fictionalwill

Fictionalwill is a term used in literary theory and related fields to describe the intentional states attributed to fictional agents within a narrative or imagined world. It denotes the set of desires, plans, and decisions that a character appears to hold, as authored and subsequently interpreted by readers or players. As a concept, fictionalwill is a fiction about will, not a claim of actual mental states in real beings.

It is distinguished from the author's own will; rather, it is a fictional construct that organizes a character's actions within the story's diegesis and is shaped by narrative voice, perspective, and plot constraints. The notion often contrasts with authorial will (what the creator intends) and with world-will, the emergent causal structure of the fictional setting.

In narrative theory and media studies, fictionalwill helps explain character motivation, ethical causality, and thematic development. In interactive media, it becomes dynamic: player choices may alter a character's perceived will, effectively renegotiating the fictionalwill in real time. Some critics ask whether fictionalwill implies genuine agency, typically answering that it is a designed fiction with interpretive force, not a real mental state.

Examples include the protagonist's plan to betray an ally, or a rival's stubborn pursuit of a goal; in both cases, the fiction presents a coherent will that guides actions. See also: character motivation, narrative agency, fictional personhood.