The Problem of Presentism: An Exploration of How YA Historical Fiction Positions Readers to Understand the Past

Abstract This chapter probes the friction between historian and historical novelist and considers the conceptual tension in the semantic coupling of “historical” with “fiction.” Of particular interest is how the word historical redefines the meaning of fiction, thus creating a unique literary genre. The chapter discusses the prevalence of presentism in young adult (YA) historical fiction and examines how readers are positioned to understand the past through the lens of presentism in three novels based on Cleopatra by Carolyn Meyer, Lucy Coats, and Kristiana Gregory. A key challenge for a reader of historical fiction is to separate themselves from their presentist views; to do so requires the reader to look at (rather than through) their assumptions and purposefully evaluate the grounds on which their assumptions are based. The tripartite tension of history, fiction, and presentism functions simultaneously to both validate and interrogate the veracity of the genre.