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Philosophical Issues in the Study of Narrative PHILOSOPHICAL ISSUES IN THE STUDY OF NARRATIVE László Kajtár Submitted to Central European University Department of Philosophy In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Philosophy. Supervisor: David Weberman CEU eTD Collection Budapest, Hungary 2016 Dedicated to my parents CEU eTD Collection László Kajtár: Doctoral Thesis i COPYRIGHT NOTICE Copyright László Kajtár 2016 I hereby declare that the dissertation contains no material accepted for the completion of any other degrees in any other institutions and no materials previously written and/or published by another person unless appropriate acknowledgment is made in the form of bibliographical reference. Budapest, November 2016 László Kajtár CEU eTD Collection László Kajtár: Doctoral Thesis ii ABSTRACT The thesis concerns certain philosophical issues that arise in connection with the notion of ‘narrative’. First, what is narrative? Second, if some narratives are fiction, what makes them so? Third, what can one learn from narrative art? Fourth, what is the difference between experiences that are lived and experiences that are conjured up through empathy by narratives? Fifth, how should narratives be interpreted, and do they need to be interpreted based on the communicative intentions of their makers? Sixth, what is the role of narratives in everyday life and in connection to one’s identity? And lastly, seventh, what is the role of the imagination in creating and comprehending narratives? These are all central issues in the study of narrative, and both the problems and the answers branch out into core areas of philosophy: metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of language, philosophy of mind and philosophy of action. After the definition of narrative, the six chapters are divided into three groups: truth, meaning and mind. First then, even though ‘narrative’ is a widely used term in a variety of disciplines, it is an elusive one. I make a distinction between narrative artworks and elements, argue that most narratives artifacts are patchworks of narrative and non-narrative elements, and I approach narrative artifacts in three steps: 1) as representations; 2) ones that typically make sense of what they represent; and 3) as products of intentions. Second, many philosophers draw the line between fictional and non-fictional narratives based on the claim that the contents of fiction are intended to be imagined by the audience – this is what CEU eTD Collection defines fiction irrespective of truth and falsity. In contrast, I argue that fictional narratives cannot be true, and I consider some difficult cases which would warrant the opposite view. I maintain that ‘being fictional’ and ‘being true’ are incompatible for narratives. László Kajtár: Doctoral Thesis iii Third, it is contentious whether art is an appropriate vehicle of learning, or, whether it has ‘cognitive value’ that is significant in an aesthetic way. My argument is that the most important lessons of art are not truths in propositional form, rather, art provides one with experiential knowledge, with knowing, to a degree, what it is like to be in certain situations. Fourth, while narrative artworks have the capacity to evoke certain experiences (and thus provide experiential knowledge), it is not clear what the difference is between experiences as lived and experiences as evoked by narrative artworks. I defend the view that, in contrast to experiences as lived, experiences evoked through empathy by narrative artworks are meaningful in a specific way. Fifth, philosophers have long been debating whether artists’ intentions should play a role in interpreting artworks. In this chapter, I carve out a qualified position: when it comes to what story a narrative artworks tells, one should refer to intentions, however, one need not do so when understanding what themes are developed by the work or when examining the functions of details that contribute to developing these themes. Sixth, many claim, not just in philosophy but in psychology as well, that narratives are important when it comes personal identity. Some think they constitute one’s ‘self’ or, at the least, make actions and events in one’s personal history intelligible. I argue for a different view: narratives are important for personal identity because they communicate, intentionally and unintentionally, who one is, and they provide access to self-knowledge and opportunity for self-shaping. Seventh, as mentioned, philosophers tend to think that fictional narratives are distinguished by their prescribing the imaginings of their contents. In this last chapter, the position developed is that CEU eTD Collection certain kinds of imagination are necessary for both creating and comprehending narratives irrespective of their fictionality. All in all, the thesis provides much needed conceptual clarifications, and it develops novel and original arguments and views regarding central topics in the study of narrative, making the study of narrative relevant beyond aesthetics for other areas of philosophy. László Kajtár: Doctoral Thesis iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Writing the dissertation would not have been possible without the support of many. First I want to thank my supervisor, David Weberman. He has been a constant source of encouragement and constructive criticism throughout my years at CEU. Without him, I would be a significantly worse philosopher, to maybe the point of not being a philosopher at all. I am grateful to Greg Currie, who took on my supervision when I spent a semester at the University of York. Without our meetings and our correspondence, the thesis would be in much worse of a shape than it is now. I want to thank Peter Lamarque, who was kind enough to take the time and energy to discuss ideas and comment on my work. It was a brief time, but it was a privilege to study at York. I have benefitted greatly from talking to and corresponding with numerous people at CEU, and I could not have wished for a faculty more open and supportive, which also rubbed off on the student body. I can honestly say that I would not trade my years at CEU for any other institution in the world. I have to mention Hanoch Ben-Yami, whose ample advice was invaluable. I have been fortunate to have met a great number of amazing philosophers at various events and conferences, and I could sometimes muster the courage to initiate correspondence even if I have not met them before. I am grateful to Richard Eldridge, Stacie Friend, John Gibson, Jerrold Levinson, Derek Matravers, Aaron Meskin, James Mock and Saam Trivedi. They were not obligated to help me in any way, and yet they did. I am also grateful to audiences at conferences and workshops I attended, CEU eTD Collection and to fellow students at CEU and at the University of York for useful feedback and discussion. Some material in the dissertation has been published independently. A version of Chapter II is forthcoming in Philosophical Studies (Kajtár forthcoming), and the main ideas of Chapter III are developed in an article in Ratio (Kajtár 2016). I chose the format of the thesis in order to facilitate László Kajtár: Doctoral Thesis v publishing articles, and it has been worth it so far. Publishing in philosophy has not been easy, to say the least. I have received numerous rejections, and even though I am now desensitized, some of them are still painful. However, on the flipside, I have had the chance to work with comments and suggestions that were often high quality, some of them generous even, and they were frequently useful (sometimes in spite of their destructiveness or offensive tone), and so I here would like to take the chance and thank the anonymous referees and reviewers for engaging with my work. Last but not least, I am indebted to my wife, my family and my friends beyond what I could express. CEU eTD Collection László Kajtár: Doctoral Thesis vi TABLE OF CONTENTS PREFACE .................................................................................................................................................... 1 I. DEFINITIONS: THE NARRATIVE PATCHWORK .............................................................................................. 5 1. Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 5 2. Narrative Representation: Events and Stories .............................................................................. 12 3. Narrative as Making Sense: Explanation and Understanding ....................................................... 17 4. Narrative and Intentions ............................................................................................................... 23 5. Conclusion ..................................................................................................................................... 27 II. TRUTH: FICTION AND HISTORY ............................................................................................................... 28 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 28 2. The Possibility and Conditions of True Stories .............................................................................. 30 3. Fiction and Invention ..................................................................................................................... 37 4. Fiction and Accidental Truth ........................................................................................................
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