Narrative

Literary/ Cultural Context Essay

Paul Cobley (University of Middlesex)

Ed. by Graham Allen, University College Cork
The Literary Encyclopedia. WORLD HISTORY AND IDEAS: A CROSS-CULTURAL VOLUME.

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The most common conception of narrative is as “story”. There is some truth in this conception but it reveals only a small part of what narrative is and can also be misleading. The Oedipus plays,

Egil’s Saga

Titus Andronicus

Rasselas, The Charterhouse of Parma

The Ring and the Book, Dick Barton, Scarface, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, The Simpsons

and

Fahrenheit 9/11

are all narratives and all of them have stories. Yet, to simply recount the story events in these narratives would be to neglect what gives them their character as particular forms that might invite specific kinds of reader engagement and pleasure. At root, narrative is best understood as a form of representation in much the same way as what is commonly understood as a “story” or “story form” is. As such,…

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2599 words

Citation: Cobley, Paul. "Narrative". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 08 August 2005 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=1222, accessed 19 April 2024.]

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