Facts about Fiction

From The Arthur Conan Doyle Encyclopedia
(Redirected from Some Facts about Fiction)

On thursday 10 august 1893, Arthur Conan Doyle gave a lecture "Fiction as part of Literature" at the Old Catholic Church, Lucerne (Switzerland). He then toured the lecture all around UK from 4 october to 16 december 1893, starting at the Upper Norwood Literary and Scientific Society (UNLSS) meeting held at Norwood. The lecture was mainly known as "Facts about Fiction"



Tour dates & locations

  • 10.08.1893 : Fiction as Part of Literature, at Christ Church (Lucerne, Switzerland)
  • 04.10.1893 : Some Facts about Fiction, at Upper Norwood Literary and Scientific Society (Norwood, UK).
  • 06.10.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Sale Public Hall (Manchester, UK).
  • 17.10.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at St. James Hall (Kingston, UK).
  • 29.10.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Picton Lecture Hall (Liverpool, UK).
  • 02.11.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Story Institute Lecture Society (Lancaster, UK).
  • 07.11.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Harborne and Edgbaston Institute (Birmingham, UK).
  • 08.11.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Walsall Literary Institute (Walsall, Birmingham, UK). [1]
  • 14.11.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Bradford Mechanics' Institute (Bradford, UK).
  • 15.11.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Albert Hall (Leeds, UK).
  • 16.11.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Cleveland Literary and Philosophical Society (Middlesbrough, UK).
  • 17.11.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Music Hall, Surrey Street (Sheffield, UK).
  • 23.11.1893 : Facts about Fiction [2], at Caledonia Road U.P. Church (Glasgow, UK).
  • 24.11.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Kinnaird Hall (Dundee, UK).
  • 26.11.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Tyneside Sunday Lecture Society (Newcastle, UK).
  • 28.11.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Queen's Park U.P. Church (Glasgow, UK).
  • 29.11.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Music Hall (Inverness, UK).
  • 01.12.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Watt Museum Hall (Greenock, UK).
  • 03.12.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Coliseum Theatre (Leeds, UK).
  • 04.12.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Mechanics' Hall (Nottingham, UK).
  • 06.12.1893 : Facts about Fiction, at Victoria Rooms (Bristol, UK).


Conan Doyle's lecture

Conan Doyle asserted that literature was Britain's lasting glory, outliving the work of statesmen and soldiers. While Hardy and Meredith were talented, they had not captivated the public like earlier writers. He argued that fiction had improved, becoming more cosmopolitan, with writers like Kipling, Stevenson, and Haggard bringing diverse cultural influences into literature. He gave special praise to Robert Louis Stevenson, highlighting his mastery of both novels and short stories, and his precise word choice. He also commended Olive Schreiner and J. M. Barrie, calling Barrie's style as valuable to Scotland as Robert Burns' poetry. Quiller-Couch ("Q") was noted for his confidence, while Kipling, though flawed in style and self-criticism, was a powerful literary and political force, bringing India closer to England. He concluded by emphasizing the moral power of literature, arguing that it shapes thoughts and actions, making novelists the philanthropists of literature with the noble mission of alleviating human suffering.


Reports

Lucerne

Norwood

Manchester

Kingston

Liverpool

Lancaster

Birmingham

Bradford

Leeds

Middlesborough

Sheffield

Dundee

Newcastle

Glasgow

Inverness

Greenock

Leeds

Nottingham

Bristol


See also






  1. Advertised in The Walsall Observer (23 september 1893). No report found yet.
  2. Advertised as "Facts about Fiction", but in fact it was for the George Meredith lecture. Error reported and explained by Conan Doyle in The Scotsman here.