In our era of 24-hour news, outrage and hyperbole seem to be par for the course. But as Sr John Madden’s 1909 “gravest peril” speech illustrates, overblown moral panic, to fit an agenda, is nothing new.
The first atom bomb test seventy years ago today marks the start of a change in Americans’ thinking about radiation. On balance, our nuclear anxieties endure today.
Historical representation is far more complex than merely providing the facts – which is why debate continues to rage about the authenticity of popular televised historical dramas such as Game of Thrones and Banished.
Foreign fighters have always posed a dual challenge: how to stop them going and what to do if they return. History offers lessons on managing these problems, including that it’s hard to stop them leaving.
The most spectacular of the Waterloo celebrations will be a massive re-enactment on the actual battle site, involving more than 5,000 re-enactors, including 300 horses and 100 canon. What’s that all about?
Is the line between truth and fiction clear when it comes to history? And if not, is there scope for historians and novelists to re-engage, with a view to learning from – rather than bludgeoning – each other?
There’s no shortage of historical texts, but only a handful are lauded as literature. We can learn valuable lessons by revisiting EP Thompson’s The Making of the English Working Class.
‘History and fiction journey together and separately into the past; they are a tag team, sometimes taking turns, sometimes working in tandem.’ Enjoy the second part of our series, Writing History.