possible worlds in fredrick backman’s a man called ove: a cognitive poetics approach

The present paper attempts to address fredrik backman’s plot development in his debut, a man called ove (2014), focusing on projected private worlds of characters. in order to explore the process of creating these private worlds, the study will focus on the ideas of marie-laure ryan, a key theorist in 'possible worlds theory,' one of the orientations in cognitive poetics. considering backman’s novel, numerous possible worlds are projected by the writer and these worlds are in conflicts either within the boundaries of private worlds of characters or textual actual world (henceforth taw) of the story. these interactions are of paramount importance and contribute to what ryan calls 'tellability,' making the condition possible for backman to narrate his story. central to my analysis is the novel’s protagonist, ove. he has his own special private worlds and these private worlds are in conflict either with other characters private worlds or with taw in general. the focus of the novel is primarily on ove’s both intention world and wish world to commit suicide but the study will conclude that these interactions of possible worlds in the novel change ove’s characterizations in the end of the novel. the present article also demonstrates that strange private worlds, especially those of ove, and their external interactions with other worlds creates a sense of humor throughout the novel