Whether or not we can trust our memories is a rich seam for writers to mine. What really happened that night in 1968, 20 years ago? What really went on that evening of the 1971 graduation ball? One thing is certain. If you find 10 people who were at that graduation ball in 1971, their memories would probably differ in a variety of ways. We can go further and ask ourselves about those amongst us who deliberately mislead by writing (or thinking) about the past that twists the truth in order to show us in a better/worse light than we deserve.
The problem with the past is that, by its very nature, it is history. This means that it is often easier to project current attitudes on it. When we do this, we often derive the wrong lessons. Long after the dust settles, it is easy to take a stand and align ourselves with what we consider to be "right". But, is it possible to be always right when they (whoever they are) are always wrong? Can we trust any evidence we might have? In the 1st Gulf War, for example, the incubator babies story which gained so much currency - that Iraqi soldiers invading Kuwait tossed babies out of their incubators in a local hospital - seems to have originated from the daughter of the Kuwaiti ambassador to the UN. You can see this process of misleading the public in the current conflict between Russia and Ukraine. We are fed misinformation that is deliberately twisted by governments who will profit from it in the short term. This misinformation often concerns babies or civilians and what the "enemy" is doing to them. The obvious conclusion to draw is that "we" are right and that "they" are evil and must, therefore, be removed in some way.
So - what about memories in a novel? Suppose two brothers recall a party that happened in 1986. Can they trust their own recollections? My latest novel - Terrace in Treviso - suggests that false memories are often implanted in the brain by suggestion, by leading questions and imagination. Consequently, memories are not as consistent as we would like to believe. Worse, we are often guilty of changing the facts and adding false details to our memories without even realising it, and the consequences can be fatal.
Terrace in Treviso will be for sale on Amazon very soon!
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