Écrire des fictions « vraies »

Abstract

To what extent can fiction contribute to analyses in the social sciences? Are narrative techniques compatible with the epistemology of social science disciplines? Does the imaginary shape how we understand the world? If so, how? The author attempts to answer these seemingly anachronistic questions about our understanding of the social sciences, where rationalism has prevailed for two centuries. He explains how he came to introduce elements of fiction in some of his work and uses real-life examples to illustrate the pedagogical, analytical, and theoretical issues encountered.

Keywords

• fiction
• narrative techniques
• epistemology
• rationalism
• issues