From ancient philosophy to contemporary theories of fiction, it is a common practice to relegate illusory appearances to the realm of the non-existent, like shadows on the wall of Plato's cave. Contrary to this traditional mode of drawing a metaphysical distinction between reality and fiction, Markus Gabriel argues that the realm of the illusory, fictional, imaginary and conceptually indeterminate is as real as it gets.

Being in touch with reality need not and cannot require that we overcome appearances in order to grasp a meaningless reality which exists 'out there', outside and maybe even beyond our minds. Human mindedness (Geist) exists in the mode of fictions through which we achieve self-consciousness. This novel approach provides a fresh perspective on our existence as subjects who lead their lives in the light of self-conceptions.

Fictions also develops a social ontology according to which the social unfolds as a constant renegotiation of dissent, of different points of view onto the same reality. Thus we cannot ever hope to ground human society in a fiction-free realm of objective transactions. However, this does not mean that truth and reality are somehow outdated concepts. On the contrary, we need to enlarge our conception of reality so that it fully encompasses ourselves as specifically minded social animals.

This major new work of philosophy will be of interest to students and scholars throughout the humanities and to anyone interested in contemporary philosophy and social thought.

About the Author
Markus Gabriel holds the chair for Epistemology, Modern and Contemporary Philosophy at the University of Bonn and is also the Director of the International Center for Philosophy in Bonn.

Reviews

"Markus Gabriel's incisive and illuminating Fictions poses foundational questions both for the public sphere and for academic institutions. His astute argument revolves around three aspects essential to the task of world-making as a progressive practice: fact-finding, fiction-shaping and truth-telling. As acute about narrative as he is astute about its ontological sources, this book is a treat to read as it accomplishes its urgent tasks. The exigencies of the philosophy of mind are brought to bear on the facts and fictions of everyday life."
Homi Bhabha, Harvard University

"The polemical edge of Markus Gabriel's Fictions in the current Anglo-American debates marks a return to philosophy's original promise of describing the human mind as a core condition for existing reality - without paying the price, conceded by contemporary analytical approaches, of disappearing in the offside of academic specialization. Based on a reshaped concept of 'fiction' as permeating everyday perception, Gabriel brings philosophy back to the claim and function of serving as a matrix for productive intellectual exchanges between different sectors of praxis and culture."
Hans Ulrich Gumbrecht, Stanford University and the Hebrew University, Jerusalem

"Fictions interfuses philosophy with problems of great interest to literary scholars. Unfolding in three movements, from fictional realism through mental realism to social realism, the book lands in the contemporary moment, when what is real seems to have become a contested matter. Readers from a wide range of fields will find entry points into this discussion on every page."
Christy Wampole, Princeton University

"The traditional opposition between fiction and reality has prevented us from understanding how much fiction is part of being and contributes to making it ours. By making sense of the many ways in which fictions exist, Markus Gabriel restores its humanity to being and its being to humanity."
M. Jocelyn Benoist, University of Paris 1, Pantheon-Sorbonne

Book Information
ISBN 9781509546619
Author Markus Gabriel
Format Hardback
Page Count 420
Imprint Polity Press
Publisher John Wiley and Sons Ltd
Weight(grams) 748g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 159mm * 41mm