“非虚构”叙事既有真实的写作对象，又有作者的虚构化处理，指向了历史事实与文学创作的系统融合问题，其中的虚构性成了一个值得仔细审视的理论话题。《克里斯蒂·费希尔之死调查》（以下简称《调查报告》）与两部更虚构的“非虚构”作品《火圈》和《换工保姆谋杀审判》记录了上世纪九十年代初发生在美国纽约州的一起家庭火灾案。该案凶手是否为保姆赖纳，《调查报告》没有给出结论，两部“非虚构”叙事分持肯定和否定看法。两个文类表达观点与否的对立特征突显了虚构性的实用导向。然而，以往研究尚未从不同文类所传递信息的异同切入考察“非虚构”叙事中的虚构性。本研究在文体学视野下，以两部“非虚构”叙事为研究样本，从其有别于《调查报告》的内容入手，探讨这一叙事类型中虚构性的内涵、作用机制及价值，进而明确其文类特征，明晰其与虚构叙事的内在关系。本研究采用质性研究方法，辅之以少量数据支撑，探讨“非虚构”叙事中的虚构性在作者、文本和读者端的具体文本表现及其交际效果，发现：（1）“非虚构”叙事的作者追求的是主观真实，呈现的观点在事实层面未必明确、可靠、权威；（2）“非虚构”文本传递信息时，比《调查报告》更为冗余的用词、语义和结构指向艺术真实；（3）读者阅读“非虚构”叙事时，获得的不止是事件相关信息，更是一种体验真实，即阅读故事才会有的新奇感、自诩找到事件真相的满足感和深入故事收获的情感体验。基于上述发现，本研究认为，虚构性不等同于形式或技巧特征，但却与这些特征不可分割。虚构性并非本体要素，而是融合主观性、过量信息特性和体验性的动态艺术品质。虚构性与（不）道德并无关联，而是“非虚构”叙事升格为艺术的关键所在，既提升了故事的可靠性，让叙事传递出不同种类的真实，也增强了读者与文本的互动。对文学理论而言，本研究采用经典书面交际模式研究虚构性时，突显了虚构性的多面性特征，为文论家对虚构与真实、模仿与现实等关系的讨论提供了参考。对“非虚构”叙事这一文类而言，本研究通过说明这一叙事的独特地位，丰富了对这类作品的理解，扩展了文体学研究的范围。对教学实践而言，本研究通过明晰“非虚构”叙事中虚构性得以存在的理据和目的，促进了这类叙事的教学与创作，有助于创意写作学科的发展。
Nonfiction blends real-life events, individuals, and locations with fictional storytelling techniques, integrating historical facts and literary creation. This underscores the significance of fictionality in nonfiction as a subject worthy of deeper theoretical exploration. The Investigation into the Death of Kristie Fischer (hereafter the Report) and the two less factual nonfiction narratives, The Nanny Murder Trial (hereafter the Trial) and Circle of Fire (hereafter the Circle), document the same “Swiss nanny” case from the 1990s in the United States. However, the Report does not pass judgment on whether the nanny Olivia Riner is the real culprit, while the Trial and the Circle present contrasting perspectives on her innocence, highlighting the issue of fictionalization in nonfiction. Prior investigations have not thoroughly explored fictionality in nonfiction from the perspective of how information is communicated. By examining the deviations of the two nonfiction works from the Report, this study probes the implications, mechanisms, and value of fictionality in nonfiction, elucidating the generic features of this narrative form and uncovering the intrinsic relationship between nonfiction and fiction.With moderate quantitative consideration, this study primarily adopts a qualitative approach to explore the manifestations of fictionality in nonfiction from the perspectives of the author, the text, and the reader, as well as their communicative effects. The analysis reveals several key findings: (1) The nonfiction author’s pursuit of subjective truth does not guarantee the presentation of factually clear, reliable, and authoritative viewpoints; (2) The verbal, semantic, and structural overinformativeness in nonfiction, compared with the Report, suggests its artistically true nature in conveying information; (3) Engaging with nonfiction provides the reader not only with event-related information but also with experiential truth, such as a sense of novelty, the satisfaction of uncovering the truth, and emotional experiences characteristic of storytelling. Based on these findings, this dissertation argues that fictionality is not equivalent to formal or technical features. Instead, it is intertwined with these textual cues. Fictionality is not an ontological element but rather a multifaceted and dynamic entity. It manifests through the author’s subjectivity, the text’s overinformativeness, and the reader’s experiential engagement. Fictionality operates independently of ethical considerations and instead plays a crucial role in elevating nonfiction to the realm of verbal art by enhancing the authenticity of nonfiction and fostering reader engagement with the text.For literary theory, this study, using the framework of classical written communication, highlights the multifaceted nature of fictionality in nonfiction, providing insights into literary theorists’ explorations of the relationship between fiction and truth, as well as the connection between imitation and reality. For nonfiction study, this research enriches our understanding of nonfiction by elucidating its unique status, thereby broadening the scope of stylistic studies. In educational contexts, this investigation promotes the teaching and creation of nonfiction by clarifying the rationale and purpose of fictionality in the genre, thus contributing to the development of creative writing as an independent discipline.
