Token codeswitching and language alternation in narrative discourse: a functional-pragmatic approach

This study is concerned with two phenomena of language alternation in biographic narrations in Yiddish and Low German, based on spoken language data recorded between 1988 and 1995. In both phenomena language alternation serves as an additional communicative tool which can be applied by bilingual speakers to enlarge their set of interactional devices in order to ensure a smoother or more pointed processing of communicative aims. The first phenomenon is a narrative strategy I call Token Cod-eswitching: In a bilingual narrative culminating in a line of reported speech, a single element of L2 indicates the original language of the reconstructed dialogue – a token for a quote. The second phenomenon has to do with directing procedures, carried out by the speaker and aimed at guiding the hearer's attention, which are frequently carried out in L2, supporting the hearer's attention at crucial points in the interaction. Both phenomena are analyzed following a model of narrative discourse as proposed in the framework of Functional Pragmatics. The model allows the adoption of an integral approach to previous findings in code-switching research.

Word order in Yiddish narrative discourse

Based on data from spoken narrative discourse in Yiddish, this paper analyses two structures common in Yiddish narrations: The placement of the finite verb in the first position of a declarative sentence, and topicalization.Like German, Yiddish word order is generally centered around a verb-second rule. However, both Yiddish and spoken German show configurations of word order that go against the rule, where the finite verb occupies the first position of the utterance. From a functional-pragmatic point of view, these structures can be said to serve special purposes in the interaction between speaker and listener, sometimes in particular discourse types.Differences and similarities in word order between Yiddish and German enable us to comment on the relationship between these two closely related languages.

On the Epistemology of Narrative Theory: Narratology and Other Theories of Fictional Narrative

In this article, I propose to analyze narrative theory from an epistemological standpoint. To do so, I will draw upon both Genettian narratology and what I would call, following Shigeyuki Kuroda, “non-communicational” theories of fictional narrative. In spite of their very unequal popularity, I consider these theories as objective, or, in other words, as debatable and ripe for rational analyses; one can choose between them. The article is made up of three parts. The first part concerns the object of narrative theory, or the narrative as a constructed object, both in narratology (where narrative is likened to a narrative discourse) and in non-communicational narrative theories (where fictional narrative and discourse are mutually exclusive categories). The second part takes up the question of how the claims of these theories do or do not lend themselves to falsification. In particular, Gérard Genette’s claim that “every narrative is, explicitly or not, ‘in the first person’”, will be considered, through the lens of Ann Banfield’s theory of free indirect style. In the third part the reductionism of narrative theory will be dealt with. This leads to a reflection on the role of narrative theory in the analysis of fictional narratives.

Narrative Deliberation? On Storytelling as a Necessary Component of Public Deliberation

This paper deals with the place of narrative, that is, storytelling, in public deliberation. A distinction is made between weak and strong conceptions of narrative. According to the weak one, storytelling is but one rhetorical device among others with which social actors produce and convey meaning. In contrast, the strong conception holds that narrative is necessary to communicate, and argue, about topics such as the human experience of time, collective identities and the moral and ethical validity of values. The upshot of this idea is that storytelling should be a necessary component of any ideal of public deliberation. Contrary to recent work by deliberative theorists, who tend to adopt the weak conception of narrative, the author argues for embracing the strong one. The main contention of this article is that stories not only have a legitimate place in deliberation, but are even necessary to formulate certain arguments in the fi rst place; for instance, arguments drawing on historical experience. This claim, namely that narrative is constitutive of certain arguments, in the sense that, without it, said reasons cannot be articulated, is illustrated by deliberative theory’s own narrative underpinnings. Finally, certain possible objections against the strong conception of narrative are dispelled.

Jimirulino's mistake: narrative strategy in "Uai, eu?", by Guimarães Rosa.

