By: Kimberly Owens University of Wisconsin-Parkside
As children we were told stories-mostly fairy tales with a plot, a climax, and a beginning, middle, and end. Most of these stories we wanted to hear again, and again. We also tell stories of how our day went, how we lost our keys, why we are late, or children tell a story of how the dog ate their homework. These stories are a progressive account of events which includes reasoning behind them.
According to Fisher, humans are natural storytellers. Narrative theory is present in everyday life, and in a lot of films, this theory will continue to be present because the unity of human life is the unity of a narrative quest (Fisher, 1984) Quests sometimes fail, are frustrated, abandoned or dissipated into distractions; and human lives may in all these ways also fail (Fisher, 1984) But, the criteria for success or failure in a human life as a whole are the criteria of success or failure in a narrated or to-be-narrated quests. And that quest is for the good life of all persons (Fisher, 1984)
Humans are by nature storytelling beings and that the narrative capacity is what is most basic and most distinctive about humans and that we are also storytelling animals because that is how we make sense of our experiences in life by transforming them into stories, or narrative forms (Wood, 2005). Telling a compelling story is more persuasive than statistics, expert testimony, and logical deduction (Wood, 2005)
In this film a father, Will Hayes (Ryan Reynolds) decides to tell his daughter Maya (Abigail Breslin) the story of how he met her mother Emily (Elizabeth Banks). While in the midst of telling the story, Will discovers that retelling the story of his past might give him a second chance at the future and maybe find a happy ending.
The movie starts off with a great quote: ****Music**** Sometimes no matter how carefully you plan your playlist there is no right track for what awaits you Definitely, Maybe (2008) Will then walks into Maya s school only to be caught up in the madness after the children had just went through a very graphic sex education class. The discussion at school prompted Maya to question whether or not she was an accident and wanted to hear the story of how her mom and dad met. This is the moment that begins the portrayal of Narrative Theory in a film.
When Maya begs her dad Will to tell her how he and Emily met it is apparent that Narrative Theory is used in our everyday lives. Why is that? Our lives are stories and we weave together stories to help make sense of the things that happened in our life (Wood, 2004)
Will is helping Maya make sense of how she was brought into this world, introducing her to his lovers in the story, creating a beginning, middle and end, and to give Maya the reasons why things ended up they way they did in her mom and dad s relationship. Not to mention, it is helping Will make sense of his life and what went wrong, and what could have gone differently in his life as well.
To me, the film is a story within a story, it s a full narration that is helping to make sense of Will s life, show the importance of narrative theory in our lives especially in conversation with others and how it is merely impossible to know our biographical information, history, cultural background, and learn about where our personal characteristics cam from without telling a story to provide reasons and meanings behind it all.
In the process of Will telling Maya the story, there are sequences create out of discrete events (plots) including when he worked on the Bill Clinton campaign and met the copy girl, April (Isla Fisher), which lead into Maya dramatizing good and bad individuals (heroes and villains) or in this case, which woman she would like to be her mother in the story;inputting motives to what you and others do, think, feel and believe (character development; and deferring the point of a discussion of the revelation of an experience until the end (climax) while searching for when her mother comes into the story (Wood, 2004). In the telling of the story, Maya begins to sort through details and find out who her Mother is at the climax of the story. Storytelling is an ongoing human activity, one as natural and nearly as continuous as breathing (Wood, 2004).
Will becomes friends with April and goes over to her place. She is making him tea, and he is asking her why she has so many copies of Jane Eyre, she proceeds to tell him the story of how on her 13 th birthday her dad bought her a hard copy of the book, which had a beautiful inscription inside that she cared nothing about at the time until he died 3 weeks later in a car accident. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwidkhyelfw
One standard for narrative rationality is fidelity which Fisher defined as the extent to which a story resonates with listeners personal experiences and beliefs (Fisher, 1984). This can be related to a part in the film where Maya realizes that she has a connection with Emily because she relates to Emily pulling her hair back behind her ear and then discovers that Emily is actually her mom in the story. Maya was testing narrative fidelity and whether the stories she experienced ring true with the stories she knew to be true in her life with something as simple as Emily reaching out to pull her hair back behind her ear (Fisher, 1984).
Narrative theory plays a big part in each of our lives, even thought we may not realize it right away. To everyone who is trying to justify this theory, I urge you to take a step back, and the next time you enter a conversation or relationship try not to share or narrate a story. It is like trying to not breathe for a certain amount of time; it just doesn t work that way.
Even though the theory may be broad, and a distinctly conservative bias (Wood, 2004). I have found no reason to not learn more about this theory and relate them to my life and my stories. I believe narrative theory is present in everyday life and in a lot of films, and that will continue to be present because the unity of human life is the unity of a narrative quest (Fisher, 1984).
Quests sometimes fail, are frustrated, abandoned or dissapated into distractions; and human lives may in all these ways also fail. But, the criteria for success or failure in a human life as a whole are the criteria of success or failure in a narratied or to-be-narrated quest. And that quest is for the good life of all persons (Fisher, 1984)
Fisher, W.R. (1984). Narration as a human communication paradigm: The case of public moral argument. Communication Monographs, 51(1), Retrieved from Communication and Mass Media Complete. Hollihan, T.A., & Riley, P. (1987). The rhetorical power of a compelling story: A critique of a toughlove parental support group. Communication Quarterly, 35(1), 13-25. Retrieved from Communication and Mass Media Complete. Spector-Mersel, G. (2010). Narrative research: Time for a paradigm. Narrative Inquiry, 20(1), 204-224. Retrieved from Ebscohost. Doi: 10.1075/ni.20.1.10spe. Wood, J. F. (2005). Living by parental narratives: A narrative criticism of Marian Wright Edelman s the measure of our success: A letter to my children and yours. Texas Speech Communication Journal, 29(2), 106-117. Retrieved from Communication and Mass Media Complete. Wood, J. T. (2004). Communication theories in action: An Intro (3 rd ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. Bevan, T., Fellner, E.(Producers), & Brooks, A. (Director). ( 2008). Definitely,Maybe [Motion picture]. United States: Universal Pictures