Narratives become appealing when the events that are being narrated are out of the norm. When events are unexpected they arise a curiosity from the viewers. As William Labov stated “... terrifying, dangerous, weird, wild, crazy, amusing; or amusing, hilarious, wonderful; more generally, that it was strange, uncommon, or unusual- that is worth reporting”[1] There is a certain attraction to narratives when what is being narrated happens rarely or if it is something over the top. A narrative looses its appeal when it becomes too common or overrated. If I were watching Television I would most likely stop at something suspenseful just because I am curious about it, since suspenseful events do not occur often in my life.
Narratives also gain appeal according to the level of relevance that it has to the certain person. According to Galtung and Ruge “the more the event can be seen in personal terms, as due to the action of specific individuals, the more probable that it will become a news item.” [2]The narrative suddenly becomes more relevant to a lot more people of different cultural backgrounds versus one individual. Thus the narrative becomes much more appealing and worth telling.
[1] Herman, Luc/ Vervaeck, Bart. Narrative Interest as Cultural Negotiation. Vol. 17. The Ohio State Universtiy, 2009. Print. p. 113
[2] Galtung, Johan/Ruge, Mari Holmboe: The Structure of Foreign News. The Presentation of the Congo, Cuba, and Cyprus Crises in Four Norwegian Newspapers. Journal of Peace Research, vol. 2 (1965) p. 68
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