During Julie Beck’s article “Life’s Stories” there were a few moments when her claims really stood out to me. When she says, “In the realm of narrative psychology, a person’s life story is not a Wikipedia biography of the facts and events of a life, but rather the way a person integrates those facts and events internally—picks them apart and weaves them back together to make meaning”. This really got me thinking about how my memories aren’t facts, they are used to help me understand how they built me into who I am now. This caught my eye because she said the realm of narrative psychology. I don’t understand the idea behind narrative psychology, but how she talks about the use of memories helping us create our life stories and meanings behind them.
During the article, she uses a quote from Dan McAdams that really stands out, “When you’re a kid, it’s mostly about plot,” McAdams says. “This happens and this happens. You’re not tuned into the idea that a character develops.” This is really notable because I now understand why, as a kid, my mother never liked watching cartoons with me. Now I like watching shows with more character development, which ended up bringing my mom and I closer together. I think I reacted to this as a believer. I can see how this applies to the narrative of life stories.
This idea that Beck brought up about how narratives soon become blueprints for the culture. The example she used made me think of the possible repercussions of having “blueprints” in a culture, “One such blueprint is your standard ‘go to school, graduate, get a job, get married, have kids.'” This is such a structured thing that a lot of parents and kids growing up really try to make happen, without looking at the overall happiness that you would or wouldn’t experience. I personally feel that this structure will make me happy, and so far has, but for some it may not.
I like your observations. I actually had a very similar thought process about the section where she talks about blueprints. I like how you said the structure works for your life but it may not for others. I totally agree with that and you said it so well. I also loved the first quote that you had, rereading that it stood out to me now. People’s stories are special and they mean something. All of the memories give people a reason to share stories and talk to people.
I agree with your observation on the pitfalls of this universal narrative that society has created for our lives. Many people feel social pressure to live this narrative or at least try to especially if they are not sure what they want. People are lured into believing in the finality of decisions that with a little pain are entirely changeable. This blueprint has become so standard that many people who don’t truly want that life choose it anyway due to fear of the unknown.