Julian (Magill’s Survey of American Literature, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Gore Vidal
- First Published: 1964
- Type of Work: Novel
- Genres: Long fiction, Historical fiction
- Subjects: Religion, Christianity, Faith, Greek or Roman times, Hellenism, Paganism
- Locales: Roman Empire
Julian was Vidal's first venture into historical fiction. History fascinates him, and he has read as widely in the field as most professional historians. Vidal adheres closely to the historical record, but as a novelist he can do two things that professional historians cannot: He can invent facts when the facts are not known, and he can ascribe motives to historical figures. In both cases, Vidal carefully invents facts and motives that seem most likely to have been true historically. Vidal intends to entertain, but he also intends to instruct: He gives a historically accurate...
[The entire page is 843 words long]
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