TOPIC: "More than a history, an historical novel humanises the characters . . . Humanising a character lets us see through their eyes, feel through their feelings and think their thoughts. Their understanding of a fictional world contributes greatly to our understanding of that period in history. Give me a novel any time."

How true did you find these statements after reading Cue for Treason?

After a BRAINSTORM:

Category	History book	Historical fiction
Central focus	peoples, nations, movements	individuals
perspective	hindsight, longview	contemporary, as it happens
reader emotions	supressed, unbiased, scientific	identify with character or narrator's party
purpose	seeks patterns, causes	entertainment, identifications
historical data presented as	maps, photos, text, tables	integrated, holistic
study of character	only if necessary	its central interest
point of view of	neutral 3rd person observer	1st person participant

ESSAY PLAN

1. Observations of historical events (detail, point of view, selections, limitations)

2. Feelings about historical events (emotional distance, instincts, regrets, fame)

3. Understanding of historical events (significance for nation, for self, personal dimension, eye-witness, etc.)

4. Novels sensitise, humanise, contextualise, dramatise, explore, realise

But textbooks grandstand, relativise, philosophise, conclude.

Site written in Brisbane Australia by G. Smith 1/3/99

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