Words between reality and fiction

The transition from reality to fiction can be best illustrated by analysing autobiographies which claim to describe the life of the author. Essentially they are based on memories, which poses the question whether what is being remembered really happened in this way. In what respect do ‘real’ stories differ from ‘literary’ or ‘fictional’ ones? Several literary autobiographies are analysed and contrasted with popular autobiographies. Are there special literary devices by which we can recognize that a story is intended to be fictional? According to Searle there is ‘no textual property that will identify a stretch of discourse as a work of fiction’. The paper discusses Searle’s position and identifies an interesting textual difference in the way persons are introduced in fiction. Even if there is no sharp division between fiction and non-fiction, there are a few verbal and cognitive means of the game which enable us to recognize how the text is intended.