The difference between what is considered narratable or unnarratable is all in the eyes of the speaker. An event or story is considered narratable if it is relevant and necessary for the speaker to include in order to successfully portray an event or story to another person. The details of the story that are omitted because they do not contribute anything to the story or are too minor to be told are known as the unnarratable.
The problem in determining what is unnarratable is that everyone has a different view on what is considered necessary to tell a complete series of events. For example, I could tell a friend that I drove up to Binghamton from New Jersey and the trip took 3 hours. I would have portrayed my trip to school in a succinct manner leaving out any other details that the listener needs to hear. However, I would know that I left out some key details of the trip, such as the traffic jam on Route 80 or the eight consecutive red lights I had to sit at. Some listeners may be interested in hearing these details, however, since I omitted them from my story I considered these details unnarratable. Newspapers and news channels have to distinguish between what is considered narratable and unnarratable when creating headlines and reporting the news.
In some cases, such as in fictional stories or movies, talk that would typically be considered unnarratable is used to add more details and further develop the storyline. In his Dictionary of Narratology, Gerald Prince discusses the use of the unnarratable. “The level at which it functions, the relative frequency with which it appears, and the relative amount of space it occupies can be a useful tool for characterizing narrative manners, schools, movements, and entire periods. Thus, the realist text and, more generally, mimetic fiction, resort to the disnarrated mainly on the level of story…”[1] Prince agrees that the unnarratable can be an important tool when describing complete events. These unnarratable details that are left out are actually vital to portraying the entire event. However, people typically prefer to hear the summary of a story, without all of the minor details. Prince goes on to explain how the unnarratable “can, for example, become a rhythmic instrument by regularly slowing down narrative speed”. [1] Modern society expects to hear stories and news events as quickly and bluntly as possible, leaving room only for the narratable.
[1] Prince, Gerald. The Disnarrated. Vol. 22. 1988. 1. Print.
Jason, I completely agree that everyone has different views on what is considered necessary to tell in a story. For example, I am from New Jersey as well and when I am driving home from Binghamton I would consider traffic or having to wait at lights a significant part of the story. I do agree that modern society expects to hear stories quickly and that would only leave room for the narratable. In our fast-paced society people do not have the time to listen to the minor details.
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