Why humans use stories as a primary survival strategy for reality
In short: We don't just tell stories to entertain ourselves; we use them to navigate the chaos of existence. Narrative theory suggests that storytelling is a fundamental human mechanism for processing time, change, and process—turning raw experience into something our brains can actually manage.
Narratology and narrative theory are often used interchangeably, but they carry distinct academic weights. Narratology is etymologically defined as the 'science of narrative.' However, its modern application has been largely shaped by structuralist critics like Gerard Genette and Mieke Bal in the 1970s. Because of this history, narratology is frequently restricted to the structural analysis of how stories are built.
From a philosophical and psychological perspective, narrative theory posits that humans utilise storytelling as a primary method for processing core aspects of life. Rather than just looking at the mechanics of a book, theorists investigate why accounts of what happened to specific people in specific circumstances are so universally common and powerful. They seek to understand how stories help us make sense of the world, while simultaneously studying how we, as audiences, construct meaning from those stories.
This field distinguishes narrative from other modes of discourse—such as lists, statistical analyses, or lyric poems—by examining its unique ability to handle 'process' and 'change.' A key tension in this study is whether narrative serves as a distinct way of thinking that contrasts with scientific modes of explanation, which typically characterize phenomena through general covering laws. To explore this, theorists draw from a diverse range of disciplines including cognitive science, philosophical ethics, (socio)linguistics, folklore, and gender theory.
Because narratives are pervasive, the field is not limited to literature. It encompasses film, comics, oral traditions in everyday conversation, and even specialized settings like courtrooms or doctor's offices. By studying these diverse texts, narrative theory acts as a bridge between English studies and various social-scientific disciplines, exploring how we navigate reality through the structures of fiction and non-fiction alike.
theme hidden-mechanisms
mood reflective difficulty ,3
topics [ narratology narrative-theory literary-theory
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: What is Narratology? What does Narrative Theory mean? Narratology Definition,explanation and Meaning
- Also: What is Narrative Theory? | Project Narrative
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