Forthcoming in Palgrave Macmillan Handbook of Philosophy and Literature, eds. Michael Mack and Barry Stocker (MacMillan Palgrave 2018). 1 Narrativity in Variation On Drama, Argument and Philosophical Content Niklas Forsberg Centre for Ethics as Study in Human Value University of Pardubice 1. Introduction (philosophy claims, literature illustrates) A common way of thinking about the philosophical value of narrative literature, perhaps even the occasional necessity of turning to such texts in philosophy is that they can put a philosophical view into context and let us see or experience the philosophical thought in action. 1 Narrative literature breathes life to the philosophical thought; it makes concrete what is abstract. As such, a literary text may function as an illustration of the philosophical theory: “This is what the theoretical thought really looks like!” It may also function as a testing ground of philosophical theorizing: “This is what really would happen if people actually were to live by these idealizations!” And it may perhaps also serve to complete the philosophical thought, make it full, as it were: “What a virtuous life is, cannot be understood until one has seen it mastered!” In all these cases – which vary a great deal in both content and form – there is nevertheless one common denominator: The philosophical appropriation of narrative literature is guided by a particular philosophical view, theory, account. There is a particular “x” that narrative literature is supposed to illustrate, exemplify, test, elucidate, or complete. 1 For a good discussion of different ways of thinking about the philosophical value of turning to narrative literature, see Hämäläinen, N. (2015) Literature and Moral Theory, New York: Bloomsbury.