In this illuminating essay, Neil Bissoondath explores the powerful influence exerted by narrative on the human psyche. Storytelling is a primary activity in the human experience. The stories that we tell ourselves, as well as those we hear from others, help to answer the question of who we are, "as individuals, as familial beings, as social beings." On a deeper level, stories are also subtle forms of confession. They reveal our dreams and desires, our fears and fantasies, our hurts and pleasures.Sifting through history, Bissoondath examines how governments, both totalitarian and democratic, have sought to control and to simplify narrative. Novelists, to different and contradictory ends, have used narrative as a sphere of exploration and discovery, where questions are numerous and answers are rare. Fiction, suggests Bissoondath, is a subtle, yet powerful narrative form, unsurpassed in its ability to confirm human complexity and to affirm human existence.Dans cet essai A (c)difiant, Neil Bissoondath explore la puissante influence qu'exerce la narration sur la psychA (c) humaine. Raconter des histoires est une activitA (c) primordiale dans l'expA (c)rience humaine. Les histoires que nous-mAmes racontons, de mAme que celles que nous entendons raconter par d'autres, nous aident A rA (c)pondre A la question de savoir qui nous sommes "en tant que personnes, en tant que membres d'une famille, en tant qu'Atres sociables". A un niveau plus profond, les histoires sont aussi une forme subtile de confessions. Elles rA (c)vAlent nos rAves et nos dA (c)sirs, nos peurs et nos fantasmes, ce qui nous blesse ou nous fait plaisir.Puisant des exemples dans l'histoire, Bissoondath examine comment les gouvernements, tant totalitaires que dA (c)mocratiques, ont cherchA (c) A contrA'ler et A simplifier la narration. Les romanciers, quant A eux, ont utilisA (c) la narration A des fins diffA (c)rentes et contradictoires comme une sphAre d'exploration et de dA (c)couvertes, oA(1) les questions sont nombreuses et oA(1) les rA (c)ponses sont rares. Bissoondath suggAre que la fiction est une forme de narration subtile mais nA (c)anmoins puissante, qui est sans A (c)gale dans sa capacitA (c) A confirmer la complexitA (c) des hommes et A affirmer l'existence humaine.

Book Information
ISBN 9780864924827
Author Neil Bissoondath
Format Paperback
Page Count 104
Imprint Goose Lane Editions
Publisher Goose Lane Editions
Weight(grams) 114g