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Machine Generated Contents Note: World-building As A Human Activity -- Toward A Theory Of Imaginary Worlds -- 1. Worlds Within The World -- Philosophy Of Possible Worlds -- Imagination, Creation, And Subcreation -- Degrees Of Subcreation -- Story Vs. World: Storytelling And World-building -- Invention, Completeness, And Consistency -- Invention -- Completeness -- Consistency -- Immersion, Absorption, And Saturation -- World Gestalten: Ellipsis, Logic, And Extrapolation -- Catalysts Of Speculation -- Connecting The Secondary World To The Primary World -- 2. History Of Imaginary Worlds -- Transnarrative Characters And Literary Cycles -- Mythical And Unknown World -- Travelers' Tales And The Age Of Exploration -- Utopias And Dystopias -- Genres Of Science Fiction And Fantasy -- Science Fiction -- Fantasy -- Rise Of Mass Media -- Early Cinema And Comic Strips -- Oz: The First Great Transmedial World -- Pulp Magazines -- Developments In Cinema And Theater -- Radio And Television -- Developments In Literature -- Lord Of The Rings And Tolkien's Influence -- New Universes And The Rise Of The Media Franchise -- Interactive Worlds -- Into The Computer Age -- Worlds As Art And Thought Experiments -- 3. World Structures And Systems Of Relationships -- Secondary World Infrastructures -- Maps -- Timelines -- Genealogies -- Nature -- Culture -- Language -- Mythology -- Philosophy -- Tying Different Infrastructures Together -- 4. More Than A Story: Narrative Threads And Narrative Fabric -- Narrative Threads, Braids, And Fabric -- Backstory And World History -- Sequence Elements And Internarrative Theory -- Retroactive Continuity (retcon) And Reboots -- Crossovers, Multiverses, And Retroactive Linkages -- Interactivity And Alternate Storylines -- Story Of The World: Making Of Documentation -- 5. Subcreation Within Subcreated Worlds -- Importance Of The Word -- Self-reflexivity -- Subcreated Subcreators And Diegetic World-building -- Evil Subcreators -- 6. Transmedial Growth And Adap
This work investigates the theoretical foundations and historical evolution of world-building as a distinct human activity known as subcreation. Mark J. P. Wolf, a professor and scholar of media studies, synthesizes philosophy, history, and narrative theory to define how imaginary worlds are constructed and maintained. He argues that subcreation is a complex process involving internal consistency, infrastructure development, and transmedial expansion, providing a framework for analyzing how these worlds function independently of the stories told within them.
What You Will Find
Experts recognize this text as a foundational academic resource for understanding the mechanics of fictional world-building. Readers frequently note the scholarly density of the prose, which serves as a primary reference for students and creators interested in the structural design of secondary worlds.
Page Count:
408
Publication Date:
2013-01-01
Publisher:
Routledge
ISBN-10:
0203096991
ISBN-13:
9780203096994
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