Post-Narrative - An Appeal

Area of Science:

• Medical Humanities
• Philosophy of Self
• Social Interpretation

Background:

• The narrative turn, influential for decades, faces increasing calls to define its boundaries.
• Interpreting the self and social world through narrative requires critical reassessment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify the limitations of the narrative turn in the medical humanities.
• To propose alternative frameworks for understanding the self and social world.
• To encourage critical re-engagement with specific philosophical works.

Main Methods:

• Critical analysis of existing scholarship on the narrative turn.
• Re-examination of foundational texts by Galen Strawson, Paul Atkinson, and Crispin Sartwell.
• Philosophical inquiry into narrative's role in self and social interpretation.

Main Results:

• The current application of the narrative turn may be reaching its conceptual limits.
• Alternative interpretive strategies beyond traditional narrative are necessary.
• Specific philosophical works offer valuable, yet underexplored, resources.

Conclusions:

• Scholars in medical humanities must critically assess the scope and limitations of narrative.
• Engaging with thinkers like Strawson, Atkinson, and Sartwell can foster new interpretive approaches.
• This re-engagement is crucial for advancing the understanding of self and society.