--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: History is fiction." description: "\"“History is fiction.”\" — Jennifer Donnelly" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b60/jennifer-donnelly-1585_history_history-is-fiction-1057627_1057627.jpg" --- # History is fiction. ![“History is fiction.” quote by Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b60/jennifer-donnelly-1585_history_history-is-fiction-1057627_1057627.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b60/jennifer-donnelly-1585_history_history-is-fiction-1057627_1057627.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b60/jennifer-donnelly-1585_history_history-is-fiction-1057627_1057627.jpg) > ““History is fiction.”” [Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. History blurs with narrative, making truth subjective. **In simple terms:** History can read like fiction. Key Takeaway Question narratives critically. Themes history subjectivity truth Mood curious analytical Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - education - media consumption - political discourse Key Concepts Postmodernism narrative theory epistemology Questions to Reflect On - How do you distinguish fact from story? - Why do we mythologize past events? A Different Perspective Factual accuracy may be lost. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) ## Related quotes > [History is the fiction we invent to persuade ourselves that events are knowable and that life has order and direction. That's why events are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-watterson/history-is-the-fiction-we-invent-to-persuade-ourselves-that-events/) [Bill Watterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-watterson/) > [The history of fiction is about family - an inexhaustible subject for literature. We are creatures driven by emotions that are on high display…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siri-hustvedt/the-history-of-fiction-is-about-family-an-inexhaustible-subject-for/) [Siri Hustvedt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siri-hustvedt/) > ['The Dovekeepers' is a compelling, beautifully written novel that combines history and fiction into a timeless story of survival and heroism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-tassler/the-dovekeepers-is-a-compelling-beautifully-written-novel-that/) [Nina Tassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-tassler/) > ['2001' was written in an age which now lies beyond one of the great divides in human history; we are sundered from it forever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/2001-was-written-in-an-age-which-now-lies-beyond-one-of-the-great/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [When I turned 35, I thought, 'Mozart was dead at 36, so I set the bar: I'm going to start writing a book on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-gabaldon/when-i-turned-35-i-thought-mozart-was-dead-at-36-so-i-set-the-bar-i-m/) [Diana Gabaldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-gabaldon/) > [Inspiration comes from so many sources. Music, other fiction, the non-fiction I read, TV shows, films, news reports, people I know, stories I hear,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trudi-canavan/inspiration-comes-from-so-many-sources-music-other-fiction-the-non/) [Trudi Canavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trudi-canavan/) > [There's always that discussion about fiction about how do you market it - these are books for boys, these are books for girls, these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-a-weatherly/there-s-always-that-discussion-about-fiction-about-how-do-you-market/) [L.A. Weatherly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-a-weatherly/) > [The danger that may really threaten (crime fiction) is that soon there will be more writers than readers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-barzun/the-danger-that-may-really-threaten-crime-fiction-is-that-soon-there/) [Jacques Barzun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-barzun/) > [I think that most of us, anyway, read these stories that we know are not "true" because we're hungry for another kind of truth:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/i-think-that-most-of-us-anyway-read-these-stories-that-we-know-are/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [“The fiction will seek the real.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coheed-and-cambria/the-fiction-will-seek-the-real/) Coheed and Cambria > [I love writing fiction and can do it anywhere - I once even missed a flight because I was so engrossed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prue-leith/i-love-writing-fiction-and-can-do-it-anywhere-i-once-even-missed-a/) [Prue Leith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prue-leith/) > [Fiction is a way of exploring possibilities present but undreamt of in the living of a single life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/fiction-is-a-way-of-exploring-possibilities-present-but-undreamt-of/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [I do think that theater is a great venue for science fiction, and not just adaptations but also original work. I also think some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-einhorn/i-do-think-that-theater-is-a-great-venue-for-science-fiction-and-not/) Edward Einhorn > [The thing about science fiction is that it's totally wide open. But it's wide open in a conditional way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-butler/the-thing-about-science-fiction-is-that-it-s-totally-wide-open-but-it/) [Octavia Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-butler/) > [“…progress isn't necessarily about change but about things turning out as we want them to”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-hogan/progress-isn-t-necessarily-about-change-but-about-things-turning-out/) Phil Hogan ## More by Jennifer Donnelly > [“Yves G. Bonnard, archivero jefe, alias el Poderoso Oz, alias el Gran Inquisidor, alias el Anticristo.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/yves-g-bonnard-archivero-jefe-alias-el-poderoso-oz-alias-el-gran/) [Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) > [“She wanted to scream her grief to the skies and wail like an animal, but she couldn't.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/she-wanted-to-scream-her-grief-to-the-skies-and-wail-like-an-animal/) [Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) > [“ As sure as the seabirds in flight, As sure as the endless deep blue, My love is as certain as sunrise. I vow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/as-sure-as-the-seabirds-in-flight-as-sure-as-the-endless-deep-blue-my/) [Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) > [Cripes Miss Wilcox, they're not guns,' I said. No, they're not Mattie, they're books. And a hundred times more dangerous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/cripes-miss-wilcox-they-re-not-guns-i-said-no-they-re-not-mattie-they/) [Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) > [He loves the sparkling fountains and their cascades and says the strangest things as he watches them. they look like stars breaking. Or, They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/he-loves-the-sparkling-fountains-and-their-cascades-and-says-the/) [Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) > [Men are the weak ones, luv. Didn't you know? Oh, you make a lot of noise, but its the women who are strong. Where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/men-are-the-weak-ones-luv-didn-t-you-know-oh-you-make-a-lot-of-noise/) [Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) > [“It's kind of beautiful, this scary world. I still want to go out of it as soon as possible, but when I look around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/it-s-kind-of-beautiful-this-scary-world-i-still-want-to-go-out-of-it/) [Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) > [“Cry your grief to God. Howl to the heavens. Tear your shirt. Your hair. Your flesh. Gouge your eyes. Carve out your heart. