, written boch in Flemish and in French, but aimedat a single goal: the creation of a Belgian past and the conscruction of aBelgian national identity. The historical novel played a crucial role in thisconscruction and representation of a collective memory for the Belgian statejust out of the cradle. The prefaces to these historical novels are characterizedboth by the central role granted to the representacion of Flanders as the cradleof nineteenth-century Belgium, and by the organically and religiously inspiredimagery. Attempts were made to create an intimate genealogical relationshipwith the forefathers, in order to make the Belgian citizens feel closer to theirrich heritage. Through the activation of specific recollections from theimmense archive of the collective cultural memory, Belgian independencefound its legitimization both towards the international community andtowards the Belgian people.


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 480
Author(s):  
Mustafa Kundakcı

<p><strong>Abstract</strong></p><p>In this article, a comparative study will be applied on the character Kenesary Khan in different works of Kazakh literature Gazap (Göçebeler III) (İlyas Esenberlin-1969) and Ulpan (Gabit Müsirepov-1974).</p><p>This study, which aims to show how the artistic understanding of the authors who use historical characters in the narrative genre is affected by the ideology of the period, will try to determine the destructive effect of socialist realism on the artistic and philosophical life of the Turkic geography.</p><p>It is accepted that historical novels, which can be accepted as the intersection of literature and history, correspond to a need in social life. Although both fields are different in nature and method, especially the narrative genre can make use of the unique opportunities of these two fields and reveal very important works examples. As can be understood from the examples mentioned above, the field of Kazakh literature is quite rich in this respect.</p><p>It will be pointed out the reasons why the literature, which declares that it aims to tell the truth, shows the nature of falsifying historical facts contrary to expectations. Historical traces that could answer the differences between these two periods were investigated for Turkish origin nations exploited in every sense both in Tsarist Russia and Soviet Russia.</p><p>It will be tried to reveal how the memory of nations has been destroyed by giving the historical facts via the character Kenesary Khan. Analyzes will be made about the evaluations that the historical novel type is used as an ideological propaganda tool in Soviet Russia.</p><p><strong>Öz</strong></p><p>Bu makalede Kazak edebiyatı sahasındaki farklı yazarlar tarafından farklı tarihlerde kaleme alınan Gazap (Göçebeler III) (İlyas Esenberlin-1969), Ulpan (Gabit Müsirepov-1974) eserlerinde ortak olarak kullanılan Kazak Hanı Kenesarı karakteri üzerinde karşılaştırmalı olarak durulacaktır.</p><p>Edebiyat ve tarihin kesişim alanı olarak kabul edilebilecek tarihî romanların toplumsal hayatta bir ihtiyaca karşılık geldiği kabul edilmektedir. Her iki alanın mahiyet ve metot olarak birbirlerinden farklı olmasına karşın özellikle anlatı türü bu iki alanın kendine has imkânlarından faydalanarak çok önemli eser örnekleri ortaya koyabilmektedir. Kazak edebiyatı sahası da yukarıda anılan eser örneklerinden anlaşılacağı üzere bu bakımdan oldukça zengindir.</p><p>Anlatı türündeki eserlerde tarihî karakterleri kullanan yazarların sanat anlayışının dönemin ideolojisinden ne kadar etkilendiğini göstermeye dönük bu çalışmada, özellikle ‘sosyalist realizm’in Türkî coğrafyanın sanat ve düşünce hayatındaki yıkıcı etkisi tespit edilmeye çalışılacaktır. Bu sahada gerçeği anlatmayı amaçladığını deklare eden edebiyatın, beklenenin aksine tarihî gerçekleri tahrif edecek bir mahiyet göstermesinin sebeplerine işaret edilecektir.  Yine bu çalışmada hem Çar Rusya’sı hem de Sovyet Rusya’sında her anlamda sömürülen Türk soylu milletler için bu iki dönemin farkının ne olduğuna cevap olabilecek tarihî izler araştırılmıştır.</p><p>Tarihî bir şahsiyet olan Kenesarı karakteri üzerinden milletlerin hafızasının nasıl tahrip edildiği, çalışmada ilgili karaktere ilişkin tarihî bilgiler de verilerek ortaya konulmaya çalışılacaktır. Ayrıca tarihî roman türünün Sovyet Rusya’da ideolojik bir propaganda aracı olarak kullanıldığı yönündeki değerlendirmelere ilişkin çözümlemeler yapılacaktır.</p>


2021 ◽  
Vol 52 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 351-371
Author(s):  
Ada Barbaro

Abstract In an epoch of revival of the historical novel, Arabic literature tries to provide its own response to the construction of al-tārīkh al-badīl, namely “alternative history” or, also, allohistory which, as a literary genre, was originally a branch of science fiction. By proposing the idea of a counter-narration, the search for historical alternatives becomes a matter of great importance and responsibility. What happens if the writer tries to construct an alternative point of view, a counter-narration in which “History” is transformed into an almost fictional story? Far from an act of betrayal, this can be interpreted as a restoration of iltizām whenever the narrative potential, or the “if” contained within the narrative, comes true. This article aims to present works where the authors wonder: “What would have happened if…?” This question opens space for literary alternatives to mainstream or official historical narratives.


