Punctuating minds: Non-verbal cues for consciousness representation in literary narrative

This article explores the role of punctuation and typography in readers' engagement with literary narrative, and with fictional characters in particular. I argue that unconventional typography and punctuation marks can be used to convey the phenomenological ``feel'' of characters' (and narrators') experiences, thereby becoming a vehicle for consciousness representation in narrative. Aiming to contribute to the discussion on readers' responses to characters within cognitive narratology, I hypothesize that such responses can be guided by non-verbal cues as well as by the verbal strategies traditionally examined by narrative theorists. I explore two different dimensions of the nexus between punctuation, typography, and consciousness representation: firstly, because of their ``separating'' function graphic markers can render the temporal structuring of consciousness itself; secondly, unconventional graphic cues can exploit the ``evaluative'' function of punctuation and typography in order to convey altered states of consciousness such as dream experience, extreme emotions, and cognitive disorientation.