At Least In English, We KNOW We're Studying Fiction!

Recently I was watching Star Trek II, when this microbiologist kept interrupting to protest how "unrealistic" the science was--"they're just making things up!" she kept repeating.  "Hey, you know what else is made up?" I said, "Literally everything else.  The characters, the lines, the story--this is all made up kiddo, it's fiction!" 

I used to get defensive when folks said us English students "just" study fiction--but I've had of late one of those sudden epiphanies about my di...