Reflexive Modes and Narrative Production: Metatextual Discourse in Contemporary American Narrative

Abstract

Abstract: Nearly half a century has passed since the emergence of metafiction as a critical category. The self-consciousness associated with metafiction, however, has undergone profound transformations in the intervening period. Self-reflexivity—often a comedic destabilization and a simultaneous celebration of narrative structure—continues to emerge in increasingly complicated ways. This article examines contemporary metatextual discourse within the specific histories of literature and television but reads individual texts within the context of changing production values. It argues that metatextuality is an aesthetic suited to the precise demands of a context characterized by new narrative forms and platforms for production.