「時間」是人類建構歷史的軸線，歷史的當代詮釋決定了「過去」、「現在」與「未來」的面貌；晚清以前「時間感知」常寄寓於詩詞，以「今昔之思」的抒情文體出現，時至晚清，面對天下之變局，歐美侵襲的風雨中，知識分子開始檢視「過去」數千餘年引以為傲的「中國史學」是如何傲視「蠻貊之邦」，以致於坐井觀天，忽然面對華夏文明的落後，時人對於「歷史」是質疑的，對於「歷史時間」的傳統感知更為衝擊，一時之間提出「史界革命」，期待國人創造新的歷史，然而文字堂奧不足以感動群眾，便以「小說」作為形式，以激盪國人的國族滅亡之危機意識，因此「小說界革命」興起；藉由小說任意出入時空的想像特性，無論是追懷過去、以古諷今、體現當下，甚而遙想未來等等想像，積極尋求國族生命之出口，「空間觀」與「時間觀」變化與爭執背後顯現了不同的政治立場與未來中國的不同圖景。
晚清小說名目紛雜，約有二百多種題材，其中「歷史小說」於其時備受重視，而創作者眾，然而與以往據史以陳述的歷史演義已有相異，甚而發展出來紀錄本朝史事、當代時事的小說題材，有視為「歷史小說」者 ，可見得「歷史小說」的時間界限與時間詮釋於晚清已有不同。即是本文意欲討論晚清小說題材「歷史化」的主要原因，此外歷史小說「文體」之轉變，歷史演義據史實錄的傳統筆法有所承襲外，晚清大事紛起，書寫「事件」因果本末的紀事本末體興盛，以及報刊、新聞體、西方章節體的合流，都為晚清「歷史小說」變形及新創之緣由。
歷史小說創作中「時間」與「空間」之敘述背後，呈現的是晚清不安的時代心靈，卻又勇於探尋國族出路的積極精神，在一個身受戰亂、文明失落的年代，卻透過「小說」建立「理想中國」，所呈現的國族形象，是本研究的最後目標。

Time is used as the demarcation lines to construct history and contemporary interpretations of history will decide the images of the past, present, and future. Before the late Qing period, the perception of time, mostly expressed in poetic forms, often appears in lyrical writings that reminisce about the past from the present. Later, thanks to the impact of the drastic changes of the world and foreign invasions, the late Qing intellectuals start to question the Sinocentric perspectives in traditional history and appeal for a “Historiographical Revolution” in order to create a new history.
However, due to the recondite nature of the poetic language, the novel is then chosen as the preferred medium to stimulate among the general Chinese public the sense of crisis about the fall of the nation. By taking the advantage of the novel’s imaginative feature of moving through time and space, the so-called “Revolution of the Novel” actively seeks a possible way out for the Chinese nationhood. In fact, behind such an alteration and debate in the concepts of time and space are the different political positions of the late Qin intellectuals as well as their different images of China in the future.
Among more than two hundred topics of the late Qin novels, one of the most highly valued is historical novels. With many writers devoted to this literary genre, the late Qin historical novels have a rather different development from the previous works in their choice of time ranges and interpretation of time. A late Qin historical novel may not necessarily be limited as a literary elaboration of some bygone history; instead, its topic can be about the early Qin history or contemporary current events. Moreover, in addition to following the traditional writing style, the late Qin writers of historical novels also tend to adopt the “topically-arranged writing style” of events (jishi benmoti), along with a growing trend in newspapers and periodicals, journalistic writings, and the chapter-and-section format introduced from the West. These all have contributed to the change and innovation of the late Qin historical novels.
To sum up, the narrative of time and space in the late Qin historical novels demonstrates not only an uneasy mind in society but also the aspiring spirit to search for a possible way out for the nationhood. Particularly in the turmoil of wars and loss of civilization, the current study’s final focus, the national image of an “ideal China” that is built upon through the writing of novels, is surely worthy of close examination.