2019 ◽  
pp. 96-113
Author(s):  
Ewa Ihnatowicz ◽  

People from the Age of Piasts and Jagiellons in Domańska’s Lesson I interpret the images of the Medieval and Renaissance people in Antonina Domańska’s historical novels as a result of her historical thinking and as a key to her concept of historical novel for the youth. Description of contexts of these images also allowed the reconstruction of the writer’s inspiration.


2009 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 89-100
Author(s):  
SARAH MARTIN

The article considers the political impact of the historical novel by examining an example of the genre by Native American novelist James Welch. It discusses how the novel Fools Crow represents nineteenth-century Blackfeet experience, emphasizing how (retelling) the past can act in the present. To do this it engages with psychoanalytic readings of historical novels and the work of Foucault and Benjamin on memory and history. The article concludes by using Bhabha's notion of the “projective past” to understand the political strength of the novel's retelling of the story of a massacre of Native Americans.


Author(s):  
María Jesús Hernáez Lerena

This article explores the implications of Lauren Berlant’s essay “Trauma and Ineloquence” (2001) regarding the therapeutic effects of narrative, also addressing the critical work of other theorists that have tackled the question of the artificiality of personal and historical narratives. By connecting Berlant’s insights into the notion of intelligibility with those of Roland Barthes, of testimony theorists and of other critics on ineloquence, my analysis aims to throw light on two historical novels that are articulated through intimate events that prevent certain speakers (Berlant’s negated subjects) from producing testimony and, therefore, participating in mainstream narratives and accessing justice. The novels River Thieves (2001) by Michael Crummey and The Big Why (2004) by Michael Winter hold the past as a scandal where carnal entanglements degrade the epic sweep of the events and show the disruptive effects of non-normative knowledges. Intimacy, thus defined as a lawless and shameful element in society, intersects with the economic and sexual pressures imported into the colonies by the empire (Povinelli 2006; Stoler 2006a). In this context, Newfoundland, in Canada, represents a colony where the ethics of European and American civilization are called into question.


1970 ◽  
Vol 42 (117) ◽  
pp. 131-144
Author(s):  
Anna Karlskov Skyggebjerg

SECOND WORLD WAR NARRATED FOR CHILDREN AND YOUNGSTERS. INTERPRETATION OF HISTORY IN NEW DANISH LITERATURE FOR CHILDREN | Children’s books about the Second World War have been written and published ever since it ended. One would perhaps imagine that the ever-increasing distance from it would mean a waning interest, but that does not seem to be the case. Over the last few years, a whole range of remarkable children’s books have appeared in Denmark. New things can still be written about this period, and the time gap can be said to have had the effect of freeing up material. This should not be taken as meaning that newer books are less reliable, historically speaking, but rather that they present the period in a new light. In this article a number of recent Danish novels will be discussed with respect to how they deal with history. It is not the intention to try to make non-fiction out of historical novels for children, which would mean reading the books in a manner which was at variance with the genre they belong to, but one of the premises of the article is that the historical novel is to be understood as a form of discourse lying somewhere between history and pure fiction. The historical novel is seen as a piece of fiction presenting one or several interpretations of a given period of history by setting its story in a particular context.


Author(s):  
Maria Jesús Francés

Resum: Parlar de la novel·la històrica en la producció de Josep Lozano s’associa indubtablement a la prestigiosa obra Crim de Germania que l’autor riberenc mostrava al públic l’any 1980. Més de vint anys després reprenia aquest format per a crear El Mut de la Campana (2003) i, de nou, demostrava la seua mestria dins d’aquest gènere. L’objectiu i la configuració interna en ambdues és diferent però el que va empentar l’autor en la dècada dels 80 a usar aquesta vessant creativa tan de moda aleshores persisteix: tornar a un temps passat i contar-lo en una època actual a través del filtre de la ficció i així mostrar quina societat ha sigut i és la societat valenciana. Una societat, aquesta, que sobreïx en tot moment de les dues obres per a demostrar com funciona col·lectivament, així com què la determina des d’un punt de vista idiosincràtic. Paraules clau: novel·la històrica, marc, anàlisi narrativa, etnopoètica, folklore. Abstract: Any analysis about Josep Lozano’s historical novels is undoubtedly associated to his prestigious work Crim de Germania, which the Ribera born author released in 1980. Some 20 years later he created another historical novel, El Mut de la Campana (2003), once again showing his mastery of the genre. The purpose and structure of both works are different, but what motivated the author to use such a creative format in the 80’s persists today: travel back in time, and tell the story as if it were the modern day through a fictional filter and, in doing so, showing what Valencian society was like. A society, this one, which is prevalent throughout both works, shows how it works collectively as well as how it is defined by its idiosyncrasies.Keywords: historical literature, frame, narrative analysis, ethnopoetics, folklore.


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