Narratology

Narratology looks at what narratives have in common and what makes one different from another. (Term coined by Tzvetan Todorov). It is part of a larger discipline called Narrative Theory: it looks at how a narrative is put together, what tropes are a part of narrative, the philosophical underpinnings of narrative, and how readers respond to narrative.

Narratology refers to both the theory and the study of narrative and narrative structure and the ways that these affect our perception. Narrative, from latin narre, which means to make known.

A narrative is a text which tells a story.  According to the Dutch literary theorist Mieke Bal:

“A narrative text is a text in which an agent or subject conveys to an addressee ('tells' the reader) a story in a particular medium, such as language, imagery, sound, buildings, or a combination thereof. A story is the content of that text”.

 [Mieke Bal, Narratology: Introduction to the Theory of Narrative (Toronto 2009), p. 5.]

Bal expands the definition of narrative to include a story told in any genre or art form (literature, visual art, music, architecture).  What a narrative must have is a teller and a listener, a performer and an audience. According to reader response theory, a story doesn't actually exist until there's someone to tell it to.

 A story is what is being told within a narrative. 

·         Bal, M. (2009) Narratology: Introduction to the Theory of Narrative. Toronto: University of Toronto Press