Tutameia - Terceiras Estórias was published in July 1967 and it is the last book published by João Guimarães Rosa. The minimum narratives that make up the volume clash against the style presented by the author in previous works. Originally written for publication in the journal O Pulso, the 40 stories represent the capacity of the author to synthesize the fact narrated at the same the time the narrative extends the significant disposal through the words unspoken. The space unfolding narrative is the same that characterizes others works from Guimarães Rosa, populated by gangsters, cowboys, cattle herds and buritis. This article deals with the memorialist narrative strategy in “– Uai, Eu?” by Guimarães Rosa, a short story presented in Tutameia (1967). To accomplish that task, it was checked the literary criticism on the theme, highlighting considerations from Araújo (2001), Candido (2002), Coutinho (1997), Bosi (1988), Duarte (2001), Riedel (1980) and Santos (1991). As literary analysis procedure resorts on observation of the issues that make up the narrative organization of the short story, according to the narratological perspective by Gérard Genette, in Narrative discourse. The compositional details observation indicates a narrative strategy that works as an adjunct in narrator’s triparted goal: intelligence, kindness and justice. It concludes that the reformed and testimonial Jimirulino’s behaviour, represented by its own voice in narration, works as an argument in favor of the deponent that, through it, seems unable to perceive the contradictions in his own behavior at the crime time, in the past.

Sociolinguistic Implications of Narratology: Focalization and ‘Double Deixis’ in Conversational Storytelling

Over the last few decades, literary narratology has branched out into a wide array of ‘post-classical’ narratologies that have borrowed concepts from cognitive psychology, sociology, anthropology, history, linguistics, and other disciplines. The question arises to what extent ‘classical’ narratological concepts can also be successfully exported to other disciplines which have an interest in narrative. In this article, I apply the concept of ‘focalization’ as well as David Herman’s insights into doubly-deictic ‘you’ in second-person narratives to an interview narrative and further materials from my empirical sociolinguistic study on general practitioners’ narrative discourse on intimate partner abuse. I consider how the narrative positioning of the GP as storyteller and ‘protagonist’ of his story corresponds with his social and professional positioning with regard to his patients in the context of intimate partner violence cases and vis-à-vis the interviewer during the research interview. Focalization and double deixis are shown to become part of a narrative strategy whereby the narrator distances himself from his own personal self in the narrative and at the same time tries to align the interviewer with his viewpoint.

Tornar-se mãe na favela: relatos sobre a experiência da gravidez numa Comunidade do Rio de Janeiro

O presente trabalho tem como objetivo compreender a experiência da maternidade a partir do discurso narrativo de jovens moças, residentes no Morro Santa Marta favela situada no coração da Zona Sul do Rio de Janeiro e que estão experimentando a gestação pela primeira vez. Para tanto, foi importante investigar o conceito de maternidade, sob uma perspectiva sócio-histórica, para dar ênfase a um olhar winnicottiano, no qual o ambiente tem um caráter fundamental na construção da subjetividade. A experiência da maternidade nas classes trabalhadoras e um breve histórico das favelas cariocas foram igualmente traçados, dando destaque ao Morro Santa Marta. A fim de refletir sobre os aspectos subjetivos relacionados com a experiência de tornar-se mãe, uma pesquisa qualitativa foi desenvolvida com cinco mulheres escolhidas aleatoriamente. Tomou-se um grande cuidado em ultrapassar estereótipos e estigmas que recaem sobre a população, priorizando, na escuta, os valores, percepções, opiniões e hábitos culturais que podem ser expressos de forma verbal e/ou não verbal.

Reflexiones y representaciones del exilio: de El canto del peregrino (1999) a "El sefardí romántico" (2005)

