Empirical Studies of Literature --

Gerrig

Gerrig, Richard. Experiencing Narrative Worlds: On the Psychological Activities of Reading. New Haven: Yale UP, 1993. 1-25.
index

Summary

The chapter defines the key objective of the book: the development of a theory embracing both readers' experiences of narratives and text attributes eliciting these (2). Readers may experience various narrative worlds and the aim "is to understand the repertory of cognitive processes that give substance to this variety of worlds" (1). Gerrig pursues this goal by studying patterns and occurrences in readers' accounts of their narrative experiences. Theoretically, his approach (largely) builds on models of narrative understanding developed in cognitive psychology as well as literary criticism.

Gerrig avails himself of two frequently employed metaphors to describe readers' experiences of narratives: the metaphor of "being transported by a narrative by virtue of performing that narrative" (2). The former describes the phenomenon of readers getting absorbed in a narrative world, and being removed from their present reality. The latter describes the notion that readers must actively partake in constructing the narrative world (14, 17).

Further, Gerrig suggests that the experience of being transported by a narrative consists of six constituents, the identification of which elucidates areas of past research and those in which investigation is still wanting (10). The first element he names is "the traveller" or reader (11). Gerrig holds that narratives cause "us to collapse the distinction between reader and narratee" (12), and suggests that this might affect readers' perception of themselves. The second constituent of an experience of being transported is the "means of transportation" (12). Although Gerrig acknowledges that some formal and content features of narratives might affect the aesthetic experience a reader has, he holds that these, as well as the criteria of fact vs. fiction (14), are not crucial to the readers' construction and experience of narrative worlds (4-5, 12). Thirdly, according to Gerrig, readers must "perform certain actions", in order to be transported by a narrative (12). The performance metaphor countervails the quality of passivity inherent in the metaphor of being transported. Further, the "traveller goes some distance from his or her world of origin" (13). Distance, in this case, can be read in terms of time and place, as well as the readers' inability to intercede in the events of the narrative world. While acknowledging Ryan's principal of minimal departure from reality, Gerrig suggests that narrative events are not processed on the level of the real world, but rather that readers enter the narrative world, and adjust to its context (14). The fifth element of being transported by a narrative is the phenomenon that "certain aspects of the real world [become] inaccessible" (15). Gerrig is especially interested in how, to some extent, real world knowledge fails to override readers' knowledge and beliefs in narrative worlds. The last factor in his model is the change in mental structures that may occur as a result of the experience of being transported by a narrative (16-17).

Cognitive psychology has mostly studied reading as a type of performance. The metaphor of performance describes the notion that readers "must bring both facts and emotions to bear on the construction of the world of the text" (17). Gerrig investigates how collective as well as idiosyncratic cognitive structures constitute such performance (18). In his approach, he disregards research findings suggesting that the skill of readers will influence their absorption in narratives, on the grounds that "[a]ll readers are capable of performing the cognitive activities that enable them to be transported to narrative worlds" (19). Furthermore, he points out that, despite the suggestion of active participation inherent in the performance metaphor, a number of these performances occur outside the reader's consciousness.

Whereas in cognitive psychology the performance metaphor in conjunction with the experience of narratives is commonplace, in literary criticism it can be considered a coup de force to reintroduce the reader into literary theory. Gerrig briefly introduces the work of three literary scholars to exemplify the value of literary theory to the research of narrative experiences. Iser, the pioneer of gap (Leerstellen) theory in literary criticism, demonstrated the validity of the performance metaphor solely by pointing to the disparity of derived meaning in a first reading as opposed to a consecutive one, and thereby revealed the investigation of readers "reexperiencing" texts as a promising approach (21).

Holland's contribution, Gerrig claims, lies in recognizing the importance of identity themes to readers' endowment of texts with meaning (22). Lastly, Gerrig points to Fish's claim "that readers' observations of their own performances contribute to the experience of narratives" as a valuable contribution to the study of readers' experiences of narratives (24).

Critique

Gerrig's opening chapter addresses some of the central issues involved in the study of literary processing. The two metaphors of "being transported" and of readers "performing" narratives intuitively capture important aspects of readers' narrative experiences. Valuable indeed, is the analysis of the experience of being transported by a narrative into its constituting elements that Gerrig proposes. Although, in my view, the definitions and delimitations of the factors could be clearer in some cases, they nevertheless give a manageable structure to past reader response research, and, perhaps more important, they identify areas for future investigation, as Gerrig points out.

