„Die Wirklichkeit ist die Unwahrscheinlichkeit, die eingetreten ist“: Wahrscheinlichkeit, Wirklichkeit und Wahrheit im Werk Friedrich Dürrenmatts

Abstract

This paper examines the role of probability in the thought and work of the Swiss writer Friedrich Dürrenmatt (1921–1990), focusing on his definition of reality as the improbability which occurred. I argue that this expression encapsulates his lifelong critical investigation of the possibilities and limitations of the representation of the modern world. The polyvalent concept of probability serves Dürrenmatt in his essays, drama, and prose fiction to illuminate the irreducible complexity of reality, the inevitable constraints of human perception, and the futility of seeking to reconstruct empirical causality end-to-end. The concept of reality as an improbability which occurred defines both the empirical reality which Dürrenmatt seeks to analyze through his fiction, as well as the subjective reality he creates within his “fictional worlds,” thus forming a crucial conjunction between his worldview and his literary work.