Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Historical fiction is a genre in a constant state of flux: since its inception in the nineteenth century, it has been shaped by cultural trends and has persistently responded to the way in which history is popularly conceptualised. As such, historical novels have always revealed as much about the socio-political context of their moment of production as they do about their historical settings. The advent of feminism was among the most significant movements which shaped the evolution of the women’s historical novel in the twentieth century, prompting as it did a radical shift in historiographic methodology. As feminist discourse became embedded in popular culture in the latter decades of the twentieth century, this shift in turn allowed authors of historical fiction the opportunity to reconsider the ways in which women have been traditionally represented in both historical narrative and fiction. The historical novel thus became a site for exploring the female perspective of history, a perspective that had been denied or ignored by more male-centred historical narratives. This dissertation will assess the impact wrought by the popularisation of feminist discourse on the genre of women’s historical fiction during the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. An examination of a selection of contemporary women’s novels set during the Tudor era will prove particularly useful in executing this assessment, not least because of the Tudors’ unprecedented popularity as the focus of literature and film in the last decade. More significantly, the women of this period have proven to be ideal subjects for their authors to imaginatively reconstruct in the mould of third wave feminist icons in the twenty-first century. By examining how Tudor women have been represented in the contemporary historical fiction of Jean Plaidy, Philippa Gregory, Mavis Cheek, Suzannah Dunn and Emily Purdy, this dissertation will demonstrate the ways in which popular feminist discourse has impacted on the development of women’s historical fiction in the last century, focusing specifically on texts published within the last decade. Three key aspects of the genre will be assessed in detail in this regard: the author’s self-conscious feminist intervention in the characterisation of her historical heroines; the shift in the narrative perspective adopted and the deployment of postmodern literary devices; and the representation of female sexuality. The evolution of the genre as a whole will also be examined in some detail, and the shifting parameters of modern feminisms will be interrogated in order to fully understand their manifestations in popular culture. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Historiese fiksie is ’n voortdurend veranderende genre: sedert die ontstaan daarvan in die negentiende eeu is dit beïnvloed deur kulturele neigings en het dit aanhoudend bly reageer op die manier waarop die geskiedenis populêr gekonseptualiseer word. As sodanig het historiese romans altyd net soveel oor die sosiopolitieke konteks van hulle produksiemoment as oor hul historiese milieus onthul. Feminisme was een van die betekenisvolste bewegings wat gedurende die twintigste eeu die evolusie van die historiese roman vir vroue sou beïnvloed, en het sodoende aanleiding gegee tot ’n radikale verandering in historiografiese metodologie. Namate feministiese diskoers in die latere dekades van die twintigste eeu deel van die populêre kultuur geword het, het hierdie verandering op sy beurt die skrywers van historiese fiksie die geleentheid gegun om die maniere waarop vroue tradisioneel in sowel historiese narratief as fiksie uitgebeeld is, te heroorweeg. Die historiese roman het dus ’n terrein geword waarop die vroulike perspektief op die geskiedenis verken is, naamlik ’n perspektief wat deur meer manlik-gesentreerde historiese narratiewe ontken of geïgnoreer is. Hierdie verhandeling sal die impak evalueer wat die popularisering van feministiese diskoers op die genre van historiese fiksie vir vroue gemaak het tydens die twintigste en een-en-twintigste eeue. ’n Ondersoek na ’n seleksie van kontemporêre vroueromans wat in die Tudor-tydperk afspeel, is veral nuttig in hierdie verband, onder andere as gevolg van die Tudors se ongekende gewildheid as die fokus van letterkunde en film in die afgelope dekade. Wat meer veelseggend is, is dat dit blyk die vroue van hierdie tydperk was ideale subjekte wat verbeeldingryk deur hulle outeurs gerekonstrueer kon word in die vorm van derdegolf-feministiese ikone in die een-en-twintigste eeu. Deur te ondersoek hoe Tudorvroue uitgebeeld is in die kontemporêre historiese fiksie van Jean Plaidy, Philippa Gregory, Mavis Cheek, Suzannah Dunn en Emily Purdy sal hierdie verhandeling die impak demonstreer wat populêre feministiese diskoers in die afgelope eeu op die ontwikkeling van historiese fiksie vir vroue gemaak het, met die fokus spesifiek op tekste wat in die afgelope dekade gepubliseer is. In hierdie verband sal drie sleutelaspekte van die genre uitvoerig geassesseer word: die skrywer se selfbewuste feministiese ingryping in die karakterisering van haar historiese heldinne; die verskuiwing in die vertellingsperspektief en die ontplooiing van postmoderne letterkundige tegnieke; en die uitbeelding van vroulike seksualiteit. Die evolusie van die genre as geheel word ook beskou, en die veranderende parameters van moderne feminismes word ondervra sodat hul manifestasies in die populêre kultuur ten volle verstaan kan word.