El exilio es un tema recurrente en la obra de Angelina Muñiz-Huberman, miembro del llamado grupo hispanomexicano. La visión del exilio en su obra incluye no solo el exilio republicano sino también el del pueblo judío. Por eso, diferentes Diásporas históricas se superponen enriqueciendo el significado de la experiencia. En su ensayo El canto del peregrino: hacia una poética del exilio (1999) desarrolla sus pensamientos sobre el exilio y analiza numerosos trabajos de autores exiliados (judíos y republicanos españoles) centrándose en como cada uno reflejó la vivencia del exilio en su trabajo.En mi opinión, las ideas desarrolladas en el ensayo se pueden encontrar en su novela El sefardí romántico: la azarosa vida de Mateo Alemán II (2005). El título de la novela establece una conexión directa con la novela picaresca y la vida judía aludiendo al autor converso de Guzmán de Alfarache (1599-1604). Siguiendo el patrón establecido por la novela picaresca clásica, el protagonista de Muñiz-Huberman viaja por España y Europa denunciando la intolerancia que llevó a la Guerra Civil española y a la II Guerra Mundial. Las circunstancias lo llevan al exilio en México, como en el caso de Mateo Alemán. Según la teoría de Ulrich Wicks, pícaros y exiliados tienen mucho en común en su búsqueda continua de libertad, libertad que el exiliado puede encontrar solo en el idioma, como expone Muñiz-Huberman en su ensayo.

Temporal Framing in the Conte: From Theoretical Debate to Oral Story Performance

This article explores ‘temporal framing’ in the oral conte. The starting point is a recent theoretical debate around the temporal structure of narrative discourse which has highlighted a fundamental tension between the approaches of two of the most influential current theoretical models, one of which is ‘framing theory’. The specific issue concerns the role of temporal adverbials appearing at the head of the clause (e.g. dates, relative temporal adverbials such as le lendemain) versus that of temporal ‘connectives’ such as puis, ensuite, etc. Through an analysis of a corpus of contes performed at the Conservatoire contemporain de Littérature Orale, I shall explore temporal framing in the light of this theoretical debate, and shall argue that, as with other types of narrative discourse, framing is primarily a structural rather than a temporal device in oral narrative. In a final section, I shall further argue, using Kintsch’s construction-integration model of narrative processing, that framing is fundamental to the cognitive processes involved in oral story performance.

Ficção e encenação : o desenho como narrativa visual

Tese de doutoramento, Belas-Artes (Ciências da Arte), Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Belas-Artes, 2014

Heading east this time: critical readings on gender in southeast Asia

This essay intends to discuss some critical readings of fictional and theoretical texts on gender condition in Southeast Asian countries. Nowadays, many texts about women in Southeast Asia apply concepts of power in unusual areas. Traditional forms of gender hegemony have been replaced by other powerful, if somewhat more covert, forms. We will discuss some universal values concerning conventional female roles as well as the strategies used to recognize women in political fields traditionally characterized by male dominance. Female empowerment will mean different things at different times in history, as a result of culture, local geography and individual circumstances. Empowerment needs to be perceived as an individual attitude, but it also has to be facilitated at the macrolevel by society and the State. Gender is very much at the heart of all these dynamics, strongly related to specificities of historical, cultural, ethnic and class situatedness, requiring an interdisciplinary transnational approach.

Las víctimas en las construcciones discursivas del Grupo de Memoria Histórica

El discurso en el que se inscriben las/os integrantes del Grupo de Memoria Histórica posibilita un escenario de enunciación del dolor de las víctimas, de sus memorias y resistencias, pero así mismo, las condiciones de este discurso opacan otras narrativas de las víctimas, de sus sufrimientos y dolores.

Las huellas de la oralidad en siete cuentos del 30 (Dossier: Cuatro narradores del 30, relecturas en su centenario)

El autor revisa la manera en que se representa el discurso narrativo «a la manera del habla» en cuentos de Aguilera-Malta, Gallegos Lara, Gil Gilbert y De la Cuadra. Este «efecto de oralidad» se realiza mediante recursos diversos: con descripciones que apelan a mitos, o la presencia de refranes que transmiten la experiencia colectiva, con el uso de fórmulas del relato oral, como las equivalentes a aquella de «había una vez», a través de la prosopopeya (personificación, animación, metáfora sensibilizadora) y de la hipérbole, de la alternancia entre un narrador testigo y otro de carácter letrado, o la alternancia narrativo-conversacional en un mismo narrador. Por otro lado, también en ciertos motivos temáticos se encuentran rasgos de oralidad: en la recuperación del universo primigenio, en el que hombre y naturaleza eran uno solo, en el rol de los supuestos, sobreentendidos, habladurías o creencias (experiencia colectiva transmitida que, una vez que circula en la comunidad oral, adquiere el carácter de verdad). Todos estos recursos apuntan a redescubrir la riqueza expresiva del imaginario y los valores del mundo montuvio, en convivencia o disputa con aquellos de la cultura cristiana y de los entornos urbanos.

