Abstract: As a special narrative phenomenon, metalepsis refers to the transference of the characters, plots, settings, etc. from one fictional narrative world to another, and can be categorized into vertical metalepsis and horizontal metalepsis. With the help of the two core concepts of “transword identity” and “counterpart” in the theory of possible worlds, metalepsis narrative can be subdivided into two types: vertical metalepsis and horizontal metalepsis, in which vertical metalepsis narrative can be subdivided into descending metalepsis and ascending metalepsis, and horizontal metalepsis can be subdivided into identical text horizontal metalepsis and cross-text horizontal metalepsis. By using the method of possible world theory to systematically classify metalepsis narratives, we can examine some postmodern literary phenomena such as meta-fiction, parallel world, derivation, parody, and misappropriation, and explore their effects from a new perspective.

Key words: vertical metalepsis, horizontal metalepsis, possible worlds theory, trans-world identity, counterpart theory