Stories are fluid creatures: their affect on the reader changes depending on a million different little things, such as when and where the story was told, and by whom, and the reader’s experience themselves. The manner in which the story is delivered is also a major influence on how the audience comes to understand the piece.
There are two main ways a story can be delivered: written or performed. In this day and age, modern technology has created new ways to consume stories that build off of these two categories. While oral performance is the most common, in the everyday stories we share with friends and family, film and the internet have developed to allow performed stories to be recorded, and re-experienced, by both those who were there for the initial performance, and those who will only ever see it on YouTube.
With the rise of the internet and today’s high literacy rates, nearly everyone in the world has the ability to put their voice out there and share their own stories. This means greater access to the stories of marginalized people, who otherwise may not have as globalized a platform from which to speak. Fanfiction is a popular type of online publication that allows minorities to create more representation in the stories they already know and love. “Headcanons” are an individual’s interpretations of specific elements of an already existing story. By writing new stories, or rewriting previously existing ones, beloved characters can change race, gender, ability, sexual orientation, or any number of characteristics. The internet provides widespread publication for these stories, as well as the opportunity for them to reach a wider audience, particularly those who crave to see themselves represented in the media.
The internet acts as a filter for stories in multiple ways. The website a story is posted on will change the expectations of the reader, which always affects the initial experience. Beyond that, for recordings of live performances, the angle of the camera and the quality of the footage affects the performance itself, exactly as if it were being told secondhand, with some forgotten or omitted details and sometimes missing the important action. This changes the story from the initial live performance, telling a slightly different version. However, this slightly different version can be told the exact same way, with all of the same differences, whereas the live performance will never be the same twice.
An intriguing variation on this is the Podcast, an audio performance of storytelling available on the internet through various venders such as iTunes, various other podcast apps, or even on YouTube. Podcasts, whether fictional or not, are most often designed, written, and/or performed to be a podcast. Similar to a radio show, this kind of performance does not change the text the same way other oral storytelling can. It is recorded the once, and any difference in the nuances of the text is entirely down to the listener.
In the lecture for 1:2, the professor established the (perhaps fading) distinction between literacy and orality. I would like to suggest that podcasts may be the meeting ground of these two kinds of storytelling, as it is an aural experience that changes depending on the location where the story is heard, and the person who is listening. Some podcasts are even designed to be connected to a specific place. (I’m thinking of a specific one set in Vancouver, but I’m unable to find it, despite my best google efforts. I will share this podcast with everyone once I’ve found it!) However, the story itself changes very little in terms of the text of the story. There is a difference between a podcast and oral storytelling, but there is also a difference between podcasts and literature.
I’m interested to see what other people have to say about where podcasts fall in this spectrum of storytelling methods. Share your thoughts in the comments!
WORKS CITED
“Adult and Youth Literacy.” UIS Fact Sheet. UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Sept 2013. Web. 18 Sept 2016.
Welcome to Night Vale. “1-Pilot.” Online Video Clip. Youtube, 14 Jan 2015. Web. 18 Sept 2016.
Hi Madelaine! Thank you for making the point to include oral storytelling as well in this prompt–it has personally reminded me how much of an attachment I have to Youtube and other sites where I can discover new insights and music. I actually have not listened to any podcasts so far, but I think in similar terms, audiobooks too have made accessing means of work more conveniently available to everyone. I think of podcasts as more of an audio-only talk show, but as long as there is a story being projected I would say it still counts.
Speaking of music as a more dialed down version of literature (involving themes of moving on, emotions, sometimes movie quotes/philosophical excerpts, the ability to search up song lyric meanings can also entail this), there are certain songs that do tell stories as the lyrics progress (only the chorus is repeated – popular examples: Hey There Delilah by Plain White T’s, 7 Years by Lukas Graham, I suppose certain rap/hip-hop songs, etc), but would that also be considered as a branch of oral storytelling? If the artist (oral song or painting) was inspired by a personal story, philosophy, or concept such as heartbreak, words that communicate and connect to the audience on a common ground of humanity… I would think that because of the added on music (similar to body language in performances) it helps immerse the audience in other ways to the story being told.
Would you say that one form of storytelling is more authentic than another? Does this transformation of how stories are being told divide rather than unite all people together, especially those living under heavily censored internet conditions or no access to internet? I think about how first world countries may feel obligated to help “lesser” and the general aspect of how our perspective might be to help out third world countries, despite the fact that they might not want ‘help’ to begin with or feel that they are portrayed inaccurately/wrongly, other issues, etc.
Your idea of music as storytelling is intriguing, and not something I’d considered before. I think music is entirely capable of conveying some sort of emotional arc, whether within a single song or an album, whether or not it has lyrics. Something to consider for future discussions on modes of storytelling!
As for the authenticity of different storytelling methods, I would argue that different styles can be more effective for different stories, but not that any one method is more authentic or holds a greater truth. I also think that stories are a method of communication, and the way humans communicate is constantly evolving. I like to think that stories work more to bring people together than to divide them, but in the case of internet-censored countries, that would prevent those people from gaining access to these new, more modern ways to tell stories.
Thanks for your comment!
Hello Madelaine
I enjoyed reading your post I especially found interesting your insights on the use of podcasts at this intersection of orality or literature and technology. It brought to mind a particular site specific podcast I experienced while studying at UBC entitled Ashes on the Water by Quelemia Sparrow and Noah Drew which I thought is a great example of how orality and technology can be used together to assist the longevity of oral stories like it. This story is about the birth of the paddle song and is a powerful narrative about a fire in Crab Park during the early settlement of Vancouver from the point of view of two women: one a settler and one a Coast Salish woman. I highly suggest it! 🙂
Here are some links about the pod play:
http://ravenspiritdance.com/ashes-on-the-water/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_0ma5LtGFs
Look forward to reading more of your posts 🙂
Samantha Myran
Thanks for the recommendation, I’ll be sure to check it out!