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2024-03-13 03:14:40

Fictional Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster

Fictional Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster

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fictional

adjective

fic·​tion·​al

ˈfik-shnəl 

-shə-nᵊl

Synonyms of fictional

: of, relating to, characterized by, or occurring in fiction : invented by the imagination

a fictional story/character fictional dialogue Over the past 15 years, Noble has created a fantastical, awe-inspiring fictional city called Nobson Newtown, which he renders in painstakingly detailed pencil drawings …—Steve Rose There are several surprises about stories. The first is that we spend a great deal of time in fictional worlds, whether in daydreams, novels, confabulations or life narratives. When all is tallied up, the decades we spend in the realm of fantasy outstrip the time we spend in the real world.—David Eagleman Besides scholarly writings and cultural criticism, he's turned out a fictional mystery series starring Edgar Allan Poe …—Edward Lewine

fictionally

ˈfik-shnəl-ē 

-shə-nᵊl-ē

adverb

… a film that documents the history of space science and fictionally portrays a journey to the moon …

—Lynn Baker et al.

Synonyms

chimerical

chimeric

fabulous

fanciful

fantasied

fantastic

fantastical

fictitious

ideal

imaginal

imaginary

imagined

invented

made-up

make-believe

mythical

mythic

notional

phantasmal

phantasmic

phantom

pretend

unreal

visionary

See all Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus 

Examples of fictional in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In fact, the Murdochs inspired the storyline of the fictional Roy family on the HBO hit series Succession.

—Angel Saunders, Peoplemag, 8 Mar. 2024

The fictional inspector has also been featured in radio and theater adaptations.

—Georg Szalai, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Mar. 2024

The shop takes another cue from the fictional candyman with its impressive collection of flavors that numbers in the 400s and ranges from the rare and unusual to the bizarre and unsavory.

—Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 6 Mar. 2024

Douglas and Fonda starred in the 1979 thriller The China Syndrome, about a fictional accident at a nuclear power plant.

—Paul Grein, Billboard, 6 Mar. 2024

He gets lost in the weight and thickness of a fictional place, appreciating specific processes and objects and, most of all, characters who are not him.

—Katy Waldman, The New Yorker, 6 Mar. 2024

Meet the Moms Who Are Fighting Anti-Asian Hate Mighty Little Bheem

The star of this show, Bheem, is a mighty little mischievous toddler who goes on adventures across a fictional Indian village.

—Akruti Babaria, Parents, 5 Mar. 2024

Before RuPaul's Drag Race season 16 continues Fridays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on MTV, read on for a full breakdown to meet all of the celebrities behind the cast of queens' Snatch Game characters — plus some truly wild fictional concoctions.

—Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 23 Feb. 2024

Redmayne plays the famous fictional assassin in the original series based on the Frederick Forsyth novel and award-winning 1973 film adaptation of the same name from Universal Pictures.

—Georg Szalai, The Hollywood Reporter, 23 Feb. 2024

See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fictional.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1834, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of fictional was

in 1834

See more words from the same year

Dictionary Entries Near fictional

fiction

fictional

fictionalise

See More Nearby Entries 

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“Fictional.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fictional. Accessed 12 Mar. 2024.

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10 Mar 2024

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FICTIONAL | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary

FICTIONAL | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary

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English

Meaning of fictional in English

fictionaladjective uk

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 audio

/ˈfɪk.ʃən.əl/ us

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 audio

/ˈfɪk.ʃən.əl/

Add to word list

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C2 imaginary: a fictional story fictional characters

Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples

imaginaryimaginaryOur daughter had an imaginary friend when she was six.made-upThe comedian started with some obviously made-up stories about hanging out with the Queen.make-believeSome politicians seem to live in a make-believe world where everything revolves around their interests.non-existentThese accounts are used to sell fake or non-existent goods.fantasticHer books were filled with magicians and fantastic creatures.

See more results »

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

True, real, false, and unreal

actual

actuality

actually

all that glitters is not gold idiom

anger

falsely

fantastical

fever dream

fictionality

fictionally

nothing could be further from the truth idiom

nothing could have been further from my mind/thoughts idiom

parallel universe

post-factual

practically

unreal

untrue

untruly

unverifiable

urban myth

See more results »

(Definition of fictional from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of fictional

fictional

The interpretative difficulties of these reversions are heightened as soon as we acknowledge that there was more than a fictional character at stake.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

There are other aberrant groups whose fictional voices go unexamined.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Unlike in straight theatre, stand-up and punk both reject a fictional narrative frame and emphasize the here-andnow.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Fictional representations of these matters have been the focus of much attention from feminist literary critics.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Once developed, the alien idea proved a potent motif for fictional explorations of the singularity or insignificance of humanity cultivated by the extraterrestrial hypothesis.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The basic neurophysiology of neuronal pathways suggests that these possibilities are not entirely fictional.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

His account of fictional narratives for women, for example, acknowledges a number of these.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Expressions of cognition were found to be more closely associated with age differences in fictional narratives.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Perhaps the easiest way of opening up these narratives is to map the fictional ' ' history ' ' onto the ' ' real ' ' history.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

In doing so, his case became stronger (after all, we had compelling visual evidence), but also weaker (the evidence was fictional).

