ficusesthe

Ficusesthe is a term in literary theory describing a mode of storytelling that treats a fictional world as a self-contained ecosystem, and that layers narrative levels to expose the artificiality of narration while preserving emotional stakes. The term is a neologism that blends ideas of fictionality and aesthetics; its exact etymology is unclear and discussed among scholars.

In practice, ficusesthe works foreground in-world artifacts, catalogs, maps, glossaries, and cross-references that invite readers to navigate a coherent but ultimately fictional ecology. Narration commonly alternates between in-universe documents and outside commentary, creating a dialogue about truth, belief, and representation. Proponents argue it expands the reader's engagement with worldbuilding while challenging epistemic assumptions about what counts as 'real' within the story.

Critics compare ficusesthe to metafiction and autofiction, but distinguish it by its explicit curation of an internal ecosystem and its emphasis on aesthetic coherence across media. It often overlaps with experimental forms in which genre boundaries are porous, and the text invites intertextual exploration rather than straightforward plot progression.

Notable examples are found in speculative short fiction and experimental novels that publish in-universe catalogs, internal grammar rules, and cross-media references; though the term remains debated and not universally adopted.

See also: metafiction, autofiction, worldbuilding, experimental literature.