History Literature / TrueHistory

''True History'', or ''A True Story'', is a 2nd century {{satir|e}}ical adventure novel by Greco-Syrian writer [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucian Lucian of Samosata]], parodying then-popular {{travelogue|show}} novels that often [[BasedOnAGreatBigLie reported wild tall tales as fact.]]

While perhaps not the first story to feature space travel (the preface implies that it may have been written as a jab at an earlier travelogue that featured a similar tale), it is the oldest surviving example of the concept in fiction. While something of a GenreBuster by today's standards, the novel is often cited as the earliest known work of ScienceFiction.

After a preface in which Lucian [[ThisIsAWorkOfFiction admits that he made everything he's about to tell you up]], he recounts a tale of his voyages with a group of adventurers, sailing from Greece to the Atlantic Ocean. The book details various encounters with outlandish and fantastical places; the most well-known being when his ship is shot up into space by a giant water spout. While there, he sails to the Kingdom of the Moon, where he and his men get caught up in a war between the Moon and the Sun over the colonization of Venus.

''True History'', or ''A True Story'', is a 2nd century {{satir|e}}ical adventure novel by Greek writer [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucian Lucian of Samosata]], parodying then-popular {{travelogue|show}} novels that often [[BasedOnAGreatBigLie reported wild tall tales as fact.]]

''True History'', or ''A True Story'', is a 2nd century {{satir|e}}ical adventure novel by Greek writer [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucian Lucian of Samosata]], parodying then-popular {{travelogue|series}} novels that often [[BasedOnAGreatBigLie reported wild tall tales as fact.]]

''True History'', or ''A True Story'', is a parodic adventure novel by Greek writer [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucian Lucian of Samosata.]] A group of adventurers sail from Greece to the Atlantic Ocean and get shot up to the moon by a giant water spout. When they arrive, they quickly get caught up in the war between the moon and the Sun over the colonization of Venus.

This {{satire}} is not the first ScienceFiction in Human history (as it was written in response to an earlier, now lost, space-travel novel) but if it ''is'' SF, it is one of the earliest examples, and the single oldest surviving one, dating to the 2nd century AD. Lucian intended the work to be a satire of contemporary sources, who describe the most ridiculous myths as being true facts, so the work is packed with things even more exaggerated and absurd while describing itself as an entirely true story.

* UrExample: For ScienceFiction and, possibly, the literary TallTale.

* AllPlanetsAreEarthLike: The Moon, albeit filled with all sorts of wacky monsters, is otherwise earth-like, but it gets even weirder when it turns out there are also civilizations (and people, and trees) on the Sun and several stars. Of course, this is probably a case of ScienceMarchesOn.

* MisterSeahorse: The lunar people are all men, so this trope naturally appears. The sons grow inside the calves of the men.

* BasedOnAGreatBigLie: Parodied. Despite the story being obviously an outrageous {{tall tale}}, with the preface outright admitting it's false, the narrator and the title itself contend that it is entirely true and actually, really happened.

* BasedOnAGreatBigLie: Parodied. Despite the story being obviously an outrageous {{tall tale}}, with the preface outright admitting it's false, the narrator and the title itself contend that it is "entirely true".

* AuthorTract: The book's preface is the only part where the author drops the charade of this being a "True Story", and is primarily a sardonic tirade about how annoyed he is at the popularity and profitability of deceitful, BasedOnAGreatBigLie "travelogues", before noting that he's not above cashing in on the trend -- thus, this novel.

* AuthorTract: The book's preface is the only part where the author drops the charade of this being a "True Story", and is primarily a sardonic tirade about how annoyed he is that the deceitful BasedOnAGreatBigLie "travelogue" novels of his time are so popular and profitable, before noting that he's not above cashing in on the trend -- thus, this novel.

* BasedOnAGreatBigLie: Parodied. Despite the story being obviously an outrageous {{tall tale}}, the narrator and the title itself contend that it is "entirely true".
** Except at one point, when the author inserts a SuspiciouslySpecificDenial to the effect that he has never ever ''ever'' seen or heard or been told about ''any'' events even ''remotely'' like the ones depicted in this book, and warns the reader (a little too strenuously) not to believe a single word of it.

* GiantSpider: Space invasions are accomplished by getting ginormous spiders to spin webs between the Moon and Sun, so the armies can walk accross. While the Moon and Sun are sailing around the sky. Don't fall off!

* RubberForeheadAliens: Moon People have leaves for ears and tails, removeable eyes and genitals, and only one toe per foot, but otherwise they basically look human.

