Never. It’s fiction, so you should never attribute a quote from there to a real person. Never, never, never.
That confuses me, as I tend to think of attribution as a way of giving credit where credit is due, and the author is the one who strung together those particular words, regardless of any endorsement.
That confuses me, as I tend to think of attribution as a way of giving credit where credit is due, and the author is the one who strung together those particular words, regardless of any endorsement
“Strung together those particular words, regardless of any endorsement” might work in a universe where words are strung together only for the pretty sound they make, not for their meaning.
If you attribute artistry correctly and end up misattributing the meaning, you’re effectively lying about the author, no matter what your actual intentions are.
What is so hard about attributing the words to a work, and attributing the work to the author? Do we really need to debate the virtues of being clear and not misleading people?
What is so hard about attributing the words to a work, and attributing the work to the author?
Aha, I thought you were saying that a quote from a work of fiction should not be attributed to its author at all, which is what I took issue with. Clearly it makes sense to do so by way of the work, possibly taking pains to point out that it was from a work of fiction.
That confuses me, as I tend to think of attribution as a way of giving credit where credit is due, and the author is the one who strung together those particular words, regardless of any endorsement.
“Blah blah bluh”- Fictional Character in Work of Fiction by Author’s Name
(Not that you didn’t already know that)
Yes, that’s the sort of attribution I was thinking of.
“Strung together those particular words, regardless of any endorsement” might work in a universe where words are strung together only for the pretty sound they make, not for their meaning.
If you attribute artistry correctly and end up misattributing the meaning, you’re effectively lying about the author, no matter what your actual intentions are.
What is so hard about attributing the words to a work, and attributing the work to the author? Do we really need to debate the virtues of being clear and not misleading people?
Aha, I thought you were saying that a quote from a work of fiction should not be attributed to its author at all, which is what I took issue with. Clearly it makes sense to do so by way of the work, possibly taking pains to point out that it was from a work of fiction.