NARRATIVE
1. DEFINITION
A narrative is some kind of retelling, often in words (though it is possible
to mime a story), of something that happened (a story). The narrative is
not the story itself but rather the telling of the story -- which is why
it is so often used in phrases such as "written narrative," "oral narrative,"
etc. While a story just is a sequence of events, a narrative recounts those
events, perhaps leaving some occurrences out because they are from some
perspective insignificant, and perhaps emphasizing others. In a series
of events, a car crash takes a split second. A narrative account, however,
might be almost entirely about the crash itself and the few seconds leading
up to it. Narratives thus shape history (the series of events, the story
of what happened).
2.
SOCIAL FUNTION
To amuse the readers/listeners with actual or imaginary experince in different ways.
3.GENERIC STRUKTUR
a. Orientation/ exposition
The readers are introduced to the main characters and possibly some
minor characters. Some indication is generally given of where the action is
located and when it is taking place.
b. Complication/ rising action
The complication is pushed along by a serious of events, during which we
usually expect some sort of complication or problem to arise. It just would not be
so interesting if something unexpcted did not happen. This complication will
involve tha main charcters and oven serves to (temporally) toward them from
reaching their goal.
c. Sequence of event? Climax
This is where the narrator tells how the character reacts to the comlication.
It includes their feeling and what they do. The event can be told in chronological
order (the order in which they happen) or with flashback. The audiens is given the
narrator’s poiunt of view.
d. Resolution/ falling action
In this part, the implication may be resolved for better or worse, but it is
rarely left completely unresolved (although this is of course possible in certain
tyoes of narrative which leaves us wondering ‘How did it end”?)
e. Reorientation
It is an optional closure of event.
4. LANGUAGE FEATURE
• The use of noun phrase
a beautiful princess, a huge temple
• The use of connectives
First, before, that, then, finally
• The use of adverbial phrase of time and place
Two days ago, in the garden.
• Simple past tense
He walked away from the village
• Material processes / action verbs
Material processes are process of material doing.
e.g walk, sleep, wake up
• Verbal processes / Saying verb
Verbal processes are processes of saying, or more accurately, of symbolically signaling.
e.g say, tell, ask, explain, announce
• Mental Processes
Mental processes are mental, covert kinds of goings-on.
- Thinking verbs: think, understand, assume, conclude, discover, consider, doubt, believe.
- Feeling verbs: love, enjoy, hate, dislike, regret, fear, like, prefer
- Verbs of sense: see, notice, observe, feel, smell, taste, watch, hear, listen.5. EXAMPLE
