Resisting 'the spirit of innovation': The Other Historical Novel and Jane Porter

Abstract

Since George Lukács's reading of Walter Scott in "The Historical Novel" (1937), the representation of history as progress has been accepted as the defining characteristic of the historical novel. Jane Porter's novels "The Scottish Chiefs" (1810) and "The Field of Forty Footsteps" (1828) present an alternative model, emphasizing history as continuity. In "Reflections on the Revolution in France" (1790) Edmund Burke rests the stability of the nation on correct succession of sovereignty. In contrast, for Porter, the rituals and tales that rehearse past conflict ensure national continuity. Her work necessitates a rethinking of the historical novel.