The nature of fiction - Preface-Contents - Gregory Currie

Sep 20, 2026

Uploaded by Aria

The nature of fiction explores what fiction is and why humans can produce and consume it. It develops philosophical questions about how fiction differs from nonfiction, what kinds of entities a world must contain for fiction to exist, and what psychological and linguistic resources are required. Across chapters, it analyzes fiction and language, semantic properties, readers and authors, make-believe and pretense, fictional communication, structure of stories, interpretation, and the roles of authors, narrators, and fictional names.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLiterature

FormatPDF

Pages235

Reading Time6 h 2 min

AccessFree to download

Preface

Chapter 1 The concept of fiction

Fiction and language

Semantic properties

Readers and authors

The pretense theory

Make-believe

The author's intentions

Communicative acts

Fictive communication

Objections to the necessity of the analysis

Objections to the sufficiency of the analysis

Make-believe and pretense

Chapter 2 The structure of stories

Truth in fiction and fictional worlds

Being fictional

Lewis's theory

More on make-believe

Truth in fiction and belief

Fictional author and informed reader

Strategies of interpretation

Fictional to a degree?

Fictions in visual media

Chapter 3 Interpretation

Relationalism and relativism

The intentional fallacy

Intentional meaning and conventional meaning

The return of the author

The text

Story and style

Fictional author and narrator

Chapter 4 The characters of fiction

Fictional names and proper names

Existent and nonexistent things

Reference fixing and descriptive names

Transworld identity and counterpart theory

Diagonal propositions

The content of make-believe

In defense of the fictional author

The metafictive use of fictional names

Accidental reference and aboutness

Fictional names and singular propositions

Roles

Conclusions

Chapter 5 Emotion and the response to fiction

Finding the problem

The options

A theory of emotion

A solution

Objections and revisions

Alternatives

One solution or two?

Emotional congruence

Psychological kinds

In conclusion

Index

THE TUREOFFICTIONGREGORYCURRIE # The nature of fiction The nature of fiction GREGORY CURRIE UNIVERSITY OF OTAGO CAMBRIDGEUNIVERSITY PRESS CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS Cambridge,New York,Melbourne,Madrid,Cape Town,Singapore,Sao Paulo,Delhi Cambridge University PressThe Edinburgh Building,Cambridge CB28RU,UK Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press,New York www.cambridge.orgInformation on this title:www.cambridge.org/9780521381277 ◎ Cambridge University Press 1990 This publication is in copyright.Subject to statutory exceptionand to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements,no reproduction of any part may take place without the writtenpermission of Cambridge University Press. First published 1990Reprinted 1993This digitally printed version 2008 A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library ISBN 978-0-521-38127-7 hardback ISBN 978-0-521-09098-8 paperback "And the poets-the perverse follow them;hastthou not seen how they wander in every valley andhow they say that which they do not.” The Qu'ran “The good ended happily,and the bad unhappily.That is what Fiction means."The Importance of Being Ernest Contents Preface page ix Chapter 1 1 THE CONCEPT OF FICTION 1.1.Fiction and language 2 1.2.Semantic properties 4 1.3.Readers and authors 9 1.4.The pretense theory 12 1.5.Make-believe 18 1.6.The author's intentions 21 1.7.Communicative acts 24 1.8.Fictive communication 30 1.9.Objections to the necessity of the analysis 35 1.10.Objections to the sufficiency of the analysis 42 1.11.Make-believe and pretense 49 Chapter 2 5253 THE STRUCTURE OF STORIES 2.1.Truth in fiction and fictional worlds 2.2.Being fictional56 2.3.Lewis's theory62 2.4.More on make-believe70 2.5.Truth in fiction and belief73 2.6.Fictional author and informed reader75 2.7.Strategies of interpretation81 2.8.Fictional to a degree?90 2.9.Fictions in visual media92 Chapter 3 9999 INTERPRETATION 3.1.Relationalism and relativism Contents 3.2.The intentional fallacy 109 111 3.3.Intentional meaning and conventional meaning 3.4.The return of the author 117 3.5.The text 119 3.6.Story and style 121 123 3.7.Fictional author and narrator Chapter 4 127 THE CHARACTERS OF FICTION 4.1.Fictional names and proper names 128 132 4.2.Existent and nonexistent things 4.3.Reference fixing and descriptive names 133 4.4.Transworld identity and counterpart theory 136 4.5.Diagonal propositions 141 4.6.The content of make-believe 146 4.7.In defense of the fictionalauthor 155 4.8.The metafictive use of fictional names 158 162 4.9.Accidental reference and aboutness 165 4.10.Fictional names and singular propositions 171 4.11.Roles 4.12.Conclusions 180 Chapter 5 182 EMOTION AND THE RESPONSE TO FICTION 5.1.Finding the problem 182 5.2.The options 187 5.3.A theory of emotion 190 195 5.4.A solution 5.5.Objections and revisions 199 208 5.6.Alternatives 5.7.One solution or two? 211 213 5.8.Emotional congruence 5.9.Psychological kinds 215 IN CONCLUSION217 Index 219 vii Preface There are fictions that contribute to the enterprise of philos-ophy.And there are intellectual traditions for which fiction isa natural means to the expression of philosophical ideas.Butthe tradition in which I feel most at home is not one of them,and I leave it to others to explore the ways in which fictiondoes or could contribute to a philosophical explanation of theworld.Instead I shall treat fiction itself as something thatneeds explaining.This is a book written in the belief thatthere are certain very general questions about the nature offiction,the answers to which can be discovered more or lessa priori by appeal to the methods of philosophy rather thanto those of the critic or literary historian.How we c

FAQs

How does the book distinguish fiction from nonfiction?

It frames the key question as identifying characteristics that separate works of fiction from works of nonfiction, treating fiction as something that needs philosophical explanation.

What role do make-believe and pretense play in fiction?

The book develops the pretense theory and make-believe account, linking fictional content to how readers and authors engage in these mental and communicative attitudes.

How does the book address interpretation and the author’s intentions?

It discusses interpretation through topics like the intentional fallacy, intentional vs conventional meaning, and the return of the author, alongside analyses of texts, stories, and narrators.

Sep 20, 2026

Uploaded by Aria