PHILIP K. DICK’S "THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE": A POSSIBLE WORLD BELONGING TO COUNTERFACTUAL (ALTERNATE) HISTORICAL FIC- TION OR SCIENCE FICTION Cover Image

"ЧОВЕК У ВИСОКОМ ДВОРЦУ" ФИЛИПА К. ДИКА: МОГУЋИ СВЕТ КОНТРАЧИЊЕНИЧНЕ ИСТОРИЈСКЕ ФИКЦИЈЕ ИЛИ НАУЧНЕ ФАНТАСТИКЕ?
PHILIP K. DICK’S "THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE": A POSSIBLE WORLD BELONGING TO COUNTERFACTUAL (ALTERNATE) HISTORICAL FIC- TION OR SCIENCE FICTION

Author(s): Mirko Ž. Šešlak
Subject(s): Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, American Literature
Published by: Универзитет у Крагујевцу
Keywords: Doležel;the postmodern challenge;counterfactual historical fiction;Suvin;science fiction

Summary/Abstract: Approaching Philip K. Dick’s novel "The Man in the High Castle" through possible worlds theory in fiction according to Lubomír Doležel as well as the research into the poetics of science fiction by Darko Suvin, this paper attempts to solve the dilemma whether the possible world constructed by the text of the novel in question should be categorised as a possible world belonging to counterfactual historical fiction, a mode of historical fiction, as Doležel argues, or it should be categorised as belonging to the genre of science fiction, a view held by many a theorist in this field. In order to acquaint ourselves better with the possible worlds of counterfactual historical fiction, we shall also deal with the problem of the postmodern challenge which attempts to abolish the differences between the historical and fictional dis- courses by proclaiming the former yet another mode of fiction. The distinction here in question becomes doubly important if we wish to speak of the possible worlds of counterfactual historical fiction as different compared to the possible worlds of history, be they counterfactual or not.

  • Issue Year: XX/2019
  • Issue No: 70
  • Page Range: 169-184
  • Page Count: 16
  • Language: Serbian