Yeah, I think people are making this too complicated. When it comes to stories, if it relates events that violate principles universally applicable to all known historical events, then it's fiction. You can throw in a "probably" caveat, but in the age of epistemic fallibilism, that's redundant. We know the story is false.
Having a six-year-old and an eight-year-old myself, I think that's an excellent heuristic to use in distinguishing fact from fiction. Which comes up all the time. "Are zombies real? Are ponies real?" These are the actual questions I get. Our brains don't come equipped with software that automatically distinguishes between fictional and nonfictional entities, so this is an educational obligation on adults.
Having a six-year-old and an eight-year-old myself, I think that's an excellent heuristic to use in distinguishing fact from fiction. Which comes up all the time. "Are zombies real? Are ponies real?" These are the actual questions I get. Our brains don't come equipped with software that automatically distinguishes between fictional and nonfictional entities, so this is an educational obligation on adults.
A Gemma is forever.
