Current feminist theory, in validating women’s own
stories of their experience, has encouraged scholars
of women’s history to view the use of women’s oral
narratives as the methodology, next to the use of
women’s written autobiography, that brings historians
closest to the “reality” of women’s lives. Such
narratives, unlike most standard histories, represent
experience from the perspective of women, affi rm
the importance of women’s contributions, and furnish
present-day women with historical continuity that is
essential to their identity, individually and collectively.
Scholars of women’s history should, however, be
as cautious about accepting oral narratives at face
value as they already are about written memories.
Oral narratives are no more likely than are written
narratives to provide a disinterested commentary on
events or people. Moreover, the stories people tell to
explain themselves are shaped by narrative devices
and storytelling conventions, as well as by other
cultural and historical factors, in ways that the
storytellers may be unaware of. The political rhetoric
of a particular era, for example, may infl uence
women’s interpretations of the signifi cance of their
experience. Thus a woman who views the Second
World War as pivotal in increasing the social
acceptance of women’s paid work outside the home
may reach that conclusion partly and unwittingly
because of wartime rhetoric encouraging a positive
view of women’s participation in such work.作者: shlshing 时间: 2010-5-29 07:42
38. The author of the passage would be most likely to
make which of the following recommendations to
scholars of women’s history?
(A) They should take into account their own life
experiences when interpreting the oral accounts
of women’s historical experiences.
(B) They should assume that the observations made
in women’s oral narratives are believed by the
intended audience of the story.
(C) They should treat skeptically observations
reported in oral narratives unless the
observations can be confi rmed in standard
histories.
(D) They should consider the cultural and historical
context in which an oral narrative was created
before arriving at an interpretation of such a
narrative.
(E) They should rely on information gathered from
oral narratives only when equivalent information
is not available in standard histories.
the stories people tell to
explain themselves are shaped by narrative devices
and storytelling conventions, as well as by other
cultural and historical factors, in ways that the
storytellers may be unaware of作者: MarilynR 时间: 2010-6-1 06:43
