Reflections on the dynamic relations between truth and fiction as imageneries

Authors Nicolien Montesano Montessori
Published in Global Dialogues
Publication date 2016
Research groups Value-oriented Professionalisation
Type Article

Summary

In: Frank Gadinger, Martina Kopf, Ayşem Mert, and Christopher Smith (eds.). Political Storytelling: From Fact to Fiction (Global Dialogues 12) This essay presents a summary of important perspectives concerning the distinction between what counts as truth or fiction. As a source of inspiration, it starts with two examples found in literature – the first a classical Spanish novel and the second a collection of stories written by the leader of a social movement in Mexico. These two examples of the conflictive relations between truth and fiction, authenticity and imagination serve as a source of inspiration for the rest of this article, which shows that this issue has been a subject of intense debate in philosophy and in the philosophy of science and still presents a challenge in the 21st century. The essay states that absolute, objective truth is a myth. It describes that what counts as ‘truth’ in a particular era, is, among other things, the result of power relations. It suggests productive ways to deal with this problem in modern society, through deliberative, emancipatory processes of reflexivity (Weick 1999), participatory research and dialogue, facilitating innovation and generation of new solutions.

On this publication contributed

Language English
Published in Global Dialogues
Key words truth, fiction, philosophy of science
Page range 13-21

Nicolien Montesano Montessori

Nicolien Montesano Montessori | Associate professor | Value-oriented Professionalisation

Nicolien Montesano Montessori

  • Researcher
  • Research group: Social Interaction in Public Spaces