Out of Time

I've been mostly blogging about writing in a more literary fashion.  One literary device that should only be used intentionally is anachronism.  This is when something appears at the wrong time, as in a medieval prince wearing sneakers or an ancient Greek using a flashlight.  When you use it in such a way that both reader and you understand you're using it intentionally for humor or for such plot devices as time or space travel, the reader understands the clever twist and sees how it fits into your story, highlighting the differences between the anachronistic character, symbol, setting, etc. and what is going on around it. 

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Many stories use anachronism for humor and/or meaning.  For example, Genie in Disney's "Aladdin" is so funny because he appears in a Medieval world, yet he becomes or references modern figures.  He is so charming because we as the audience and the readers all know everything he says or does is out of time.  His world becomes relevant and relatable for a modern reader because his behaviors tie our worlds together.  Twain's Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court is all about a character that travels from the modern world  to the time of King Arthur.  The protagonist's knowledge and thought processes that reflect modern times make him our entry point to discover and understand the Dark Ages. 

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Anachronism becomes a problem when it's unintentional.  Scholars or even people who know a fair amount about a time period, diagnosis, cultural phenomenon, etc. will lose interest in your piece fairly quickly if an anachronism (or similar issue) is clearly and obviously unintentional.  My husband was thrown out of Braveheart the novel, mentally, when a character struck a match long before matches were invented.  Similarly, he'll watch a movie with an eye toward cars, guns, and fashion.  If something is out of place, it frustrates him on every level. The story loses its pull and magic.

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How do you avoid unintentional anachronism?  Know the material.  Study far more than you're ever going to use.  Know the time period, the culture, whatever it is you're writing about.  If possible, find an expert on the topic and have him/her look over your piece.  And if you're going to use intentional anachronism, make sure it's clear that you're using it and that there is a clear reason for using it.