<p>This dissertation considers the<em> use –</em> both the function and the value – of history in nine contemporary Canadian historical novels: Steven Heighton's <em>Afterlands </em>(2005), Don Gillmor's <em>Kanata</em> (2009), Rudy Wiebe's <em>A Discovery of Strangers </em>(1995), Fred Stenson's <em>The Trade </em>(2000), Michael Crummey's <em>River Thieves </em>(2003), Lawrence Hill's <em>The Book of Negroes </em>(2007), Merilyn Simonds's <em>The Holding </em>(2005), Aimée Laberge's <em>Where the River Narrows</em> (2004) and Jane Urquhart's <em>A Map of Glass </em>(2006). It asks what responsibilities authors of historical novels hold to the past and to readers in the present. It argues for making a distinction between irresponsible and responsible historical fiction, a separation marked not by the strict adherence to “fact,” but rather by the acknowledgement of the continued effect of past actions and relationships on the present, specifically the present configuration of the nation called Canada. I also characterize responsible historical fiction as committed to the notion of “truth-to-meaning” and requiring an engaged and active reader.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Novel The Fellow What is knowledge? Who should own it? Why is it used? Who can use it? Is knowledge power, or is it an illusion? These are some of the questions addressed in The Fellow. At the time of Australian federation, the year 1901, while a nation is being drawn into unity, one of its primary educational institutions is being drawn into disunity when an outsider challenges the secure world of The University of Melbourne. Arriving in Melbourne after spending much of his life travelling around Australia, an old Jack-of-all-trades bushman finds his way into the inner sanctum of The University of Melbourne. Not only a man of considerable and varied skill, he is also a man who is widely read and self-educated. However, he applies his knowledge in practical ways, based on what he has experienced in the

"It is the purpose of this paper, therefore, to explore some of those books included in several literary selection tools in order to determine whether they present the needs of children and the satisfaction of those needs in terms of experiences showing developmental values of a social and ethical nature. To recognize that a certain youngster needs more self-confidence, to give him a book in which the hero is beset by the same situation and overcomes it, and then to sit back with the calm expectation of seeing a miracle wrought would be optimistic to the point of simple-mindedness. All that the librarian can do is to present the book to the child in the hope that he will absorb some help from his reading and thus be encouraged to solve his problems successfully"--Introduction. / Typescript. / "August, 1958." / "Submitted to the Graduate Council of Florida State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science." / Advisor: Agnes Gregory, Professor Directing Paper. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 45-47).

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Thesis (MA (Afrikaans and Dutch))—University of Stellenbosch, 2006. / During an interview, the author Rudolf Herter in Harry Mulisch’s novel Siegfried states that Hitler would only be comprehended if an imaginative experiment is conducted by capturing him in a net of fiction. This is indeed what Mulisch does in this novel. The combination of historical and fictional data resulting from this strategy is typical of the conventional historical novel, while Siegfried also manifests modernist characteristics. In this study, however, special attention is paid to aspects such as metafictionality, selfreflexivity, subjectivity and an emphasis on ideology which Siegfried shares with other postmodern historical novels, with specific reference to Linda Hutcheon’s view on historiographic metafiction and Lies Wesseling’s definition of uchronian fiction. The focus in this study lies, inter alia, on the ways in which Mulisch utilizes open spaces in history and fits the fictitious data like pieces into the puzzle of the history of the Second World War in general and specific events surrounding Hitler in particular. Mulisch’s play with autobiographical data in the novel further diminishes the boundaries between fact and fiction. Of particular importance is the metafictional statements about the nature of history which Mulisch delivers in the process. Not only the political side of history, but also its subjective and one-sided nature is emphasised. Finally a question is posed about Mulisch’s intentions and aspirations in writing another novel about Hitler, who as a character in this novel awakens sympathy on the one hand and on the other is demonized as inhuman with superhuman qualities. This demonstrates the problems involved in gaining insight into the real Hitler. My opinion is that, in the final instance, Mulisch intentionally magnifies the enigma surrounding Hitler in his characterization of the man who can be regarded as one of the most destructive people of the 20th century.

