Narrative Productions of Meanings

In Narrative Productions of Meanings: Exploring the Work of Stories in Social Life, Donileen Loseke examines the importance of stories in an anti-science, anti-fact era where heterogeneity, rapid change, complexity, and moral fragmentation combine to create a multitude of personal, social, and political problems surrounding meaning. The book’s basic argument is that, within such a world, narrative productions of meaning are particularly important because stories can appeal simultaneously to thinking and feeling and moral evaluation, and because they can do this in ways that have cultural, interactional, and personal dimensions. Narrative Productions of Meaning develops a framework for social science examinations of narrative; it outlines relationships between stories, storytelling, and culture, and it explores the characteristics of several types of stories including self stories that create coherence from the chaos of personal experience, stories that persuade mass audiences that public resources are required to resolve intolerable conditions, and stories that justify the contents of public policy and the organization of social services. It concludes with issues about relationships between stories and the processes of democratic politics. Narrative Productions of Meaning demonstrates the ways in which stories create meaning and how this meaning shapes both subjective understandings and material realities. In multiple ways, this analysis crosses common divides: It draws from literature spanning multiple disciplines; it treats thinking, feeling, and moral evaluation as inseparable; it bridges cultural and social psychological perspectives; it demonstrates relationships between story structure and the work people do with stories.

This is a well-conceived, sophisticated, and intellectually stimulating book. I truly enjoyed reading it.The scholarship is sound and the ideas/arguments are communicated clearly and effectively. I believe this book will be useful for scholars in a variety of fields who are interested in developing their understanding of narrative theory and method, but also scholars who are focused on a wide variety of substantive areas who are interested in developing a better understanding of the storied, cognitive, and emotional dimensions of the main moral and political issues (and contentions) in their area of expertise., This book offers an accessible and thorough review of the significance of stories and storytelling across the many facets of social life, from identities and culture to social problems and public policies. The book also serves as an excellent introduction to sociological reasoning at its best. Professor Loseke’s lucid and engaging writing combined with her vast expertise make this book an instant classic and a must-read for both novices and specialists in the field of narrative analysis and social sciences in general.

Donileen R. Loseke is professor of sociology at the University of South Florida.