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Otherwise, our knowledge will continue to have little or no control over the process of communicating mainstream messages about either reconstructed or fictional ancient pasts.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Thus, in reality the municipal budgets are largely fictional.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

But there is not a single occasion when a fictional character directly interacts with or meets a historical personage.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

An actor is playing a scene where he is supposed to be warning of a fictional fire, when a real fire breaks out backstage.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

These are all real places, but the stage is different in its capacity of signifying a fictional space (and time).

From the Cambridge English Corpus

These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

What is the pronunciation of fictional?

 

C2

Translations of fictional

in Chinese (Traditional)

想像的, 虛構的…

See more

in Chinese (Simplified)

想象的, 虚构的…

See more

in Spanish

de ficción…

See more

in Portuguese

fictício, ficcional, de ficçao…

See more

in more languages

in Marathi

in Japanese

in Turkish

in French

in Catalan

in Dutch

in Tamil

in Hindi

in Gujarati

in Danish

in Swedish

in Malay

in German

in Norwegian

in Urdu

in Ukrainian

in Russian

in Telugu

in Arabic

in Bengali

in Czech

in Indonesian

in Thai

in Vietnamese

in Polish

in Korean

in Italian

काल्पनिक…

See more

架空の, 小説の, 架空(かくう)の…

See more

sadece romanlarda olan, hayalî, düşsel…

See more

fictif/-ive, imaginaire, fictif…

See more

de ficció…

See more

roman-…

See more

கற்பனையான…

See more

काल्पनिक…

See more

કાલ્પનિક…

See more

fiktiv, opdigtet…

See more

uppdiktad, skönlitterär…

See more

bersifat rekaan…

See more

erdichtet…

See more

skjønnlitterær, oppdiktet…

See more

افسانوی…

See more

вигаданий, белетристичний…

See more

вымышленный, литературный…

See more

కల్పిత…

See more

خَيالي…

See more

কাল্পনিক…

See more

smyšlený…

See more

khayalan…

See more

เกี่ยวกับบันเทิงคดี…

See more

hư cấu…

See more

fikcyjny, beletrystyczny…

See more

허구적인…

See more

romanzato, romanzesco…

See more

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fiche

fickle

fickleness

fiction

fictional

fictionality

fictionalization

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fictionalized

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fictional adjective, at fiction

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FICTIONAL Definition & Usage Examples | Dictionary.com

FICTIONAL Definition & Usage Examples | Dictionary.com

GamesDaily CrosswordWord PuzzleWord FinderAll gamesFeaturedWord of the DaySynonym of the DayWord of the YearNew wordsLanguage storiesAll featuredPop cultureSlangEmojiMemesAcronymsGender and sexualityAll pop cultureWriting tipsGrammar Coach™Writing hubGrammar essentialsCommonly confusedAll writing tipsGamesFeaturedPop cultureWriting tipsfictional[ fik-shuhn-l ]show ipaSee synonyms for fictional on Thesaurus.comadjectiveinvented as part of a work of fiction: Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective.of, like, or characterized by fiction: He used a fictional situation to explain the subject.Origin of fictional1First recorded in 1840–45; fiction + -al1 Other words from fictionalfic·tion·al·ly, adverbWords Nearby fictionalficoFICO Scorefict.fictilefictionfictionalfictionalizefictioneerfictionistfictionizefictitiousDictionary.com Unabridged

Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024How to use fictional in a sentenceNamed for the all-seeing stones in the fictional Lord of the Rings trilogy, Palantir combines myriad, ever-changing data streams into one centralized “source of truth.”Palantir shares are up big on first day of trading | Verne Kopytoff | September 30, 2020 | FortuneAs a thought experiment, he began building a fictional universe called Hour Blue and soon saw it as a business opportunity.Magic Leap tried to create an alternate reality. Its founder was already in one | Verne Kopytoff | September 26, 2020 | FortuneThe Sharks and the Jets, in the fictional-gangs-from-the-50s industry.America’s Hidden Duopoly (Ep. 356 Rebroadcast) | Stephen J. Dubner | September 3, 2020 | FreakonomicsIn Paralink’s case, the federal government takes the place of the fictional Hooli — and the establishment is again getting a run for its money.This High Schooler Hands Out More PPE Than the Feds | Daniel Malloy | August 7, 2020 | OzyThe Bookshop, like Ryan’s fictional The Shop Around The Corner, is an old establishment, run more as a family set-up even though those who work there are not related by blood.How a tiny Delhi bookstore helped Indians around the country keep reading during coronavirus | Manavi Kapur | August 7, 2020 | QuartzDisney has a choice whether to produce a program with certain fictional characters; the storyline could be re-written or changed.Yep, Korra and Asami Went in the Spirit Portal and Probably Kissed | Melissa Leon | December 25, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe man behind the desk is a fictional character—a ferocious patriot exposing the limits of rigid ideology.The End of Truthiness: Stephen Colbert’s Sublime Finale | Noel Murray | December 19, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTSo why did I think anyone would want to read yet another book, this time a fictional account of the same story?Amanda Knox: A Mother’s Obsession | Nina Darnton | November 26, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAlmost every fictional hero of my childhood has come back to life on the big screen in recent years.Can Tarzan of the Apes Survive in a Post-Colonial World? | Ted Gioia | November 23, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTBut what awaited was a joy, a glimpse into the life of the fictional Umbridge.J.K. Rowling Pens the Greatest Horror Story Ever: Dolores Umbridge Was Real | Kevin Fallon | October 31, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTFactual material, however disguised, often shines through its fictional background.Indirection | Everett B. ColeNext to "Hadleyburg," it is Mark Twain's greatest fictional sermon.Mark Twain, A Biography, 1835-1910, Complete | Albert Bigelow PaineIt has no fictional connection with the others; it is in no sense a sequel, but rather a companion story.Astounding Stories, April, 1931 | VariousIt was one of his many failures; for, unlike the great fictional detectives who never fail, Haggerty was human, and did.The Voice in the Fog | Harold MacGrathFor a sample of a fictional continuous watch report might look like the following.Whales, Dolphins, and Porpoises of the Western North Atlantic | Stephen LeatherwoodSee More ExamplesBrowse#aabbccddeeffgghhiijjkkllmmnnooppqqrrssttuuvvwwxxyyzzAboutCareersShopContact usAdvertise with usCookies, terms, & privacyDo not sell my infoFollow usGet the Word of the Day every day!Sign upBy clicking "Sign Up", you are accepting Dictionary.com Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policies.My account© 2024 Dictionary.com, LLC

FICTIONAL | definition in the Cambridge English Dictionary

FICTIONAL | definition in the Cambridge English Dictionary

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Meaning of fictional in English

fictionaladjective us

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 audio

/ˈfɪk.ʃən.əl/ uk

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 audio

/ˈfɪk.ʃən.əl/

Add to word list

Add to word list

C2 imaginary: a fictional story fictional characters

Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples

imaginaryimaginaryOur daughter had an imaginary friend when she was six.made-upThe comedian started with some obviously made-up stories about hanging out with the Queen.make-believeSome politicians seem to live in a make-believe world where everything revolves around their interests.non-existentThese accounts are used to sell fake or non-existent goods.fantasticHer books were filled with magicians and fantastic creatures.

See more results »

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

True, real, false, and unreal

actual

actuality

actually

all that glitters is not gold idiom

anger

falsely

fantastical

fever dream

fictionality

fictionally

nothing could be further from the truth idiom

nothing could have been further from my mind/thoughts idiom

parallel universe

post-factual

practically

untrue

untruly

unverifiable

urban myth

validity

See more results »

(Definition of fictional from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of fictional

fictional

Having deaf role models, whether they are real or fictional, has a powerful influence on deaf youth.

From Huffington Post

He's also pretty sure that one of the totally fictional characters from the show would be unhappy about it too.

From Wired

But you also know the writers are going to write fictional stuff.

From NOLA.com

The larger real-life story may be tragic, but the reader feels little when these fictional characters die.

From Washington Post

But thankfully, these two people turn out to be fictional.

From NPR

However, this was no fictional mystery; it was real life.

From TIME

If you dig deep into any character, fictional or non-fictional, you should be able to find both elements.

From Billboard

How would you describe the intersection of the personal and the fictional in this book?

From Huffington Post

This is not to say hip-hop has never embraced its fictional heroes.

From The Atlantic

And interestingly, not everything about the fictional fungus is too far from reality.

From Business Insider

Some fictional figures have become so iconic, that many are still unaware they never existed in the first place.

From New York Daily News

The camera served to create and manage a relationship between the audience and the fictional action onscreen.

From A.V. Club

This dystopian world in which children are sent into an arena to fight to the death is, in fact, fictional, imaginary, fantastical.

From Huffington Post

But whatever their fictional origins, these props were inspired by objects from our world.

From WIRED

These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

What is the pronunciation of fictional?

