Narrative Power: Encounters, Celebrations, Struggles

Narrative Power: Encounters, Celebrations, Struggle is a collection of essays on narrative by Samuel R. Delany, Lance Olsen, Nicola Griffith, Lesley A. Hall, Alan DeNiro, Carolyn Ives Gilman, and others. It is commonly said that history is written by the victors: the narrator chooses the events that will be part of the story, and the narrative explains their meaning. In fiction, narrative conventions and clichés make writing and reading familiar stories easier, but also impede writers' efforts to tell unfamiliar stories. This volume asks: Is narrative inherently dangerous? Empowering? Or even liberating? A mix of established and new writers join several scholars in considering the politics of narrative manifested in fiction, history, and science.