Glossary

The term narrandum (Latin for “what needs to be told”), first proposed by Banzer, Quaderer and Sommer (2017), refers to the individual’s need and urge to share personal experience with others and a community’s desire to learn about otherwise inaccessible experiences through such testimonials and life stories. In practice, however, individuals can rarely share their stories freely for a variety of reasons (violation of taboos, cultural or social constraints, fear of putting others in danger, personal trauma, etc.)

⇢ see also Experience, Life story, Narrative identity, Representation of migration, Tellability

References and further reading:

Banzer, Roman, Hansjörg Quaderer, and Roy Sommer. 2017. Liechtenstein erzählen I: Demokratische Momente. Zurich: Limmat Verlag.

Category: C

Work Package: 2, 3, 5, 6, 7

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We speak of a narrative dilemma when narrandum (Banzer et al. 2017) and tellability (Baroni 2014) are not in sync. For instance, some experience may be too traumatic to be told, or sharing the experience may put storytellers and their families in danger. On the other hand, the public relies on testimonials and reports, often first published by investigative jonalists or human rights groups, to learn about human rights violations.

⇢ see also Frames of migration, Narrandum, Tellability, Vicarious storytelling

References and further reading:

Banzer, Roman, Hansjörg Quaderer, and Roy Sommer. 2017. Liechtenstein erzählen I: Demokratische Momente. Zurich: Limmat Verlag.

Baroni, Raphaël. 2014. “Tellability.” In The Living Handbook of Narratology, edited by Peter Hühn, Jan Christoph Meister, John Pier, and Wolf Schmid. URL: https://www.lhn.uni-hamburg.de/node/30/revisions/338/view.html. Accessed August 17, 2023.

Category: C

Work Package: 2, 3, 5, 6, 7

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The focus of narrative integrity “is on the inherent unity of living and narrating a life” (Freeman and Brockmeier 2001, 82). Hence, narrative integrity “emerges in line with specific social, historical and discursive conditions regarding the importance of the individual as well as the importance of accounting for the life one has led in line with an overarching cultural system of ethical and moral values” (Freeman and Brockmeier 2002, 83). Furthermore, narrative integrity is the right of a contributor to his or her own story without distortion, meaning that a third person cannot change the story in a manner deviating from its original meaning or the original intent of the contributor behind the story without the contributor’s consent.

⇢ see also Life story, Stories of migration

References and further reading:

Freeman, Mark, and Jens Brockmeier. 2001. “Autobiographical Identity and the Meaning of the ‘Good Life.’” In Narrative and Identity: Studies in Autobiography, Self and Culture, edited by Jens Brockmeier and Donal Carbaugh, 75–99. Amsterdam and Philadelphia, PA: John Benjamins Publishing Company.

Category: C

Work Package: 2, 3, 5, 6, 7

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Narratives on migration emerge through the strategic framing of migration, usually in terms of humanitarian principles, moral obligations, crises, security threats or, from a right-wing perspective, assaults on national sovereignty and cultural identity. Such top-down narratives adopt an outside (“etic”) perspective on migration, focusing on political, economic, legal, social and cultural issues rather than lived experience. They compete to win broad support, influence public opinion or to gain votes in elections. Digital media facilitate the emergence of new forms of hate speech, the rise of conspiracy theories and the circulation of fake news. They challenge the hegemony of established practices and procedures by providing users with new channels to frame and disseminate information. The concepts of narrative dynamics and the narrative market acknowledge the complex relationships and interdependencies between bottom-up and top-down narratives in the public sphere, while the metaphor of narrative ecologies focuses on how recipients process and negotiate competing narratives.

⇢ see also Crisis, Frames of migration, Narrative dynamics, Narrative ecology, Narrative market, Politics of mobility, Positioning, Solidarity (with migrants), Vicarious storytelling

References and further reading:

Gebauer, Carolin, and Roy Sommer. 2023. “Beyond Vicarious Storytelling: How Level Telling Fields Help Create a Fair Narrative on Migration.” Open Research Europe 3.10: 3–14. URL: https://open-research-europe.​ec.europa.eu/articles/3-10#FN3. Date of access: July 30, 2023.

Category: C

Work Package: 2, 5, 8

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