Part of
Narrative and Identity Construction in the Pacific IslandsEdited by Farzana Gounder
[Studies in Narrative 21] 2015
► pp. 15–35
Edited by Farzana Gounder
[Studies in Narrative 21] 2015
► pp. 15–35
Moving through space and (not?) time
North Australian dreamtime narratives
This chapter is concerned with an analysis of narrative structure in the endangered non-Pama-Nyungan language Jaminjung and Australian Kriol. Previous analyses of Aboriginal narratives and story-telling techniques focused on the significance of place in plot and content (McGregor, 2005; Klapproth, 2004; Bavin, 2004). This study aims to extend these observations to include expressions of motion as a major structuring device in narratives. Furthermore, spatial may take precedence over temporal ordering of events in narrative. I argue that spatial narrative structuring is deeply rooted in cultural and environmental features creating a connection of unique identity for every ‘owner’ and audience of a story.
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Cited by (6)
Cited by six other publications
Claire Bowern
2023. The Oxford Guide to Australian Languages, 
Brown, Connor & Maïa Ponsonnet
2021. Constraints on subject elision in northern Australian Kriol: Between discourse and syntax. Australian Journal of Linguistics 41:3 ► pp. 287 ff.
Hoffmann, Dorothea
2019. Restrictions on the Usage of Spatial Frames of Reference in Location and Orientation Descriptions: Evidence from Three Australian Languages. Australian Journal of Linguistics 39:1 ► pp. 1 ff.
Carew, Margaret
Green, Jennifer
Walsh, Michael
2016. Ten postulates concerning narrative in Aboriginal Australia. Narrative Inquiry 26:2 ► pp. 193 ff.
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 24 september 2024. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.