Article published In:
Journal of Narrative and Life HistoryVol. 5:1 (1995) ► pp.67–84
Lars-Christer Hyden
Abstract
After the occurrence of a disruptive illness, questions tend to arise about oneself and one's way of life and its moral meaning. These questions concern what kind of person one is and how one can sustain one's identity and self-image in the face of disruptive events. In this sense, the reconstruction of a life narrative is a moral quest. In this article, an analysis is presented of an interview with a former psychiatric patient concerning his mental illness and experience of psychosis. The analysis of this man's reconstructive work shows that he assigns the disruptive event a particular place in his life narrative to invest it with meaning and sense. This means not only establishing what has happened but also why it has happened. An important condition for the narrativization of disruptive events is the identification of a "platform," which can serve as a basis from which the reconstructive work can start. The platform defines the point from which a connection with one's previous life can be established. The identification of a platform can be viewed as the formulation of a voice; that is to say, a kind of normative order of the relation among the actions, events, and persons who figure in the life narrative. (Psychology)
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