I say yes. I side yes because, the memoir will be honest to the author. The works will be a recollection of life as they perceived it, so thats being truthful...right? On page 69 of The Storytelling Animal, Gottschall writes, " the future is a probabilistic simulation we run in our heads in order to help shape the world we want to live in.The past, unlike the future, has actually happened. But the past, as represented in our minds, is a mental simulation too." Gottschall continues on writing that our memories are merely reconstructions, they are by no means precise. This is agreeable. If the opposite were the case, my siblings and I would all remember the same exact things about events growing up- and that would take all the fun out of get togethers! Furthermore, we want to be heroes of our own epics! Our life is an epic! if it wasn't, we would all be moping around depressed. Life wouldn't be worth living, and stories would not be worth telling. In an article I found using Summons, ( which I LOVE by the way), titled- Memory and Self, the author Martin A. Conway writes, "The Self-Memory System (SMS) is a conceptual framework that emphasizes the interconnectedness of self and memory. Within this framework memory is viewed as the data base of the self. The self is conceived as a complex set of active goals and associated self-images." Our memory is who we are- it is where we came from, and kind of dictates where we are going to go. So, Dr.Jeffreys, I know other classmates are going to say, "no! memoirs and autobiographies cannot be truthful!" But I say, as long as your being truthful to you and your story- who to say it isn't genuine?
Next question- how are Gottschall's compelling arguments in this chapter about how we shape our own life stories possibly at odds with his claim that stories are for simulating tricky situations
Hmmm.....very good question...... Im thinking........ok, bear with me its late. I think we can all agree to some extent that stories do help prepare us for potentially sticky, tricky situations- But- if we are masters of our memoirs and we shape our own life stories, why would we even have the tricky situations in the first place? Thats my take of the conundrum of life stories vs. preparatory story. For example, when Gottschall writes, "the past , like the future, does not really exist"(169) that completely contradicts what has been said in previous chapters regarding storytelling for preparation. Why would we need to prepare for something that doesn't even exist?
give us the latest report on how your project research is going, including source citations and comments about them. My research is chugging along- I really appreciated the comments from last post, they helped me look at my research project from different angles. So thank you, all who commented.
Heres just a couple source citations-
Astell, Arlene J. "Storytelling as a Model of Conversation for People With Dementia and Caregivers." American Journal of Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias 26.7 (2011): 535-41. Summon. Web. 5 Oct. 2013. The article discusses how storytelling is an important method for communication for people of all ages. It allows us to experience opportunities to discuss topics,reveal information, and connect on a level that we would otherwise not get a chance to with people. Story telling is very important with elderly people and patients with Alzheimer's and other Dementias. Storytelling allows them to communicate with their care giver and, if the care giver is listening thoughtfully- provide valuable information on the status of the patients health. This article is valid in my research because it shows me that storytelling can make the communication process more comfortable, a valuable aspect of the patient doctor communication exchange.
Feddock, C. A., P. D. Bailey, C. H. Griffith, M. J. Lineberry, and J. F. Wilson. "Is Time Spent With the Physician Associated With Parent Dissatisfaction Due to Long Waiting Times?" Evaluation & the Health Professions 33.2 (2010): 216-25. Print. Dissatisfaction during a patient visit is not always the fault of the physician. Patients need to be understanding as well that waiting is very well a possibility before seeing a doctor. This article showed me that wait times associated before seeing a doctor decrease the satisfaction of the patient after seeing a physician. I see this as not necessarily the doctors downfall. I think to establish a very productive relationship with a patient, the patient needs to be understanding as well. However, according to the article, "More time spent with the physician was positively related to satisfaction independent of wait times. Furthermore, among clinic visits with long wait times, more time with the physician showed a relatively strong positive relationship with parent satisfaction." I am starting to see more that though the patient doctor interaction is a two way street, the physician needs to be the overall leader of the interaction.
Gottschall, Jonathan. The Storytelling Animal: How Stories Make Us Human. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2012. Print.
Conway, Martin A. "Memory and the Self☆." Journal of Memory and Language 53.4 (2005): 594-628. Print.
I think it is interesting that you sided on the "yes" answer to his question. I do think it all depends on the definition used to determine what "the truth" is. If we believe it to be true based on our experiences, is it still true to another? Also, the first article you posted was very interesting to me. I work at a summer camp for girls every summer and I have found that the more stories I share, the more the girls will connect to me and the more they seem to respect me. So it stands to reason that if it works with younger girls it would work with adults and elderly as well. It was an intriguing article.
ReplyDeleteNot going to lie but i think your going to say yes on this paper. my question to you is what is truth because to you it might be the truth but to someone else it might not be. i can agree to a point with Jillian that with storys being shaired that it brings people closer that we can relate and that is what makes people to bring down their walls.
ReplyDeleteHowever when you say "The works will be a recollection of life as they perceived it, so thats being truthful...right? " I think it is truth to the individual but people don't accurately recollect later in life what they perceived at the time of an experience. On the flip side though I think strong emotions perhaps may remain untainted by the effects of faulty memory (with the exception of amnesic episodes due to trauma physically and or emotionally). The details of the experience become obscure, as Gottschall pointed out with all the research he presented, but I don't recall him bringing up emotions.
ReplyDeleteWhen I read "genuine truth" in the instructions for the assignment, I interpreted that to mean absolute truth. I didn't even think about a different definition. I like what you wrote and I think it is a great answer to the question.
ReplyDeleteI guess if it's genuine, you could argue that it's the truth, but then you think about the rapists and murderers out there who honestly don't think what they are doing is wrong and that they shouldn't be punished for their crimes. This is a very extreme example, but it just goes to show how we, as humans, tend to exaggerate a lot of what we say just to make our argument. Plus, maybe you should write your blogs sooner and not procrastinate. Hahahaha I'm guilty of the same thing but I try and hide it in my blogs!
ReplyDelete