Handbook Narrative factuality (International conference)

Following on the recent interest in fictionality in the de Gruyter Handbuch Fiktionalität (Klauk/Köppe 2014), the forthcoming handbook on fictionality edited by Ralf Schneider and the work done in Aarhus by Henrik Skov Nielsen and Stefan Iversen (see their co-edited paper together with Richard Walsh and James Phelan as “Ten Theses about Fictionality” in the first issue of Narrative in 2015), the graduate school “Factual and Fictional Narration” (GRK 1767) in Freiburg has decided to emphasize their analysis of factual narratives and to put together a complementary handbook focusing on narrative factuality.

The main idea for this handbook is to provide conceptual and historical background for the notions of the real, the factual, the authentic, etc. and to then pose the question of how these notions impact on narration. The handbook will be divided into two main parts: a first part concentrating on concepts and their practical deployment in narrative texs; and a second part discussing issues and problems that are raised in the context of narrative factuality in its inevitable relationship to fictionality.

As a consequence of its origin in the graduate school and the disciplinary alignment of narratology with the humanities, the handbook will cater for an audience of humanities scholars and students rather than scientists or philosophers. The main intention is to provide information about how disciplines outside the humanities conceptualize the real, truth, authenticity and so on, and to do so on a level of discourse that is comprehensible to readers in the humanities. Besides considering the conceptual variety in other disciplines outside the philologies and especially narratology, the handbook additionally attempts to extend the discussion to non-European narratives and non-European cultural and scientific traditions, though it can hope to do so only in a preliminary manner.

Explanation

Format A
The preparatory study group which will read all the papers for that session will generate a series of questions which will be transmitted to the panelists. The Chair will focus the discussion on the examination of the problems and issues raised in these questions. Sessions that refer to one another are supposed to have the same list of questions.

Format B
Panelists are asked to provide a brief maximally five-minute attempt at definition of the key terms (truth, reference, fact, factuality etc.) from the perspective of their disciplines. The audience, including the study group that has read the papers, then gets the chance to ask questions and refer to points raised in the papers submitted by the panellists.

Format C
Panellists summarize the main points or arguments of their papers in 10 minutes each and the chair then moderates the discussion between panellists and the audience. Among the audience the members of the study group who have read all the papers of the session will be particularly active.