What is an Anachronism?
An anachronism is something that occurs out of its proper time. The chronological error of an anachronism can occur in either direction: it can result from something from the past being represented as if it belonged in the present, like an archaism, or it can result from presenting something at a time before it actually appeared, occurred, or existed. Accidental anachronism can be a source of embarrassment. Some people make a hobby of finding all kinds of mistakes in movies, and ahistorical information – both errors of fact and anachronisms – are categories people search for. For example, a rabbi reports in a review on Amazon that the use of a Yiddish accent in the movie The Ten Commandments (1956) is anachronistic because Yiddish did not develop until the Middle Ages. The use of planned anachronism can be a source of creativity and humor. In theatre, an anachronistic setting can bring out new or different elements of a play. This is a frequent practice: with, for example, Sophocles’ p
For example: a writer could refer to William the Conqueror phoning London. As the telephone was not invented until 1867, this would be an anachronism. Or, a painter might paint a picture showing people cooking their dinner on an electric cooker in 1450. As electricity was not invented until the late nineteenth century, this would be an anachronism.
