Part of
Narrative – State of the ArtEdited by Michael Bamberg
[Benjamins Current Topics 6] 2007
► pp. 185–193
Edited by Michael Bamberg
[Benjamins Current Topics 6] 2007
► pp. 185–193
Frankie, Johnny, Oprah and Me
The limits of narrative
Narrative is one of many strategies for making texts or coming to understand the world. This paper attempts to restore narrative to that status: as one mode of writing or telling among others. The main example developed is the contrast between blues ballads such as “Frankie and Johnny,” which tell a story, and traditional or modular blues songs, which do not.
Keywords: Blues, Frankie and Johnny, Narrative, Son House