 

C2

Translations of fictional

in Chinese (Traditional)

想像的, 虛構的…

See more

in Chinese (Simplified)

想象的, 虚构的…

See more

in Spanish

de ficción…

See more

in Portuguese

fictício, ficcional, de ficçao…

See more

in more languages

in Marathi

in Japanese

in Turkish

in French

in Catalan

in Dutch

in Tamil

in Hindi

in Gujarati

in Danish

in Swedish

in Malay

in German

in Norwegian

in Urdu

in Ukrainian

in Russian

in Telugu

in Arabic

in Bengali

in Czech

in Indonesian

in Thai

in Vietnamese

in Polish

in Korean

in Italian

काल्पनिक…

See more

架空の, 小説の, 架空(かくう)の…

See more

sadece romanlarda olan, hayalî, düşsel…

See more

fictif/-ive, imaginaire, fictif…

See more

de ficció…

See more

roman-…

See more

கற்பனையான…

See more

काल्पनिक…

See more

કાલ્પનિક…

See more

fiktiv, opdigtet…

See more

uppdiktad, skönlitterär…

See more

bersifat rekaan…

See more

erdichtet…

See more

skjønnlitterær, oppdiktet…

See more

افسانوی…

See more

вигаданий, белетристичний…

See more

вымышленный, литературный…

See more

కల్పిత…

See more

خَيالي…

See more

কাল্পনিক…

See more

smyšlený…

See more

khayalan…

See more

เกี่ยวกับบันเทิงคดี…

See more

hư cấu…

See more

fikcyjny, beletrystyczny…

See more

허구적인…

See more

romanzato, romanzesco…

See more

Need a translator?

Get a quick, free translation!

Translator tool

 

Browse

fiche

fickle

fickleness

fiction

fictional

fictionality

fictionalization

fictionalize

fictionalized

More meanings of fictional

All

fictional adjective, at fiction

See all meanings

Word of the Day

response

UK

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 audio

/rɪˈspɒns/

US

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 audio

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1Definition and theory

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1.1Fiction and reality

2History

3Elements

4Formats

5Fiction writing

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5.1Literary fiction

5.2Genre fiction

5.3Types by word count

5.4Process of fiction writing

6Fictionalization as a concept

7See also

8Notes

9Citations

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Narrative with imaginary elements

This article is about the type of media content. For other uses, see Fiction (disambiguation).

"Fictional" redirects here. For the German band, see Fictional (band).

An illustration from Lewis Carroll's 1865 novel Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, depicting the fictional protagonist, Alice, playing a fantastical game of croquet

Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary or in ways that are imaginary.[1][2][3] Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a traditional narrow sense, "fiction" refers to written narratives in prose – often referring specifically to novels, novellas, and short stories.[4][5] More broadly, however, fiction encompasses imaginary narratives expressed in any medium, including not just writings but also live theatrical performances, films, television programs, radio dramas, comics, role-playing games, and video games.

The publishing industry divides fiction into, Adult fiction, Young adult fiction, New adult fiction, and Children's fiction

Definition and theory[edit]

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Typically, the fictionality of a work is publicly expressed and so the audience expects the work to deviate in some ways from the real world rather than presenting, for instance, only factually accurate portrayals or characters who are actual people.[6] Because fiction is generally understood to not fully adhere to the real world, the themes and context of a work, such as if and how it relates to real-world issues or events, are open to interpretation.[7] Since fiction is most long-established in the realm of literature (written narrative fiction), the broad study of the nature, function, and meaning of fiction is called literary theory, and the narrower interpretation of specific fictional texts is called literary criticism (with subsets like film criticism and theatre criticism also now long-established). Aside from real-world connections, some fictional works may depict characters and events within their own context, entirely separate from the known physical universe: an independent fictional universe. The creative art of constructing such an imaginary world is known as worldbuilding.

Literary critic James Wood argues that "fiction is both artifice and verisimilitude", meaning that it requires both creative inventions as well as some acceptable degree of believability to its audience,[8] a notion often encapsulated in the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge's idea of the audience's willing suspension of disbelief. The effects of experiencing fiction, and the way the audience is changed by the new information they discover, has been studied for centuries. Also, infinite fictional possibilities themselves signal the impossibility of fully knowing reality, provocatively demonstrating important notions of philosophy, such as there potentially being no criterion to measure constructs of reality.[9]

Fiction and reality[edit]

See also: Literary realism

In contrast to fiction, creators of non-fiction assume responsibility for presenting information (and sometimes opinion) based only in historical and factual reality. Despite the traditional view that fiction and non-fiction are opposites, some works (particularly in the modern era) blur this boundary, particularly works that fall under certain experimental storytelling genres—including some postmodern fiction, autofiction,[10] or creative nonfiction like non-fiction novels and docudramas—as well as the deliberate literary fraud of falsely marketing fiction as nonfiction.[11] Furthermore, even most works of fiction usually have elements of, or grounding in, truth of some kind, or truth from a certain point of view. The distinction between the two may be best defined from the viewpoint of the audience, according to whom a work is non-fiction if its people, settings, and plot are perceived entirely as historically or factually real, while a work is regarded as fiction if it deviates from reality in any of those areas. The distinction is further obscured by a philosophical understanding, on the one hand, that the truth can be presented through imaginary channels and constructions, while, on the other hand, works of the imagination can just as well bring about significant new perspectives on, or conclusions about, truth and reality.

