What is a Narrative?

A narrative can be defined as a personal account of an event which has components of time and space,that is communicated from the narrator to the listeners. Often a narrative depicts a past event that the narrator experienced, thus when it is told, it usually has a specific meaning to it.

In fact, "a narrative is made up solely of functions: everything, in one way or another, is significant" [1], especially for the narrator. Interpreting a narrative is more open and ambiguous because a narrative's interpretations depends on its different listeners. Also, these interpretations may change over time, which leads to a skewed judgment of the original meaning of a narrative.

A narrative represents an event that occurs in a space and time frame that is alternate to the one that the narrator occupies. Thus, "time and space are components of the basic conceptual framework for the construction of the narrative world" [2]. These components allow the listener to imagine the event and construct his own interpretation of the narrative as it is told to him.

It should also be noted that a narrator need not be, traditionally, a person, but it can be a "number of instruments - among them actors and cameras - that can be used in the narrative process of representing events" [3]. Any form of technology or art can be a narrator because "the narrative, viewed as object, is the basis of communication: there is a giver of narrative and a recipient of narrative" [4]. Any personal account of an event can be considered a narrative.


[1] Barthes, Roland. "Introduction to the Structural Analysis of Narrative". New Literary History, Vol. 6, No. 2, On Narrative and Narratives (1975), p. 244. Print.

[2] Herman, David. The Cambridge Companion to Narrative. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2007. p. 63. Print.

[3] Abbott, H. Porter. The Cambridge Introduction to Narrative, Second Ed. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2008. p. 15. Print.

[4] Barthes, Roland. "Introduction to the Structural Analysis of Narrative". New Literary History, Vol. 6, No. 2, On Narrative and Narratives (1975), p. 260. Print.