ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Political fiction

Political fiction is a kind of story that tells you how people feel about politics or how they think the world works, but the story is not real - it is just made up in someone's head. Imagine it like a game you play with your imagination.

When grown-ups want to write a story about politics, they can use their imagination to create a whole new world, with people who are leaders, followers, or rebels. Sometimes, these imaginary characters will have special powers or skills that help them throughout the story.

The grown-ups can use this made-up world to explore ideas or opinions about politics without having to talk about real-world issues or hurt someone's feelings. So if someone doesn't like their political leader, they can create a leader in their story who does things differently, and see how that works out.

The cool thing about political fiction is that it can be based on real-world events or people, or completely imagined from scratch. But the characters in a political fiction story are there to help tell the story, and not necessarily to be exactly like the real people they might resemble.

Overall, political fiction is a fun way for grown-ups to tell stories about how they feel about politics while keeping the real world separate.