A greater degree of adherence to realism or plausibility characterizes the umbrella genre of realistic fiction, while a lesser degree characterizes the umbrella genre of speculative fiction. Realistic fiction involves a story whose basic setting (time and location in the world) is, in fact, real and whose events could believably happen in the context of the real world. Contrarily, speculative fiction involves a story where the opposite is the case. For instance, speculative fiction may depict an entirely imaginary universe or one in which the laws of nature do not strictly apply (often, the genre of fantasy). Or, it depicts true historical moments, except that they have concluded differently than in real life or have been followed by new imaginary events (the genre of alternative history). Or, it depicts some other non-existent location or time-period, sometimes even including impossible technology or technology that defies current scientific understandings or capabilities (the genre of science fiction). All types of fiction invite their audience to explore real ideas, issues, or possibilities using an otherwise imaginary setting or using something similar to reality, though still distinct from it.[note 1][note 2]

History[edit]

Further information: History of literature

Storytelling has existed in all human cultures, and each culture incorporates different elements of truth and fiction into storytelling. Early fiction was closely associated with history and myth. Greek poets such as Homer, Hesiod, and Aesop developed fictional stories that were told first through oral storytelling and then in writing. Prose fiction was developed in Ancient Greece, influenced by the storytelling traditions of Asia and Egypt. Distinctly fictional work was not recognized as separate from historical or mythological stories until the imperial period. Plasmatic narrative, following entirely invented characters and events, was developed through ancient drama and New Comedy.[14] One common structure among early fiction is a series of strange and fantastic adventures as early writers test the limits of fiction writing. Milesian tales were an early example of fiction writing in Ancient Greece and Italy. As fiction writing developed in Ancient Greece, relatable characters and plausible scenarios were emphasized to better connect with the audience, including elements such as romance, piracy, and religious ceremonies. Heroic romance was developed in medieval Europe, incorporating elements associated with fantasy, including supernatural elements and chivalry.[15]

The structure of the modern novel was developed by Miguel de Cervantes with Don Quixote in the early-17th century.[16] The novel became a primary medium of fiction in the 18th and 19th centuries. They were often associated with Enlightenment ideas such as empiricism and agnosticism. Realism developed as a literary style at this time.[17] New forms of mass media developed in the late-19th and early-20th centuries, including popular-fiction magazines and early film.[18] Interactive fiction was developed in the late-20th century through video games.[19]

Elements[edit]

Further information: Narrative § Elements

Certain basic elements further help to define all works of narrative, including all works of fictional narrative. Namely, all narratives include the elements of character, conflict, narrative mode, plot, setting, and theme. Characters are individuals inside a work of story, conflicts are the tension or problem that drives characters' thoughts and actions, narrative modes are the ways in which a story is communicated, plots are the sequence of events in a story, settings are the story's locations in time and space, and themes are deeper messages or interpretations about the story that its audience is left to discuss and reflect upon.

Formats[edit]

Further information: List of fictional genres

Traditionally, fiction includes novels, short stories, fables, legends, myths, fairy tales, epic and narrative poetry, plays (including operas, musicals, dramas, puppet plays, and various kinds of theatrical dances). However, fiction may also encompass comic books, and many animated cartoons, stop motions, anime, manga, films, video games, radio programs, television programs (comedies and dramas), etc.

The Internet has had a major impact on the creation and distribution of fiction, calling into question the feasibility of copyright as a means to ensure royalties are paid to copyright holders.[20] Also, digital libraries such as Project Gutenberg make public domain texts more readily available. The combination of inexpensive home computers, the Internet, and the creativity of its users has also led to new forms of fiction, such as interactive computer games or computer-generated comics. Countless forums for fan fiction can be found online, where loyal followers of specific fictional realms create and distribute derivative stories. The Internet is also used for the development of blog fiction, where a story is delivered through a blog either as flash fiction or serial blog, and collaborative fiction, where a story is written sequentially by different authors, or the entire text can be revised by anyone using a wiki.