Alasdair Gray`s 1982 Janine (1984): a postmodernist scottish novel

Alasdair Gray is now an established figure in the Scottish literary scene and has numerous claims to be considered an important voice writing in English. First Lanark: A Life in Four Books (1981) and then 1982 Janine (1984) contributed to the recognition of Gray as one of the founding fathers of the new Scottish writing and as a figure of importance in international contemporary fiction due to his innovative, experimental and postmodernist novels. As the title of this dissertation - “Alasdair Gray’s 1982 Janine (1984): A Postmodernist Scottish Novel” - suggests, it aims at analysing the author’s second novel, 1982 Janine (1984), in a thematic and formal perspective, in order to justify the choice of the terms - Postmodernist and Scottish - to classify this novel. 1982 Janine projects a world through Jock McLeish’s mind and is a powerful stream-of-consciousness narrative. Jock is an alcoholic who lives a personal crisis and, therefore, tries to escape from his depressing reality through sexual fantasies and political diatribes. During a single night in a Scottish hotel room, he drinks and dreams, and spends the whole night alone with his fantasies and fears, his memories and hopes. In Chapter 11, the most daring experimental section of the novel, Jock attempts to commit suicide by taking an overdose of tablets with alcohol but fails. Following this, he decides to review his life and make for a new beginning; the novel thus closing with an optimistic note. Also, the narrative is based on a constant interweaving of sex fantasy with political satire, that is, it is through his protagonist that Gray manages to convey the state of Scotland as well as the concerns and aspirations of the Scottish people and then, proceed to a political and social critique. This dissertation appears structured in three chapters. In Chapter I - “Alasdair Gray: A Postmodernist Scottish Writer” - I present Gray as a powerful postmodernist writer who also sees himself as a Scottish author, and more particularly as a Glaswegian, who concentrates on Scottish subject matter in his literary work. In a first section, I offer a brief survey of the Scottish literary scene from the fourteenth to the twentieth century, in order to understand Gray’s choice of setting and themes and to check his influence or indebtedness to previous Scottish authors. As 1982 Janine is also a good example of selfconscious experimental writing, in a second section, I present various seminal fictional works that introduced and developed experimentalism in British fiction, in order to evaluate the influence of modernist developments in form and technique on recent experimental writing. The third section consists of an introduction to Gray’s work for he is not only a novelist, but also an artist, a playwright, a poet, an activist and a scholar. Chapter II - “Postmodernist Features in 1982 Janine” - aims at listing and examining the postmodernist devices that the novel includes, in what content and form are concerned. On the one hand, the use of a developed type of the modernist stream of consciousness, the presence of a protagonist who feels entrapped in a specific system, the quest for freedom, the incoherence and fragmentation of time, the nonchronological order of the narrative, the blending of fantasy and “reality”, as well as the importance of the Scottish material are definitely current aspects within postmodernist literature that can be found in Gray’s novel. On the other hand, the handling of literary self-conscious devices, such as typographical experimentation, presence of metafiction and intertextuality, and inclusion of an Epilogue, are likewise among recurrent postmodernist features. As the title - “A Narratological Analysis of 1982 Janine” - evidences, Chapter III offers a description of the mechanics of the narrative and its functioning in order to better understand the narrative technique of postmodernist fiction. This study is based primarily on Gérard Genette’s theoretical framework and terminology, presented in Narrative Discourse: An Essay in Method, an analytical tool that allows me to provide a more objective and scientific analysis. Hence, I follow the Genettian division of narrative discourse in Time, Mood and Voice while examining the novel. Finally, I proceed to a description of the intertextual relationships 1982 Janine establishes with other texts.