what is a narrative

A narrative is something that explains a certain situation and informs the viewer of something that happened; it is a type of outline of events that took place. I agree with Ryan that the setting is important or how the narrative is situated, an event or certain agents is necessary to make a narrative meaningful to the viewer. I don’t necessarily believe that it has to revolve around or introduce a conflict the way that David Herman defines it. A narrative can be long and complex evolving into a story, or a short explanation of a particular event or moment that doesn’t necessarily have a plot to it. I also don’t necessarily agree with Porter Abbott that a narrative consists of a story I think a narrative is a more simple or direct depiction or bit of information than what a story entails.
“Story” implies something much more in depth than a narrative. It involved different characters and their relationships with one another and also a sequence of events with some sort of meaning behind it or hint of a plot to clue the reader in and allow them to see where it might lead or how it might end. Stories tend to have a more concrete timeline or a beginning, middle (where the plot is developed) and end or a conclusion a story is more dynamic in this way.

Abbott, H. Porter: The Cambridge Introduction to Narrative (Cambridge Introductions to Literature). Cambridge, New York: Cambridge University Press, 2002, p. 16.

Herman, David (ed.): The Cambridge Companion to Narrative. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007, p. 279 f.

Ryan, Marie-Laure: Toward a Definition of Narrative, in: Herman, David (ed.): The Cambridge Companion to Narrative. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 2007, p. 29.