Fiction writing[edit]

Literary fiction[edit]

Main article: Literary fiction

The definition of literary fiction is controversial. It may refer to any work of fiction in a written form. However, various other definitions exist, including a written work of fiction that:

does not fit neatly into an established genre (as opposed to so-called genre fiction), when used as a marketing label in the book trade

is character-driven rather than plot-driven

examines the human condition

uses language in an experimental or poetic fashion

is considered serious as a work of art[21]

Literary fiction is often used as a synonym for literature, in the narrow sense of writings specifically considered to be an art form.[22] While literary fiction is sometimes regarded as superior to genre fiction, the two are not mutually exclusive, and major literary figures have employed the genres of science fiction, crime fiction, romance, etc., to create works of literature. Furthermore, the study of genre fiction has developed within academia in recent decades.[23]

The term is sometimes used such as to equate literary fiction to literature. The accuracy of this is debated. Neal Stephenson has suggested that while any definition will be simplistic there is today a general cultural difference between literary and genre fiction. On the one hand literary authors nowadays are frequently supported by patronage, with employment at a university or a similar institution, and with the continuation of such positions determined not by book sales but by critical acclaim by other established literary authors and critics. On the other hand, he suggests, genre fiction writers tend to support themselves by book sales.[24] However, in an interview, John Updike lamented that "the category of 'literary fiction' has sprung up recently to torment people like me who just set out to write books, and if anybody wanted to read them, terrific, the more the merrier. ... I'm a genre writer of a sort. I write literary fiction, which is like spy fiction or chick lit".[25] Likewise, on The Charlie Rose Show, he argued that this term, when applied to his work, greatly limited him and his expectations of what might come of his writing, so he does not really like it. He suggested that all his works are literary, simply because "they are written in words".[26]

Literary fiction often involves social commentary, political criticism, or reflection on the human condition.[27] In general, it focuses on "introspective, in-depth character studies" of "interesting, complex and developed" characters.[27] This contrasts with genre fiction where plot is the central concern.[28] Usually in literary fiction the focus is on the "inner story" of the characters who drive the plot, with detailed motivations to elicit "emotional involvement" in the reader.[citation needed] The style of literary fiction is often described as "elegantly written, lyrical, and ... layered".[29] The tone of literary fiction can be darker than genre fiction,[30] while the pacing of literary fiction may be slower than popular fiction.[30] As Terrence Rafferty notes, "literary fiction, by its nature, allows itself to dawdle, to linger on stray beauties even at the risk of losing its way".[31]

Genre fiction[edit]

Main article: Genre fiction

Based on how literary fiction is defined, genre fiction may be a subset (written fiction that aligns to a particular genre), or its opposite: an evaluative label for written fiction that comprises popular culture, as artistically or intellectually inferior to high culture. Regardless, fiction is commonly broken down into a variety of genres: categories of fiction, each differentiated by a particular unifying tone or style; set of narrative techniques, archetypes, or other tropes; media content; or other popularly defined criterion.

Science fiction predicts or supposes technologies that are not realities at the time of the work's creation: Jules Verne's novel From the Earth to the Moon was published in 1865, but only in 1969 did astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin become the first humans to land on the Moon.

Historical fiction places imaginary characters into real historical events. In the 1814 historical novel Waverley, Sir Walter Scott's fictional character Edward Waverley meets a figure from history, Bonnie Prince Charlie, and takes part in the Battle of Prestonpans. Some works of fiction are slightly or greatly re-imagined based on some originally true story, or a reconstructed biography.[32] Often, even when the fictional story is based on fact, there may be additions and subtractions from the true story to make it more interesting. An example is Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried, a 1990 series of short stories about the Vietnam War.

Fictional works that explicitly involve supernatural, magical, or scientifically impossible elements are often classified under the genre of fantasy, including Lewis Carroll's 1865 novel Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, and J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. Creators of fantasy sometimes introduce imaginary creatures and beings such as dragons and fairies.[3]

Types by word count[edit]

Types of written fiction in prose are distinguished by relative length and include:[33][34]

Short story: the boundary between a long short story and a novella is vague,[35] although a short story commonly comprises fewer than 7,500 words

Novella: typically, 17,500 to 40,000 words in length; examples include Robert Louis Stevenson's Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (1886) or Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness (1899)[36]

Novel: 40,000 words or more in length

Process of fiction writing[edit]

Main article: Fiction writing

Fiction writing is the process by which an author or creator produces a fictional work. Some elements of the writing process may be planned in advance, while others may come about spontaneously. Fiction writers use different writing styles and have distinct writers' voices when writing fictional stories.[37]

Fictionalization as a concept[edit]

In the 1940 satirical film The Great Dictator, English actor and comedian Charlie Chaplin portrayed the eccentric despot Adenoid Hynkel, obvious to viewers at that time as a fictionalized version of Adolf Hitler and real events happening during the Second World War.

The use of real events or real individuals as direct inspiration for imaginary works is known as fictionalization. The opposite circumstance, in which the physical world or a real turn of events seem influenced by past fiction, is commonly known as "life imitating art". The latter phrase is popularity associated with the Anglo-Irish fiction writer Oscar Wilde.[38]

The alteration of actual happenings into a fictional format, with this involving a dramatic representation of real events or people, is known as both fictionalization, or, more narrowly for visual performance works like in theatre and film, dramatization. According to the academic publication Oxford Reference, a work set up this way will have a "narrative based partly or wholly on fact but written as if it were fiction" such that "[f]ilms and broadcast dramas of this kind often bear the label 'based on a true story'." In intellectual research, evaluating this process is a part of media studies.[39]

Examples of prominent fictionalization in the creative arts include those in the general context of World War II in popular culture and specifically Nazi German leaders such as Adolf Hitler in popular culture and Reinhard Heydrich in popular culture. For instance, American actor and comedian Charlie Chaplin portrayed the eccentric despot Adenoid Hynkel in the 1940 satirical film The Great Dictator. The unhinged, unintelligent figure fictionalized real events from the then ongoing Second World War in a way that presented fascist individuals as humorously irrational and pathetic. Many other villains take direct inspiration from real people while having fictional accents, appearances, backgrounds, names, and so on.

