Fiction as a Genre

Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society 112 (2pt2):179--209 (2012)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

Standard theories define fiction in terms of an invited response of imagining or make-believe. I argue that these theories are not only subject to numerous counterexamples, they also fail to explain why classification matters to our understanding and evaluation of works of fiction as well as non-fiction. I propose instead that we construe fiction and non-fiction as genres: categories whose membership is determined by a cluster of nonessential criteria, and which play a role in the appreciation of particular works. I claim that this proposal captures the intuitions motivating alternative theories of fiction

Similar books and articles

Imagining Fact and Fiction.Stacie Friend - 2008 - In Kathleen Stock & Katherine Thomsen-Jones (eds.), New Waves in Aesthetics. Palgrave-Macmillan. pp. 150-169.
Unrealistic Fictions.Allan Hazlett & Christy Mag Uidhir - 2011 - American Philosophical Quarterly 48 (1):33--46.
Habermas, Derrida, and the Genre Distinction between Fiction and Argument.Sergeiy Sandler - 2007 - International Studies in Philosophy 39 (4):103-119.
The Puzzle of Historical Criticism.Christopher Bartel - 2012 - Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 70 (2):213-222.
Moral Persuasion and the Diversity of Fictions.Shen-yi Liao - 2013 - Pacific Philosophical Quarterly 94 (3):269-289.
Genre fiction and "the origin of the work of art".Nancy J. Holland - 2002 - Philosophy and Literature 26 (1):216-223.
Genre.Brian Laetz & Dominic McIver Lopes - 2008 - In Paisley Livingston & Carl Plantinga (eds.), The Routledge Companion to Philosophy and Film. Routledge. pp. 152-161.

Analytics

Added to PP
2013-01-14

Downloads
2,135 (#3,175)

6 months
110 (#18,657)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Author's Profile

Stacie Friend
University of Edinburgh

Citations of this work

Truth in Fiction, Impossible Worlds, and Belief Revision.Francesco Berto & Christopher Badura - 2019 - Australasian Journal of Philosophy 97 (1):178-193.
Learning Implicit Biases from Fiction.Kris Goffin & Stacie Friend - 2022 - Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 80 (2):129-139.
Exploding stories and the limits of fiction.Michel-Antoine Xhignesse - 2020 - Philosophical Studies 178 (3):675-692.

View all 53 citations / Add more citations

References found in this work

The Nature of Fiction.Gregory Currie - 1990 - Cambridge University Press.
Categories of Art.Kendall L. Walton - 1970 - Philosophical Review 79 (3):334-367.
Truth, fiction, and literature: a philosophical perspective.Peter Lamarque & Stein Haugom Olsen - 1994 - New York: Oxford University Press. Edited by Stein Haugom Olsen.
Imagining Fact and Fiction.Stacie Friend - 2008 - In Kathleen Stock & Katherine Thomsen-Jones (eds.), New Waves in Aesthetics. Palgrave-Macmillan. pp. 150-169.

View all 26 references / Add more references