Not naming places or people in fiction books?

I have noticed this in Jane Austen books in particular. Sometimes authors like Austen and others in the same time period will write "the ----th Regiment" or in "--------shire", or Lord ---------.





What is the reasoning behind that? People couldn't accept that it was fiction? To prevent people from thinking the author had based people or places based on real people and places? I've never understood what was the purpose of inserting dashes.

Not naming places or people in fiction books?
It just added a little bit of humorous reality to the stories. It gave people something to gossip about. You got the feeling that maybe the author really did know these people. Have you ever seen the gossip columns in the newspaper these days? "A certain Hollywood TV star was seen in the company of a lady who was definitely not his wife. I can safely say that the person was not even the same sex as his wife." Gossip never dies. Of course over dinner parties, everyone was absolutely sure they knew who Lord --------


was. Great dinner conversation. Sold a lot of books, too. Pax-C
Reply:More like doing an end run around defamation suits.It used to be a lot easier to drag someone into court over a supposed slander and when using public,or well-known names,authors resorted to this tactic(mercifully breifly) to skirt the issue
Reply:Your guesses were pretty close to right.





http://www.able2know.org/forums/about640...





I would read the one by Syntinen -- I refrain from republishing it because I fear it wouldn't be in good manners.





OH ANOTHER GREAT SITE! It's got a definitive answer from Austen, apparently. :D


http://ask.metafilter.com/72590/Why-cens...