See also[edit]

Outline of fiction

Notes[edit]

^ As philosopher Stacie Friend explains, "in reading we take works of fiction, like works of non-fiction, to be about the real world – even if they invite us to imagine the world to be different from how it actually is. [Thus], imagining a story world does not mean directing one's imagining toward something other than the real world; it is instead a mental activity that involves constructing a complex representation of what a story portrays".[12]

^ The research of Weisberg and Goodstein (2009) revealed that, despite not being specifically informed that, say, the fictional character Sherlock Holmes, had two legs, their subjects "consistently assumed that some real-world facts obtained in fiction, although they were sensitive to the kind of fact and the realism of the story."[13]

Citations[edit]

^ "fiction". Lexico. Oxford University Press. 2019. Archived from the original on 21 August 2019.

^ Sageng, John Richard; Fossheim, Hallvard J.; Larsen, Tarjei Mandt, eds. (2012). The Philosophy of Computer Games. Springer Science & Business Media. pp. 186–187. ISBN 978-9400742499. Archived from the original on 13 March 2017.

^ a b Harmon, William; Holman, C. Hugh (1990). A Handbook to Literature (7th ed.). New York: Prentice Hall. p. 212.

^ Abrams, M. h. (1999). A Glossary of Literary Terms (7th ed.). Fort Worth, Texas: Harcourt Brace. p. 94.

^ ""Definition of 'fiction". Oxford English Dictionaries (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2015. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 25 August 2015.

^ Farner, Geir (2014). "Chapter 2: What is Literary Fiction?". Literary Fiction: The Ways We Read Narrative Literature. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1623564261. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 30 January 2015.

^ Culler, Jonathan (2000). Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press. p. 31. ISBN 978-0-19-285383-7. Non-fictional discourse is usually embedded in a context that tells you how to take it: an instruction manual, a newspaper report, a letter from a charity. The context of fiction, though, explicitly leaves open the question of what the fiction is really about. Reference to the world is not so much a property of literary [that is, fictional] works as a function they are given by interpretation.

^ Wood, James (2008). How Fiction Works. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux. p. xiii.

^ Young, George W. (1999). Subversive Symmetry. Exploring the Fantastic in Mark 6: 45–56. Leiden: Brill. pp. 98, 106–109. ISBN 90-04-11428-9.

^ Iftekharuddin, Frahat, ed. (2003). The Postmodern Short Story: Forms and Issues. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 23. ISBN 978-0313323751. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 22 May 2015.

^ Menand, Louis (2018). "Literary Hoaxes and the Ethics of Authorship". The New Yorker. Condé Nast. Archived from the original on 18 August 2022.

^ Friend, Stacie (2017). "The Real Foundation of Fictional Worlds" (PDF). Australasian Journal of Philosophy. 95: 29–42. doi:10.1080/00048402.2016.1149736. S2CID 54200723. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 July 2018. Retrieved 24 November 2018.

^ Goodstein, Joshua; Weisberg, Deena Skolnick (2009). "What Belongs in a Fictional World?". Journal of Cognition and Culture. 9 (1–2): 69–78. doi:10.1163/156853709X414647.

^ Whitmarsh, Tim (2013). "The "Invention of Fiction"". Beyond the Second Sophistic: Adventures in Greek Postclassicism. University of California Press. pp. 11–34. doi:10.1525/california/9780520276819.001.0001. ISBN 978-0520957022. Archived from the original on 18 August 2022. Retrieved 16 August 2022.

^ Dunlop, John Colin (1845). The History of Fiction (3rd ed.). Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans. pp. 46, 55–56.

^ Johnson, Carroll B. (2000). Don Quixote: The Quest for Modern Fiction. Waveland Press. p. 19. ISBN 978-1478609148.

^ Chodat, Robert (2015). "The Novel". In Carroll, Noël; Gibson, John (eds.). The Routledge Companion to Philosophy of Literature. Routledge. pp. 83–. doi:10.4324/9781315708935. ISBN 978-1-315-70893-5. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 19 August 2022.

^ Thompson, Kristin (2003). Storytelling in Film and Television. Harvard University Press. p. 19. ISBN 978-0674010635.

