tanketekst

Tanketekst is a narrative technique in which a text foregrounds a character's private thoughts and reflections. It is used to present what a character thinks, reasons, doubts, or imagines, sometimes more directly than spoken language.

In Norwegian and Danish literary studies the term describes passages that render inner mental life, as opposed to external action or dialogue. The technique can appear as direct thought in the character's own words, as indirect thought reported by the narrator, or as free indirect discourse where the narrator's voice overlaps with the character's.

Distinctions: It differs from dialogue because it does not necessarily involve another character speaking; it differs from external description by providing access to consciousness. It can create intimacy, irony, or bias, and may blur boundaries between narrator and character.

Usage: Common in novels and short fiction, and in some journalism or memoirs to convey personal perspective. In analysis, tanketekst helps examine motive, perception, and subjectivity.

Techniques: direct inner thought, indirect reflection, and free indirect discourse; punctuation may vary; presence or absence of quotation marks; shifts in tense or point of view.

In studies of narrative form, tanketekst is often discussed alongside other ways of representing consciousness, such as interior monologue or stream of consciousness.