Perhaps impelled by the ambitious intention to "explicat[e] a common core at the heart of the various experiences of narratives" (1), Gerrig falls short, however, of giving a formal definition of "narrative" sufficiently restrictive, as to allow for any insights into the "mechanisms" employed by authors to affect readers (2) to be of any consequence. His view is that merely the word "Texas" may incite the experience of being transported, and may thus be considered a narrative (4). According to Gerrig, "we can see that no a priori limits can be put on the types of language structures that might prompt the construction of narrative worlds" (4). This failure to delimit the working definition of narrative renders the identification of possible systematic relations between certain text features and what effects they may create in readers, and thus any generalization of results whatsoever, impossible.

With respect to the performance metaphor, Gerrig posits that readers "must bring both facts and emotions to bear on the construction of the world of the text" (17). In the field of cognitive psychology the role of emotions in literary processing has largely been ignored. However, a small but growing number of researchers have provided convincing insights into the crucial role emotions play when readers experience narratives. Unfortunately, Gerrig does not identify emotions as an actual area in need of empirical investigation, despite his intuitive understanding of its significance in literary response.

Further, the method Gerrig employs to record the processes of literary experience deserves critical attention. He intends to "understand the repertory of cognitive processes that give substance to this variety of [narrative] worlds […] largely through close analyses of phenomena that figure in readers' reports of their experiences" (1). In my view, however, since these reports require the readers' conscious reflection on their narrative experiences the "[m]any performance acts [that] are sufficiently routinized to take place outside of awareness" (19), will not be accounted for. Valuable as readers' reports are to gain a better understanding of literary processing, indirect measurements such as free association protocols for instance must complement these, I believe, in order to capture some of the pre-conscious responses readers may have.

All critique is easy in hindsight though. It must be acknowledged that a number of the approaches Gerrig proposes in 1993 have been taken up and refined since, and have yielded valuable results. Moreover, the interdisciplinary cooperation he suggests between cognitive psychology and literary criticism is imperative to any adequate investigation of literary processing, I believe.

