Truth in (Impossible) Fictions

• Main Author: Higginbotham, Ethan James
• Other Authors: Philosophy
• Format: Others
• Published: Virginia Tech 2021
• Subjects: Fiction
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10919/104101

I propose a new account of truth in fiction that better handles truth in impossible fictions than the standard Lewisean account. Lewis' solution makes use of possible worlds to capture truths unstated but implied by the fiction. In order to improve upon this account I categorize a number of impossible fictions by the difficulties they raise for any account of fictional truth and show that Lewis' account fails to handle several of them. By careful division of the fiction, one may construct a better account of truth in fiction which captures both the truths of possible fictions as well as the truths of impossible fictions. === Master of Arts === I propose a new account of truth in fiction that better handles truth in impossible fictions than the standard Lewisean account. Lewis' solution makes use of possible worlds to capture truths unstated but implied by the fiction. In order to improve upon this account I categorize a number of impossible fictions by the difficulties they raise for any account of fictional truth and show that Lewis' account fails to handle several of them. By careful division of the fiction, one may construct a better account of truth in fiction which captures both the truths of possible fictions as well as the truths of impossible fictions.