* AllPlanetsAreEarthLike: The Moon, albeit filled with all sorts of wacky monsters, is otherwise earth-like, but it gets even more weird when it turns out there are also civilizations (and people, and trees) on the Sun and several stars. Of course, this is probably a case of ScienceMarchesOn.

This {{satire}} is not the first ScienceFiction in Human history (as it was written in response to an earlier, now lost, space-travel novel) but if it ''is'' SF, it is one of the earliest examples, and the single oldest surviving one, dating to '''''the 2nd century AD'''''. Lucian intended the work to be a satire of contemporary sources, who describe the most ridiculous myths as being true facts, so the work is packed with things even more exaggerated and absurd while describing itself as an entirely true story.

This {{satire}} is not the first ScienceFiction in Human history (as it was written in response to an earlier, now lost, space-travel novel) but if it ''is'' SF, it is one of the earliest examples, and the single oldest surviving one, dating to the 2nd century AD. Lucian intended the work to be a satire of contemporary sources, who describe the most ridiculous myths as being true facts, so the work is packed with things even more exaggerated and absurd while describing itself as an entirely true story.

A parodic adventure novel by Greek writer [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucian_of_samosata Lucian of Samosata]]. A group of adventurers sail from Greece to the Atlantic Ocean and get shot up to the moon by a giant water spout. When they arrive, they quickly get caught up in the war between the moon and the Sun over the colonization of Venus.

This {{Satire}} is not the first ScienceFiction in Human history (as it was written in response to an earlier, now lost, space-travel novel) but if it ''is'' SF, it is one of the earliest examples, and the single oldest surviving one, dating to the 2nd century AD. Lucian intended the work to be a satire of contemporary sources, who describe the most ridiculous myths as being true facts, so the work is packed with things even more exaggerated and absurd while describing itself as an entirely true story.

The book can be found online: [[http://www.sacred-texts.com/cla/luc/wl2/wl211.htm here]] or [[http://lucianofsamosata.info/TheTrueHistory.html here]].

!! ''True History'' provides examples of:

This {{Satire}} is not the first ScienceFiction in Human history (as it was written in response to an earlier, now lost, space-travel novel) but if it is SF it is one of the oldest examples, and the single oldest surviving one, dating to the 2nd century AD. Lucian intended the work to be a satire of contemporary sources, who describe the most ridiculous myths as being true facts, so the work is packed with things even more exaggerated and absurd while describing itself as an entirely true story.

* AncientGreece: Or, more accurately, Hellenistic Greece.

This {{Satire}} is not the first ScienceFiction in Human history (as it was written in response to an earlier, now lost, space-travel novel) but if it is Scifi it is one of the oldest examples, and the single oldest surviving one, dating to the 2nd century AD. Lucian intended the work to be a satire of contemporary sources, who describe the most ridiculous myths as being true facts, so the work is packed with things even more exaggerated and absurd while describing itself as an entirely true story.

This {{Satire}} is not the first ScienceFiction in Human history (as it was written in response to an earlier, now lost, space-travel novel) but if it is Scifi it is one of the oldest examples, dating to the 2nd century AD.

This {{Satire}} is not the first ScienceFiction in Human history (as it was written in response to an earlier, now lost, space-travel novel) but if it is Scifi it is one of the oldest examples, dating to the 2nd century CE.

* AllPlanetsAreEarthLike: The Moon, albeit filled with all sorts of wacky monsters, is otherwise earth-like, but it gets even more weird when it turns out there are also civilizations (and people, and trees) on the Sun and several stars.

* BasedOnAGreatBigLie: Parodied. Despite the story being obviously an outrageous {{tall tale}}, the narrator and the title itself contend that it is "entirely true".\\
\\
Except at one point, when the author inserts a SuspiciouslySpecificDenial to the effect that he has never ever ''ever'' seen or heard or been told about ''any'' events even ''remotely'' like the ones depicted in this book, and warns the reader (a little too strenuously) not to believe a single word of it.

* BizarreAlienReproduction: Moon people are all "male" (what we'd probably call hermaphroditic). In addition to the removeable genitals, they reproduce with gay sex, apparently involving kneecaps, then store fetuses in their calves. They can also plant testical trees that look like giant penises, and grow people on the branches.

A group of adventurers sail from Greece to the Atlantic Ocean and get shot up to the moon by a giant water spout. When they arrive, they quickly get caught up in the war between the moon and the Sun over the colonization of Venus.

* SeventhEpisodeTwist: The explorers go to the moon.

* AllPlanetsAreEarthLike: The Moon, albeit filled with all sorts of wacky monsters, is otherwise earth-like, but it gets even more weird when it turns out there is also civilization (and people, and trees) on the Sun.