Skip to main content
Back to Lexicon Directory
STRUCTURALIST NARRATOLOGY/ˌdaɪəˈdʒiːsɪs/

Diegesis

Etymology: Ancient Greek 'diēgēsis' (narration, story), from 'diēgeomai' (to set out in detail).
Theorist Origin: Plato (Republic III), Aristotle (Poetics), Genette (1972)
Formulaic Definition

The spatiotemporal world depicted within the narrative, encompassing all fictional events, characters, physical laws, and sounds experienced by characters within that reality.

Formal Mathematical / Diagrammatic Model:Universe_D = { x | x is ontologically real to intra-narrative agents }
Canonical Literature Specimen

Extradiegetic: The narrator speaking outside the story. Intradiegetic: Walton writing letters. Metadiegetic: Victor's story told to Walton. Metalepsis: A character stepping across levels.

Related Lexicon Terms
FocalizationMetalepsisMise en AbymeChronotope