Creasy Steve 11/5/2006 The Importance of Historical Accuracy in Great Works As Hermione Lee stated in her description of the Booker Prize winners, historical accuracy, among other things, is a distinguishing characteristic of a great work. The historical correctness of a novel is often a dividing line between a good novel and a great work of literature, and many great authors ranging from Samuel Clemens to Charles Dickens have effectively recreated historical periods in their literary works. In the Blind Assassin and True History of the Kelly Gang, Margaret Atwood and Peter Carey use language to accurately describe each story's culture, resulting in a powerful story that is extremely believable and very captivating. The Blind Assassin and True History of the Kelly Gang both base the events of the story around a specific time period in which certain historical events were taking place. In The Blind Assassin, the majority of the story focuses on Canada during the era of the Great Depression, while the True History of the Kelly Gang takes place in Australia during the late 1800's when the country was being colonized. These two novels show historical factuality through their use of language that is reflective of the culture at the time, serving to greatly enhance the experience of the reader. The language used in the books reflects the setting's culture by using regional dialect, specific social references, and unique simile. The True History of the Kelly Gang constantly reminds the reader of the setting of the novel, making it nearly impossible to forget where the novel takes place. Likewise, the references to British culture in The Blind Assassin provide subtle, yet effective, reminders of the story's setting.
In The True History of the Kelly Gang, regional dialect permeates the book, and at times the strong dialect seems to be overused. However, dialect is a distinguishing part of Australian culture, and if it were not used the story would lack an important element. Terms such as "lyrebird mound" (p.29), and "dinky di" (p.313) reinforce the Australian outback theme. On the other hand, dialect in The Blind Assassin is much less obvious, but still plays a substantial role in reinforcing the culture of the story. The reader is reminded of the book's sophisticated British-Canadian atmosphere when Iris narrates "a string of funny anecdotes she would retail to her chums" (p.233). Many of the phrases in the two novels are native to the specific place where the book is set, constantly reminding the reader of the book's context during the story's narration. In addition, unique slang is made into simile to help evoke a certain feeling common to the book's culture and setting. The True History of the Kelly Gang provides many examples of how the author uses simile to give a sense of the book's setting and characters. Ned Kelly's narration is interspersed with phrases such as "crawling with police like a bull ant's nest" (p.140), and "stalking me like an old goanna looking for a way into a chook yard" (p.78). These colorful comparisons immerse the reader in the novel's culture by giving the reader a sense of being in the Australian outback and talking to the local folk, who would be likely to use similar phrases in conversation. Social references are also reflective of the book's setting, and phrases are often places through the course of the book that are commonly heard in the story's specific location. Peter Carey's book provides an excellent example of how the language characters use reflects the story's setting. The use of the word "Chinaman" emphasizes the book's setting as being in a place where Chinese immigrants were living at the time.
Just by looking at this one example, the reader is reminded that the book is set in a predominately white location, most likely in the late 1800's, in a place where Chinese had recently immigrated. Just as the language in the book is used to accurately reflect each story's setting, language is also used to recreate the historical period. The use of dialect and simile is predominately used to the replicate sentiments of people living during the time, as well as helping to capture the reader's imagination and help the reader feel as if they were involved in the book. The Blind Assassin incorporates the language of the period by including trends, and nicknames for objects that were common during the time, but rarely used now. For example, throughout the story Marxists are referred to as "Pinko's" or "Bolsheviks". The term "pinko", which refers to a person who supports a lighter version of Communism, is likely to have been used during the 1930's and 1940's when Socialism was emerging in European nations. Also in the story, Iris' speaks of "flappers" (p.147) , which refers to the trend for women in the 1920's who acted out of sociological order by listening to jazz, wearing short skirts, and showed contempt for what was thought to be decent behavior for women at the time. Iris' narration also includes the use of "floozies", when speaking about loose women, and "scanties", a term for women's undergarments. The use of archaic slang that originated in a certain time period helps transport the reader back to that period, furthering the reader's sense of involvement in the story. Similar to the references to "flappers" and "pinkos", the stories date themselves by showing contempt for certain groups that was present at the time the story takes place.
In The True History of the Kelly Gang, Chinese immigrants are singled out; while in The Blind Assassin, orphans and Socialists are seen to be looked down upon. The language used to single out each group would not be as widely used in today's society, because of a greater acceptance of those who are different. In Peter Carey's novel, Ned Kelly says there is "not so much as a Chinaman", implying that he believes Chinese are insignificant. Similarly, during the dedication of the War Memorial Statue in The Blind Assassin, Iris' father requires that a Catholic priest speak at the event, even though there were no Catholics on the organizing committee (p.149). The fact that no Catholics were on the organizing committee, even though all churches were supposed to be represented, hints at the view that Catholics are less important than Protestants. The English cultural prejudice is again implicated after Captain Griffin says that a dead Catholic soldier is the same as a dead Protestant one, and Reenie says "That is one way of looking at it", then Laura asks "What is the other way?" However, Captain Griffin's insistence on a Catholic priest's presence shows that the story takes place when Catholics in North America were beginning to be more widely accepted in society, while in England they were still looked down upon. Also in The Blind Assassin, Reenie says that "[Orphans] can't be trusted" (p.179) and numerous characters write off Socialists as "pinkos" and "Bolsheviks". The language used to describe these minorities reflects the feelings of the characters in the story and can be expanded to reflect the feelings of that society at the time, which helps the reader to date the story and to immerse the reader in the culture of the period.
Both stories do an outstanding job in making the narrator sound like a real person. When the reader is drawn in, and is made to feel as if he or she is alive in a particular society, the novel becomes much more believable. The language used in the book serves to immerse the reader in several elements of the story's culture, and helps to more effectively engage the reader's attention. Being historically sound is an important characteristic that a great work must possess, and The Blind Assassin and True History of the Kelly Gang are made more believable and more riveting by the incorporation of language accurately reflecting the time period and setting of the novel. Many great works have used a historical setting to enhance the entire text, and Margaret Atwood and Peter Carey were effective in creating a great work with the incorporation of historically accurate language.