Fictional universe
A
fictional universe is a
cohesive imaginary world that serves as the
setting or
backdrop for one or (more commonly) multiple works of
fiction.
It can be argued that every work of fiction generates a world of its own;
Robert A. Heinlein coined the
neologism ficton to refer to such a world. A fictional universe is then a ficton that has an existence extending beyond a single story, which becomes the basis either of other stories, or of games or other creations. It generally consists of a time and place that invoke a sense of a distinct world, one which is unique to the content and context of the tales that it is used to tell.
Fictional universes are most common in, but not exclusive to, the
science fiction and
fantasy genres. Many universes written in one or both of these genres feature
physical and
metaphysical laws different from our own that allow for
magical,
psychic and various other types of
paranormal phenomena, or the hypothesis may be based in a
parallel universe which have some scientific theoretical speculation like
multiverse. Although these laws may not be completely internally consistent, they do allow the
author to provide some textual explanation for how their imagined world differs from our own.
A common method for illustrating fictional universes is for the creator to focus the majority of his or her attention on one small area, revealing the larger world through hints or exposition.
Nineteen Eighty-Four takes place almost entirely in the city of
London, but reveals the full extent of its totalitarian world through the reading of Goldstien's banned book and the memories of its protagonists. Most of the
television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer is set in a single
Californian
city, though the larger world, the "
Buffyverse", spans the entire world and indeed many separate universes and dimensions. Most of the action in the
Harry Potter series occurs in and around a single
school, though its
Wizarding world comprises an entire distinct global society.
On the other hand, creators of fictional universes can also send their characters and stories across multitudes of worlds, thousands of characters and hundreds of interconnected plots. This is particularly true in media, such as television or comic books, where multiple authors can compose works in the same universe simultanously. Many fictional universes, such as
Star Trek, have actually outlived their creators.
It is difficult to determine what actually constitutes a "fictional universe."
Sir Thomas More's
Utopia is one of the earliest examples of a cohesive imaginary world with its own rules and functional concepts, but it comprises only one small island. Some, like
JRR Tolkien's
Lord of the Rings, are global in scope, and some, like
Star Trek and
Star Wars are galactic or even intergalactic. A fictional universe may even concern itself with more than one interconnected universe through science fiction devices such as "parallel worlds" or universes, and a series of interconnected universes is called a
multiverse. Such multiverses have been featured prominently in science fiction since at least the mid-20th century, notably in the classic
Star Trek episode, "
Mirror, Mirror", which introduced the
mirror universe in which the crew of the
Starship Enterprise were villains rather than heroes, and in the mid-1980s comic book series,
Crisis on Infinite Earths, in which countless parallel universes were destroyed.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, when considered as all 5 books together, flits back and forth between different universes, or perhaps it is more accurate to say, flits through different
timelines and different
dimensions involving different states of existence for the characters and for the earth itself.
A fictional universe can be contained in a single work, as in
George Orwell's
Nineteen Eighty-Four or
Aldous Huxley's
Brave New World, but nowadays is more common in
serialized,
series-based, open-ended or
round robin-style fiction. A fictional universe may also be called a
fictional realm,
imaginary realm,
fictional world,
imaginary world or
imaginary universe. Most fictional universes are based directly or indirectly on
our own universe. A fictional universe is usually differentiated from the setting of, and the
cosmology established by, ancient or modern
legends,
myths and
religions, although there are countless fictional universes that draw upon such sources for
inspiration.
In most small-scale fictional universes, general properties and
timeline events fit into a consistently organized
continuity. However, in the case of universes or universes that are rewritten or revised by different
writers,
editors or
producers, this continuity may be violated, by accident or by design. The use of retroactive continuity (
retcon) often occurs due to this kind of revision or oversight. Members of
fandom often create a kind of fanmade canon (
fanon) to patch up such errors; fanon that becomes generally accepted sometimes becomes actual canon. Other fanmade additions to a universe (
fan fiction,
pastiche,
parody) are usually not considered canonical unless they are
authorized.
Fictional universes are sometimes
shared by multiple authors, with each author's works in that universe being granted approximately equal
canonical status. Other universes are created by one or several authors but are intended to be used non-canonically by others, such as the fictional settings for
games, particularly
role-playing games and
video games. Settings for the role-playing game
Dungeons & Dragons are called
campaign settings; other games have also incorporated this term on occasion.
Virtual worlds are fictional worlds in which
online computer games, notably
MMORPGs and
MUDs, take place. A
fictional crossover occurs when two or more
fictional characters, series or universes cross over with one another, usually in the context of a character created by one author or owned by one
company meeting a character created or owned by another. In the case where two fictional universes covering entire
actual universes cross over, physical travel from one universe to another may actually occur in the course of the story. Such crossovers are usually, but not always, considered non-canonical by their creators or by those in charge of the
properties involved.
*
Alberto Manguel &
Gianni Guadalupi:
The Dictionary of Imaginary Places, New York : Harcourt Brace, c2000. ISBN 0151005419
*
Brian Stableford:
The Dictionary of Science Fiction Places, New York : Wonderland Press, c1999. ISBN 0684849585
*
Diana Wynne Jones:
The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, New York : Firebird, 2006. ISBN 0142407224 - Explains and parodies the common features of a standard fantasy world
*
George Ochoa and
Jeffery Osier:
Writer's Guide to Creating A Science Fiction Universe, Cincinnati, Ohio :
Writer's Digest Books, c1993. ISBN 0898795362
*
Michael Page and
Robert Ingpen :
Encyclopedia of Things That Never Were: Creatures, Places, and People, 1987. ISBN 0140100083
*
Alternate history*
Constructed world*
Fantasy world*
Fictional city*
Fictional country*
Index of fictional places*
Future history*
Imaginary world*
Mythical place*
Parallel universe*
Planets in science fiction*
Virtual reality*
Worlds in the Net*
List of fictional universes - list of fictional universes by genre
*
:Category:Fictional universes - for a list of fictional universes by name
