Fiction, Identity, and Existence: A Study in Experimental Philosophy. From critical analysis to formal representation: literary characters, interpretations, and ontologies

The category of fictional entities (ficta, in short) is highly controversial and extensively debated in contemporary metaphysics. Within the MITE project, we conducted an empirical study through questionnaire administration aimed at testing the following hypotheses. With respect to the identity of ficta, (1a) the construct validity of our theoretical assessment, and (1b) whether it can be observed a commonsensical response to the identity conundrums raised by ficta. With respect to the existence of ficta, (2) whether it can be identified a commonsensical opinion about the ontological and metaphysical status of ficta (respectively, whether ficta are genuine entities and, if so, what kind of entities they are). Moreover, with respect to both, (3) whether there is a significant difference in response between laypeople and people with a strong background either in the philosophical or in the literary field.