History and Story
Unconventional History in Michael Ondaatje's The English Patient and James A. Michener's Tales of the South Pacific
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4496027 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Madhumalati Adhikari (Rani Durgavati University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2002 |
| Volume | 41 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 43-55 |
| Publication date | 2002-12-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | History and Theory (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0018-2656 • E-ISSN: 1468-2303 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/1468-2303.00219 |
| OpenAlex | W1974697901 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
Literary history" is a cross between conventional (scientific) history and pure fiction. The resulting hybrid provides access to history that the more conventional sort does not (in particular, a sense of the experiences of the historical actors, and the human meaning of historical events). This claim is demonstrated by an analysis of two novels about World War II, The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje, and Tales of the South Pacific by James Michener. These two very different novels in English are by writers themselves very different from each other, writers from different times, different social and political backgrounds, and different points of view. Their novels examine the effects of the Second World War and the events of 1942 on the human psyche, and suggest how human beings have always searched for the silver lining despite the devastation and devaluation of values. Both novels resist any kind of preaching, and yet the search for peace, balance, and kindness is constantly highlighted. The facts of scientific history are woven into the loom of their unconventional histories. The sense of infirmity created by the formal barriers of traditional history is eased, and new possibilities for historical understanding are unveiled
Aesthetics · Ancient history · Art · Epistemology · Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Point · History of literature · Literature · Meaning (existential) · Politics · Psyche · Reading (process) · Sublime · World history · History · Indian History and Philosophy · Law · Philosophy · South Asian Studies and Conflicts · South Asian Studies and Diaspora
| Unique citing works | 3 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,19 |
| Citation span | 2010 - 2019 (10) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 3 |