Abstract

Ricoeur’s narrative theory can be applied to scientific theories. Scientific theories as well as narrative plots represent a “synthesis of heterogeneous” based on productive imagination. On the other hand, narrative plots can be perceived as an answer to the “why?” questions as well as scientific explanations. In this paper it will be argued that an analogy between narrative and scientific paradigms can be made. In the XVIII and XIX century both narrative and scientific paradigms aspired to represent a mimesis of reality. However, in XX century those realist aspirations were rejected or supplemented with an idea of fragmented and mind-dependent reality. This point of view opened the question of the role of non-existent (and non-referential concepts) in science. In literature, novels without traditional plots arose.

Key words: Employment, explanation, narrative, science, realism.