Synonyms
Introduction
There is no doubt fiction makes a better job of the truth by Doris Lessing Fiction is the dream or imagination of the writer consisting of people, events, or places which is not based on facts or history (Abrams 2017). It is literature in the form of prose. In its most narrow usage, fiction refers to novels, but it may also denote any “literary narrative” (Abrams 2017) including novels, novellas, and short stories. More broadly, fiction has come to encompass storytelling with imaginary elements in any format, including writings, audio recordings, live theatrical performances, comics, animated or live-action films, television programs, games (most notably, role-playing and video games), and so on (Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries 2015). Fiction, literature created from the imagination, is not presented as the fact, though it may be based on a true story or situation (Predelli 1997).
Definition of Fiction
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
References
Abrams, M. H. (2017). Fiction (7th ed.). Boston: Earl McPeek.
Bal, P. M., & Veltkamp, M. (2013). How does fiction reading influence empathy? An experimental investigation on the role of emotional transportation. PLoS One, 8(1), e55341–e55341. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0055341.
Beardsley, M. C. (1981). Fiction as representation. Synthese, 46(3), 291–313. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01130042.
Bergland, C. (2014). Reading fiction improves brain connectivity and function. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-athletes-way/201401/reading-fiction-improves-brain-connectivity-and-function
Fiction. (2014). http://literarydevices.net/metaphor/
Fiction. (2015). Oxford University Press. https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/fiction
Fiction. (2020). Free encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiction
Kilgore, D. W. D. (2010). Astrofuturism: Science, race, and visions of Utopia in space. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=0pBYuiiTccYC
Kupperberg, P. (2004). Hubble and the big bang. New York: Rosen Publishing Group. https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=Y9BiIcCCnJcC
Malatesta, M. (2018). Commercial fiction definition. Book Genre Dictionary. https://book-genres.com/commercial-fiction-definition/
Mar, R. A., & Oatley, K. (2008). The function of fiction is the abstraction and simulation of social experience. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 3(3), 173–192. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-6924.2008.00073.x.
MasterClass. (2019). What is historical fiction? Definition of the historical fiction genre. https://www.masterclass.com/articles/what-is-historical-fiction-definition-of-the-historical-fiction-genre-and-tips-for-writing-your-historical-novel
Menadue, C., & Cheer, K. (2017). Human Culture and Science Fiction: A Review of the Literature, 1980–2016. SAGE Open, 7, 215824401772369. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244017723690.
Mosley, W.. (2019). Elements of fiction (1st ed.). New York: Grove Atlantic. https://groveatlantic.com/book/elements-of-fiction-writing/
Predelli, S. (1997). Talk about fiction. Erkenntnis, 46(1), 69–77. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1005341818171.
Pressley, C. L. (2015). Using Ecotopian Fiction to Reimagine Public Policy: From a Resource-Based Narrative to a Competing Values Narrative. Administrative Theory & Praxis, 37(2), 111–126. https://doi.org/10.1080/10841806.2015.1027570
Reedsyblog. (2018). What is plot? An author’s guide to storytelling. https://blog.reedsy.com/what-is-plot/
Roamance Fiction. (2014). Literary devices. Metaphor. https://literarydevices.net/citation/
Sagan, C. (1979). Broca’s brain: Reflections on the romance of science. New York: Random House. https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=90DuAAAAMAAJ
Science fiction. (2015). https://literaryterms.net/
Star Trek’s Nichelle Nichols’ Warp-Speed Visit to Dryden. (2012). https://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden/Features/nichols.html
Sterling, B. (2019). Science fiction. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. https://www.britannica.com/art/science-fiction
Tamir, D. I., Bricker, A. B., Dodell-Feder, D., & Mitchell, J. P. (2016). Reading fiction and reading minds: The role of simulation in the default network. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 11(2), 215–224. PubMed. https://doi.org/10.1093/scan/nsv114.
The Best Selling Fiction Authors of all Time. (2018). https://www.ranker.com/list/the-best-selling-fiction-authors-of-all-time/walter-graves
The Elements of Fiction. (2010). https://schoolworkhelper.net/the-elements-of-fiction/
Valken, M. (1998). Literature and quality non-fiction: What’s the difference? Publishing Research Quarterly, 14(2), 3–5. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12109-998-0011-x.
Why Science Fiction Is the Most Important Genre. (2018). https://www.wired.com/2018/09/geeks-guide-yuval-noah-harari/
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Section Editor information
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2020 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this entry
Cite this entry
Rai, P. (2020). Fiction. In: Shackelford, T.K., Weekes-Shackelford, V.A. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_2864-1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_2864-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6
eBook Packages: Springer Reference Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences