The Status of Historical Characters in Drama: Ontological, Aesthetic, and Verisimilar
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15448/1984-7726.2017.2.29158Keywords:
Historical characters, Drama, Michael FraynAbstract
Using the depictions of Niels Bohr and Werner Heisenberg in Frayn's Copenhagen as touchstones, the paper explores the ontological status of historical characters in drama. It argues that fictional characters, whether or not based on historical individuals, inhabit a fictional realm and may, for a number of reasons, diverge considerably from their real world counterparts.
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