4. Fictional characterisation
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Jonathan Culpeper
Abstract
The topic of character construction and interpretation in fiction, or fictional characterisation, seems to spill into a multitude of disciplines and be approachable from a multitude of perspectives. This chapter discusses work in the linguistics-related field of stylistics, especially cognitive stylistics and the stylistics of drama, but also draws on narratology and other fields besides. Having outlined some ontological and interpretative fundamentals, it describes how characters are constructed in the interaction between top-down knowledge from the reader/perceiver’s head and bottom-up information from the text. Focusing on the latter, it argues that three dimensions are key in characterisation: narratorial control, the presentation of self or other, and the explicitness or implicitness of the textual cue. It elaborates on narratorial filters (point of view, mind style and the presentation of speech and thought), character indexing (through, for example, speech acts) and inter-character dynamics (through, for example, the manipulation of social relations).
Abstract
The topic of character construction and interpretation in fiction, or fictional characterisation, seems to spill into a multitude of disciplines and be approachable from a multitude of perspectives. This chapter discusses work in the linguistics-related field of stylistics, especially cognitive stylistics and the stylistics of drama, but also draws on narratology and other fields besides. Having outlined some ontological and interpretative fundamentals, it describes how characters are constructed in the interaction between top-down knowledge from the reader/perceiver’s head and bottom-up information from the text. Focusing on the latter, it argues that three dimensions are key in characterisation: narratorial control, the presentation of self or other, and the explicitness or implicitness of the textual cue. It elaborates on narratorial filters (point of view, mind style and the presentation of speech and thought), character indexing (through, for example, speech acts) and inter-character dynamics (through, for example, the manipulation of social relations).
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter i
- Preface to the handbook series v
- Preface ix
- Table of contents xi
- 1. Introducing Pragmatics of Fiction: Approaches, trends and developments 1
-
I. Pragmatics of fiction as communication: Foundations
- 2. Participation structure in fictional discourse: Authors, scriptwriters, audiences and characters 25
- 3. The pragmatics of the genres of fiction 55
- 4. Fictional characterisation 93
- 5. The role of dialogue in fiction 129
- 6. Narrative perspectives on voice in fiction 159
- 7. Pragmatics of style in fiction 197
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II. Features of orality and variation
- 8. Oral features in fiction 235
- 9. Doing dialects in dialogues: Regional, social and ethnic variation in fiction 265
- 10. Multilingualism in fiction 297
- 11. The pragmatics of estrangement in fantasy and science fiction 329
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III. Pragmatic themes in fiction
- 12. Pragmatics and the translation of fiction 367
- 13. Subtitling and dubbing in telecinematic text 397
- 14. (Im)politeness in fiction 425
- 15. (Im)politeness and telecinematic discourse 455
- 16. Stance in fiction 489
- 17. Language and emotion in fiction 515
- 18. Language change and fiction 553
- Bionotes 585
- Index of authors of scholarly work 591
- Index of authors of fictional work 603
- Index of fictional sources 605
- Subject index 609
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter i
- Preface to the handbook series v
- Preface ix
- Table of contents xi
- 1. Introducing Pragmatics of Fiction: Approaches, trends and developments 1
-
I. Pragmatics of fiction as communication: Foundations
- 2. Participation structure in fictional discourse: Authors, scriptwriters, audiences and characters 25
- 3. The pragmatics of the genres of fiction 55
- 4. Fictional characterisation 93
- 5. The role of dialogue in fiction 129
- 6. Narrative perspectives on voice in fiction 159
- 7. Pragmatics of style in fiction 197
-
II. Features of orality and variation
- 8. Oral features in fiction 235
- 9. Doing dialects in dialogues: Regional, social and ethnic variation in fiction 265
- 10. Multilingualism in fiction 297
- 11. The pragmatics of estrangement in fantasy and science fiction 329
-
III. Pragmatic themes in fiction
- 12. Pragmatics and the translation of fiction 367
- 13. Subtitling and dubbing in telecinematic text 397
- 14. (Im)politeness in fiction 425
- 15. (Im)politeness and telecinematic discourse 455
- 16. Stance in fiction 489
- 17. Language and emotion in fiction 515
- 18. Language change and fiction 553
- Bionotes 585
- Index of authors of scholarly work 591
- Index of authors of fictional work 603
- Index of fictional sources 605
- Subject index 609
