Narrative technique
Frame story
Also known as: story within a story, nested narrative
A narrative technique in which one story is told inside another, the outer tale framing and introducing the inner one.
Frame story in fiction: 3 works
The tale reaches us through Walton's letters framing Victor's account, which in turn frames the creature's.
The Traveller recounts his journey to dinner guests, framing the future world within a drawing-room narration.
The interactive Primer tells nested tutorial-fables within the larger narrative.