Perspectives | Key Words #7

• Metafiction - form of fiction wherein the work constantly highlights the fact that it is imaginary. The application of irony and self-reflection is usually used to pose the critical question of the relation between fiction and reality. 
• Intertextuality - mostly related to literature “Intertextuality” is a technique that is used to reshape the meaning of a text by another (mostly popular) one. Intertextuality can be seen as a form of pastiche or plagiarism since an already existing and well known text is used as a “reference” to the new text.
• Mise-en-abyme - is a French term derived from heraldry which means “placed into abyss”. Commonly a picture which contains itself in it is imagined for example a pair of mirrors reflecting each other’s images into infinity/abyss (the image becomes infinitesimal small symbolizing the great distance as if the image is far away for example in the abyss). 
• The 4th Wall - next to the three room dimensions in a movie there is this so called “Fourth Wall” which refers to the wall between the act/play and the audience. Usually fictional characters within a play do not refer to the audience, but when they do for example asking it questions (“Funny Games”) people call it “Breaking the 4th Wall”.