Die literarische Figur und ihr Name

Abstract

In order to explain the role of proper names in narrative fiction the literary text is seen as a system which, however, is connected to the “real world' in many ways. As a work of art the literary text is characterized by the predominance of the aesthetic function. From applying R. JAKOBSON’S and J. MURAKOVSKY’S concept of the aesthetic sphere as the sphere where the linguistic sign primarily reveals its inherent aesthetic and semantic values follows that the communicative functions of the proper name in literary texts are reverse to their order in everyday communication: It is not the identifying function of the proper name which is dominant in literary texts, but rather all the other semantic and phonic values which in real-world communication usually are not realized.