Life Writing: First Lecture

What Is Life Writing?

FIRST LECTURE

sjoerd-jeroen [email protected]

education| storytelling | culture

EXAMPLE LIFE WRITING

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sjoerd-jeroen [email protected] http://moenandar.blogspot.com

Dying for relief

https://vimeo.com/98305968

o Turning lives intostories(“Life stories”)

o Always a translation:

• Of actions into words, images, sounds

• Of events into plots

o Focuses on actualexperiences

LIFE WRITING

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o Makes it easier tounderstand whathappened to us andothers

o Creates a sense of autonomy

o Demands anemotionalinvestment of thereader

TO TURN LIVES INTO STORIES

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o Illustrates a largerevent or process

o Of rather: deconstructs thislarger event or proces: counternarratives

o Shows ‘the truth’ tobe not always true

WHY LIFE WRITING?

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EXAMPLE: MEN ARE SQUARE, WOMEN ARE CURVY

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MEN ARE SQUARE, WOMEN ARE CURVY?

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o Grand narratives: idea about realitythat presents itselfas reality itself(religions, nationalhistories, stereotypes, etc.)

o Small narratives: individual histories

GRAND AND SMALL NARRATIVES

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o Grand narrative demandsharmony by declaringeverything else:

• Taboo

• Lie

• Insanity

o Life writing:

• Offers counternarratives

• Challenges grand narratives

• Incites (social) change

COUNTERNARRATIVES

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EXERCISE 1

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Think of a grand narrative

Imagine a possible counternarrative and describewhat this counternarrative would look like. What

would it be about, what would happen?

(This could be a good topic for a life writing story!)

o Storytelling is a process; an act

o We need:

• Storyteller

• Story

• Content

• Audience

WHAT IS STORYTELLING?

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Ethical dimension of storytelling: A story is toldby someone for someonein a specific situation for a specific reason

o Knowledge of andreflection on morals

o Morals:

• What one should do in relation to others

• Norms and values

WHAT IS ETHICS?

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oWhat is morallyright

oWhy act morally

oConditions foracting morally

ETHICAL QUESTIONS

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?

oMorality: definedby framing

oEthics: reflectionon this framing

oStorytelling: could offer alternativeframings

ETHICS

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Life Writing: First Lecture

Education

Transcript of Life Writing: First Lecture