[Ansteorra] Odd question reguarding persona development

[Susan]

I was pondering persona earlier and wondering just how close one's 
persona is to be to historic people?  In that manner that we are 
presumed to be of the gentry (I can't remember the exact on this), this 
was a limited population in period-some times and places more so that 
others..  Where is the line on presumptions of our relationships of the 
actual people who lived in period?  This has always confused me, it is 
one of those paradoxes that I have never really been able to work out to 
a degree I am comfortable with.

Looking forward to hearing thoughts about this topic and how different 
people have worked these things out for themselves,
Susan the Curious