^ Niesz, Anthony J.; Holland, Norman N. (1984). "Interactive Fiction". Critical Inquiry. 11 (1): 110–129. doi:10.1086/448277. ISSN 0093-1896. S2CID 224795950. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 19 August 2022.

^ Jones, Oliver. (2015). "Why Fan Fiction is the Future of Publishing Archived 19 May 2015 at the Wayback Machine. "

The Daily Beast. The Daily Beast Company LLC.

^ Farner, Geir (2014). Buy Literary Fiction: The Ways We Read Narrative Literature by Geir Farner online in India – Bookchor. Bloomsbury Academic. ISBN 978-1623560249. Archived from the original on 6 December 2021. Retrieved 6 December 2021.

^ "Literature: definition". Oxford Learner's Dictionaries. Archived from the original on 10 June 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.

^ Schneider-Mayerson, Matthew (2010). "Popular Fiction Studies: The Advantages of a New Field". Studies in Popular Culture. 33 (1): 21–23.

^ "Neal Stephenson Responds With Wit and Humor". Slashdot.org. 20 October 2004. Archived from the original on 20 August 2019. Retrieved 12 November 2021.

^ Grossman, Lev (28 May 2006). "Old Master in a Brave New World". Time.

^ "The Charlie Rose Show from 14 June 2006 with John Updike". Archived from the original on 3 February 2009. Retrieved 12 November 2021.

^ a b Saricks 2009, p. 180.

^ Saricks 2009, pp. 181–182.

^ Saricks 2009, p. 179.

^ a b Saricks 2009, p. 182.

^ Rafferty 2011.

^ Whiteman, G.; Phillips, N. (13 December 2006). "The Role of Narrative Fiction and Semi-Fiction in Organizational Studies". ERIM Report Series Research in Management. ISSN 1566-5283. SSRN 981296.

^ Milhorn, H. Thomas (2006). Writing Genre Fiction: A Guide to the Craft Archived 28 September 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Universal Publishers: Boca Raton. pp. 3–4.

^ "What's the definition of a 'novella,' 'novelette,' etc.?". Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. Archived from the original on 19 March 2009.

^ Cuddon, J. A., The Penguin Dictionary of Literary Terms (1992). London: Penguin Books, 1999, p. 600.

^ Heart of Darkness Novella by Conrad Archived 9 April 2017 at the Wayback Machine – Encyclopædia Britannica.

^ Doyle, Charlotte L. (1 January 1998). "The Writer Tells: The Creative Process in the Writing of Literary Fiction". Creativity Research Journal. 11 (1): 29–37. doi:10.1207/s15326934crj1101_4. ISSN 1040-0419.

^ "Council Post: Management Styles and Machine Learning: A Case of Life Imitating Art". Forbes.

^ "Fictionalization". Oxford Reference. Retrieved 22 June 2023.

References[edit]

Rafferty, Terrence (4 February 2011). "Reluctant Seer". The New York Times Sunday Book Review. Retrieved 23 April 2012.

Saricks, Joyce (2009). The Readers' Advisory Guide to Genre Fiction (2nd ed.). ALA Editions. p. 402.

Further reading[edit]

Eco, Umberto (15 July 2017). "On the ontology of fictional characters: A semiotic approach". Sign Systems Studies. 37 (1/2): 82–98. doi:10.12697/SSS.2009.37.1-2.04.

External links[edit]

Library resources about Fiction

Resources in your library

Fiction at Wikipedia's sister projects

Definitions from WiktionaryMedia from CommonsQuotations from WikiquoteResources from WikiversityTravel information from Wikivoyage

"Kate Colquhoun on the blurred boundaries between fiction and non-fiction", La Clé des Langues, 11 September 2012.

Example of a Serial Blog/Short Story Magazine Archived 20 January 2015 at the Wayback Machine

vteNarrativeCharacter

Antagonist

Archenemy

Character arc

Character flaw

Characterization

Confidant

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Focal character

Foil

Gothic double

Hamartia

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city

country

universe

parallel

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Theme

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Leitmotif

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Diction

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Mode

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Stylistic device

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Symbolism

Tone

Structure

Act

Act structure

Three-act structure

Freytag's Pyramid

Exposition/Protasis

Rising action/Epitasis

Climax/Peripeteia

Falling action/Catastasis

Denouement/Catastrophe

Linear narrative

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films

television series

Premise

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Form

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Genre(List)

Autobiography

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Fiction

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Nonfiction

Novel

Narration

Diegesis

First-person

Second-person

Third-person

Third-person omniscient narrative

Subjectivity

Unreliable narrator

Multiple narrators

Stream of consciousness

Stream of unconsciousness

Tense

Past

Present

Future

Related

Creative nonfiction

Dominant narrative

Fiction writing

Continuity

Canon

Reboot

Retcon

Parallel novel

Prequel / Sequel

Genre

List

Literary science

Literary theory

Narrative identity

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