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/cry-your-grief-to-god-howl-to-the-heavens-tear-your-shirt-your-hair/) [Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) > [“Humans are selfish creatures who can always be counted on to do the wrong thing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/humans-are-selfish-creatures-who-can-always-be-counted-on-to-do-the/) [Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) > [Every heart is made of stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/every-heart-is-made-of-stories/) [Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) > [DNA tells you all the secrets of life,’ he used to say. Except for one—how to live it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/dna-tells-you-all-the-secrets-of-life-he-used-to-say-except-for-one/) [Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) > [Because beautiful things never last. Not roses nor snow… And not fireworks, either](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/because-beautiful-things-never-last-not-roses-nor-snow-and-not/) [Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) > [There is only one thing I fear now-love. For I have seen it and I have felt it and I know that it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/there-is-only-one-thing-i-fear-now-love-for-i-have-seen-it-and-i-have/) [Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) > [“I'm not snapping," I snapped.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/i-m-not-snapping-i-snapped/) [Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) > [“And then I remember this morning and I wonder if it really happened or if I dreamed it. It was nice. And weird. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/and-then-i-remember-this-morning-and-i-wonder-if-it-really-happened/) [Jennifer Donnelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) [Explore all 218 Jennifer Donnelly quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/) ## More Fiction quotes > [“…progress isn't necessarily about change but about things turning out as we want them to”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-hogan/progress-isn-t-necessarily-about-change-but-about-things-turning-out/) Phil Hogan > [The thing about science fiction is that it's totally wide open. But it's wide open in a conditional way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-butler/the-thing-about-science-fiction-is-that-it-s-totally-wide-open-but-it/) [Octavia Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-butler/) > [I do think that theater is a great venue for science fiction, and not just adaptations but also original work. I also think some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-einhorn/i-do-think-that-theater-is-a-great-venue-for-science-fiction-and-not/) Edward Einhorn > [Fiction is a way of exploring possibilities present but undreamt of in the living of a single life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/fiction-is-a-way-of-exploring-possibilities-present-but-undreamt-of/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [I love writing fiction and can do it anywhere - I once even missed a flight because I was so engrossed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prue-leith/i-love-writing-fiction-and-can-do-it-anywhere-i-once-even-missed-a/) [Prue Leith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prue-leith/) > [“The fiction will seek the real.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coheed-and-cambria/the-fiction-will-seek-the-real/) Coheed and Cambria > [I think that most of us, anyway, read these stories that we know are not "true" because we're hungry for another kind of truth:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/i-think-that-most-of-us-anyway-read-these-stories-that-we-know-are/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [The danger that may really threaten (crime fiction) is that soon there will be more writers than readers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-barzun/the-danger-that-may-really-threaten-crime-fiction-is-that-soon-there/) [Jacques Barzun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-barzun/) > [There's always that discussion about fiction about how do you market it - these are books for boys, these are books for girls, these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-a-weatherly/there-s-always-that-discussion-about-fiction-about-how-do-you-market/) [L.A. Weatherly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-a-weatherly/) > [Inspiration comes from so many sources. Music, other fiction, the non-fiction I read, TV shows, films, news reports, people I know, stories I hear,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trudi-canavan/inspiration-comes-from-so-many-sources-music-other-fiction-the-non/) [Trudi Canavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trudi-canavan/) > [I'm not interested in making a diagnostic novel or a concern. I'm 100 percent committed in fiction to the pleasure principle - that's what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/i-m-not-interested-in-making-a-diagnostic-novel-or-a-concern-i-m-100/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [“His hands on my waist he gently pulled me n embrace. I could feel his breath on my face our lips were about to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-eglinger/his-hands-on-my-waist-he-gently-pulled-me-n-embrace-i-could-feel-his/) [Nicole Eglinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-eglinger/) > [In early drafts, one of the trickiest things for me to do was to realize that the techniques and devices that make readable and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-rooney/in-early-drafts-one-of-the-trickiest-things-for-me-to-do-was-to/) [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) > [I don't think it's always a sign of respect for persons (inside or outside of fiction) to pretend to be able to represent, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-lerner/i-don-t-think-it-s-always-a-sign-of-respect-for-persons-inside-or/) [Ben Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-lerner/) > [Metafiction says something. It has to do with taking a large fiction itself and writing within it; that kind of self-reflecting writing that emerges…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-coover/metafiction-says-something-it-has-to-do-with-taking-a-large-fiction/) [Robert Coover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-coover/) [Browse all 7,410 Fiction quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“History is fiction.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jennifer Donnelly" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/history-is-fiction/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Fiction" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/history-is-fiction/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b60/jennifer-donnelly-1585_history_history-is-fiction-1057627_1057627.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b60/jennifer-donnelly-1585_history_history-is-fiction-1057627_1057627.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b60/jennifer-donnelly-1585_history_history-is-fiction-1057627_1057627.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“History is fiction.” — Jennifer Donnelly", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Jennifer Donnelly", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-donnelly/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“History is fiction.”", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/history-is-fiction/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-donnelly/history-is-fiction/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```