Narrative Possibilities

Abstract

The paper explores the ways in which narrative theories of identity may serve to interpret particular contextualized practices, working developmentally with South African youth. By locating narrative theories of identity in relation to two other theoretical frameworks, Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development and Ricoeur’s hermeneutics of textuality, we create a new theoretical approach for thinking about the possibilities and constraints for understanding sociohistorical questions of identity. As opposed to postmodern discursive deconstructions of the self or identity, we argue that the contextual imperatives of the developing world necessitate and demand the active interpretation and articulation of our-selves in stories and texts. It is suggested that this theoretical nexus offers a productive framework for practice.