Document created September 21st 2005

Gerrig
Gerrig, Richard. Experiencing Narrative Worlds: On the Psychological Activities of Reading. New Haven: Yale UP, 1993. 1-25.	index
Summary
The chapter defines the key objective of the book: the development of a theory embracing both readers' experiences of narratives and text attributes eliciting these (2). Readers may experience various narrative worlds and the aim "is to understand the repertory of cognitive processes that give substance to this variety of worlds" (1). Gerrig pursues this goal by studying patterns and occurrences in readers' accounts of their narrative experiences. Theoretically, his approach (largely) builds on models of narrative understanding developed in cognitive psychology as well as literary criticism.
Gerrig avails himself of two frequently employed metaphors to describe readers' experiences of narratives: the metaphor of "being transported by a narrative by virtue of performing that narrative" (2). The former describes the phenomenon of readers getting absorbed in a narrative world, and being removed from their present reality. The latter describes the notion that readers must actively partake in constructing the narrative world (14, 17).
Further, Gerrig suggests that the experience of being transported by a narrative consists of six constituents, the identification of which elucidates areas of past research and those in which investigation is still wanting (10). The first element he names is "the traveller" or reader (11). Gerrig holds that narratives cause "us to collapse the distinction between reader and narratee" (12), and suggests that this might affect readers' perception of themselves. The second constituent of an experience of being transported is the "means of transportation" (12). Although Gerrig acknowledges that some formal and content features of narratives might affect the aesthetic experience a reader has, he holds that these, as well as the criteria of fact vs. fiction (14), are not crucial to the readers' construction and experience of narrative worlds (4-5, 12). Thirdly, according to Gerrig, readers must "perform certain actions", in order to be transported by a narrative (12). The performance metaphor countervails the quality of passivity inherent in the metaphor of being transported. Further, the "traveller goes some distance from his or her world of origin" (13). Distance, in this case, can be read in terms of time and place, as well as the readers' inability to intercede in the events of the narrative world. While acknowledging Ryan's principal of minimal departure from reality, Gerrig suggests that narrative events are not processed on the level of the real world, but rather that readers enter the narrative world, and adjust to its context (14). The fifth element of being transported by a narrative is the phenomenon that "certain aspects of the real world [become] inaccessible" (15). Gerrig is especially interested in how, to some extent, real world knowledge fails to override readers' knowledge and beliefs in narrative worlds. The last factor in his model is the change in mental structures that may occur as a result of the experience of being transported by a narrative (16-17).
Cognitive psychology has mostly studied reading as a type of performance. The metaphor of performance describes the notion that readers "must bring both facts and emotions to bear on the construction of the world of the text" (17). Gerrig investigates how collective as well as idiosyncratic cognitive structures constitute such performance (18). In his approach, he disregards research findings suggesting that the skill of readers will influence their absorption in narratives, on the grounds that "[a]ll readers are capable of performing the cognitive activities that enable them to be transported to narrative worlds" (19). Furthermore, he points out that, despite the suggestion of active participation inherent in the performance metaphor, a number of these performances occur outside the reader's consciousness.
Whereas in cognitive psychology the performance metaphor in conjunction with the experience of narratives is commonplace, in literary criticism it can be considered a coup de force to reintroduce the reader into literary theory. Gerrig briefly introduces the work of three literary scholars to exemplify the value of literary theory to the research of narrative experiences. Iser, the pioneer of gap (Leerstellen) theory in literary criticism, demonstrated the validity of the performance metaphor solely by pointing to the disparity of derived meaning in a first reading as opposed to a consecutive one, and thereby revealed the investigation of readers "reexperiencing" texts as a promising approach (21).
Holland's contribution, Gerrig claims, lies in recognizing the importance of identity themes to readers' endowment of texts with meaning (22). Lastly, Gerrig points to Fish's claim "that readers' observations of their own performances contribute to the experience of narratives" as a valuable contribution to the study of readers' experiences of narratives (24).
Critique
Gerrig's opening chapter addresses some of the central issues involved in the study of literary processing. The two metaphors of "being transported" and of readers "performing" narratives intuitively capture important aspects of readers' narrative experiences. Valuable indeed, is the analysis of the experience of being transported by a narrative into its constituting elements that Gerrig proposes. Although, in my view, the definitions and delimitations of the factors could be clearer in some cases, they nevertheless give a manageable structure to past reader response research, and, perhaps more important, they identify areas for future investigation, as Gerrig points out.
Perhaps impelled by the ambitious intention to "explicat[e] a common core at the heart of the various experiences of narratives" (1), Gerrig falls short, however, of giving a formal definition of "narrative" sufficiently restrictive, as to allow for any insights into the "mechanisms" employed by authors to affect readers (2) to be of any consequence. His view is that merely the word "Texas" may incite the experience of being transported, and may thus be considered a narrative (4). According to Gerrig, "we can see that no a priori limits can be put on the types of language structures that might prompt the construction of narrative worlds" (4). This failure to delimit the working definition of narrative renders the identification of possible systematic relations between certain text features and what effects they may create in readers, and thus any generalization of results whatsoever, impossible.
With respect to the performance metaphor, Gerrig posits that readers "must bring both facts and emotions to bear on the construction of the world of the text" (17). In the field of cognitive psychology the role of emotions in literary processing has largely been ignored. However, a small but growing number of researchers have provided convincing insights into the crucial role emotions play when readers experience narratives. Unfortunately, Gerrig does not identify emotions as an actual area in need of empirical investigation, despite his intuitive understanding of its significance in literary response.
Further, the method Gerrig employs to record the processes of literary experience deserves critical attention. He intends to "understand the repertory of cognitive processes that give substance to this variety of [narrative] worlds […] largely through close analyses of phenomena that figure in readers' reports of their experiences" (1). In my view, however, since these reports require the readers' conscious reflection on their narrative experiences the "[m]any performance acts [that] are sufficiently routinized to take place outside of awareness" (19), will not be accounted for. Valuable as readers' reports are to gain a better understanding of literary processing, indirect measurements such as free association protocols for instance must complement these, I believe, in order to capture some of the pre-conscious responses readers may have.
All critique is easy in hindsight though. It must be acknowledged that a number of the approaches Gerrig proposes in 1993 have been taken up and refined since, and have yielded valuable results. Moreover, the interdisciplinary cooperation he suggests between cognitive psychology and literary criticism is imperative to any adequate investigation of literary processing, I believe.