The American author Jane Goodwin Austin published 24 novels and numerous short stories in a variety of genres between 1859 and 1892. Austin’s most popular works focus on her Pilgrim ancestors, and she is often lauded as a notable scholar of Puritan history who carefully researched her subject matter; however, several of the most common myths about the Pilgrims seem to have originated in Austin’s fiction. As a writer who saw her work as her means of entering the public sphere and enacting social change, Austin championed women and religious diversity. The range of Austin’s oeuvre, her coterie of notable friendships, especially amongst New England elites, and her impact on American myth and culture make her worthy of in-depth scholarly study, yet, inexplicably, very little critical work exists on Austin. This dissertation provides the most comprehensive biography of Austin to date, compiled largely from archival sources, and examines two of her novels, the 1865 Dora Darling: Daughter of the Regiment, one of the only Civil War-era adventure novels featuring a young girl who engages directly in the war, and the 1889 Standish of Standish, a carefully researched novel of the first few years of the Pilgrim’s Plymouth settlement, based on primary sources, popular culture, and family lore.

Enclosed herein, in accordance with the requirements of the Department of English, College of Humanities and Sciences, and the VCU Graduate School, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia, regarding thesis submission, arrangement, and abstraction, is the novel entitled Skyline, in which one Jameson Price, of Fredericksburg, Virginia, aged 19, embarks upon a journey of self-exploration, financial gain, and physical labor, and experiences for the first time (or maybe second) the tumults of love. Upon his enrolment in the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in 1936, he is taken to Camp Saddleback, near New Puckett, Virginia, situated on the Blue Ridge Mountains to the east of the Shenandoah Valley. Here he assists in the creation of the Shenandoah National Park, and develops and explores relationships with fellow CCC boys and local residents—both positive and negative relationships, all with consequences that will affect all of their lives, forever.

Ng Chui-yin, Christine. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 148-156). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / Abstract --- p.i / Acknowledgement --- p.vi / Contents --- p.vii / "Introduction: History, Fiction, and Narrative" --- p.1 / History and Narrative in Traditional Historical Narrative --- p.4 / A Rethinking of the Relationship between History and Narrative --- p.6 / Historical Narrative in a Postcolonial Context --- p.21 / Historical Novel Writing and Postcolonial Counter Discourse --- p.26 / Chapter Chapter One: --- Resistance to Solitude: Garcia Marquez's Vision of a New World in One Hundred Years of Solitude / Imperial Historical Narratives and Latin America --- p.35 / Magical Realism and Historical Representation of Latin America --- p.44 / "Solitude, Family History and the Problem of Identity" --- p.59 / Conclusion --- p.71 / Chapter Chapter Two: --- Midnight's Children and Hybridity / Imperial Historical Narratives and India --- p.74 / Metafictional Writing and Historical Novel Writing --- p.80 / Hybridity of Indian Cultural Identity --- p.91 / Conclusion --- p.101 / Chapter Chapter Three: --- Non-resistance to National Historical Narratives: Xi Xi's Flying Carpet / "British Colonial Narratives, Chinese National Narratives and Hong Kong" --- p.102 / Fairy-tale Realism and an Alternative Historical Representation --- p.112 / The Representation of the HongkongnesśؤHeterogeneity and All-inclusiveness --- p.119 / Conclusion --- p.129 / Conclusion: Postcolonial Counter Discourse in Historical Novel Writing --- p.131 / Notes --- p.141 / Work Cited --- p.148

This dissertation argues that works of literature offer a valuable critical supplement to historical and legal accounts of colonial violence, due to the common investment of literary texts in thematizing moral complexity and complicity, and by drawing attention to intimate and social forms of harm that might otherwise go unaccounted for. Following the recent successful lawsuit against the British government by elderly Kenyans who survived torture in the 1950s, as well as recent historical scholarship on the colonial government's brutal counterinsurgency, I argue that the paradigmatic anticolonial event commonly referred to as the “Mau Mau” uprising has been reframed in terms of a series of grave human rights abuses. I examine the diverse ways in which the Mau Mau struggle has been figured in narrative fiction, focusing on works by Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o, Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor, Marjorie Oludhe Macgoye, and the white supremacist Robert Ruark. The dissertation shows literary texts to be sites of distinct forms of knowledge concerning the harms of political violence. My readings demonstrate that fictions of Mau Mau have figured that crisis as both a crime that demands urgent redress and an event whose damage is permanent and irreparable, each text staging in distinct ways the structuring paradox of historical reparation as an impossible ethical demand that must nonetheless be insisted upon. I think of reparations claims as radical decolonizing demands, countering recent critiques of the “politics of reparations” as a liberal departure from properly emancipationist thinking.