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Narrative Criticism

Justin Froemming & Robert Valeris

What is a Narrative?

Webster defines a narrative as the representation of an event or story.

Narrative discourse can be traced back to Ancient Greece and Rome with
Aristotle and Quintilian.

Narratives allow us to do three things:

They help us organize our experiences.

They allow us to make sense of the people, places and actions in our lives.

They allow us to interpret reality.

What makes a Narrative?

In order for an artifact to be a narrative, it must have four distinct


characteristics:
1.

It must be made up of at two events. (either active or stative)

2.

Its plot must be organized in chronological order.

3.

It must include some type of causal or contributing relationship among its events.

4.

It must be about a unified subject.

Three Major Features of an Artifact


Narratives are valuable because they have three distinct features. In
general, narratives are:
1.

Particular. Narratives usually have a very specific connection from


past experiences to the narrator.

2.

Sharable. There is usually a joint achievement between the narrator


and the audience.

3.

Personal. We as readers take part in the moral evaluation of a story.

Particularity: What connections


do we make?

Specific details and descriptions spark our


imagination.

We are reminded of our own past experiences.

We are invited to connect our own experiences


with that of the storyteller.

Sharing: What do we achieve


with the storyteller?

We as the readers pick out the discursive form of


the story and look at its plot for what it is.

We and the storyteller develop an understanding


of the storys meaning.

The storyteller and the audience (us) share


experiences centered on the form of the story.

Personal: How do we participate


in the story?

We as the audience ask, is an action proper or


incorrect?

We as the audience enter into the narrative world


and address its moral base.

We as the audience engage our own ethical and


moral inclinations.

Identifying the Features of the Narrative

Setting Where does it take place?

Temporal Relations How does time and order play into the events?

Characters Who are the figures?


(main, minor, stock, etc.)

Casual Relations- What are the cause and effect relationships?

Narrator Who is telling the story?

Events What is taking place?

Audience Who is the perceived crowd?

Theme - What is the main idea or takeaway message?

Type of Narrative (comedy, romance, tragedy, irony, etc.)

Objectives that commonly characterize


stories

To help the storyteller or audience function more effectively in the


present.

To construct identity

To adjust to an event or condition

To teach, instruct, or offer lesson

To convey truths and values about a culture

To encourage, defend, or legitimize an act

To challenge perceptions of a situation

To clarify thinking or to make sense of something

To honor, memorialize, or commemorate

To manage or resolve conflict

The Procedure of a Narrative


Critique

In a narrative critique, like every other critique,


we use a specific four-step procedure:
1.

Selecting an artifact

2.

Analyzing the Artifact

3.

Formulating a Research Question

4.

Writing the Essay

Selecting an Artifact

Any Artifact that is a narrative can be used, as long as it meets the four
criteria.

Possible artifacts include:

Childrens books

Short stories

Novels

Films

Monologues

Letters

Story Interviews

Analyzing the Artifact


There are 3 major goals in analyzing a narrative artifact:

Identifying the objective of the narrative.

Identifying the features of the narrative to discover how they accomplish the
-objective.

Assessing/evaluating the narrative according to the particular objective.

Formulating a Research Question

Formulating a research question is the result of identifying the


objective of the story, features the narrative selected to archive that
objective,
assessing whether or not the objective and the narrative features align.

Narrative Artifact: Daniel and the


Lions Den

Writing a Narrative Essay


In writing a narrative essay or critique, you would apply a five-step system to
organizing your paper:
1.

Introduction: What is the research question? How does it contribute to


rhetorical theory? What is its significance?

2.

Describe the artifact and its context,

3.

Describe the narrative method of critiquing.

4.

Give a report of your findings from the analysis.

5.

Create a discussion as to how the analysis contributes to rhetorical theory.

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