La nouvelle historique, une contradiction dans les termes ?

How can the novella talk about history? “Local colour” certainly ­constitutes an impasse for the historical novella, as we see in the case of the bibliophile Jacob. To satisfy the generic codes, the writer must do the opposite: seek a maximum of dramatic ­concision, exemplarity, and a new aesthetic. We look for traces of this in the work of Mérimée and Alfred de Vigny.