Chapter 14 10/13

In this passage, Catherine Riessman discusses some basic rules we use in conversation. She believes our conversations usually follow six rules that need to be followed in order to tell a story or narrative. According to Riessman, something is characterized as a narrative if one is always responding to the question, "and then what happened?". The first rule is an ABSTRACT, which gives an overview of the story. The next rule is an ORIENTATION, which tells us the who, what, when and why of the story. The third rule is a COMPLICATING ACTION, which tells us the sequence of events in the story. The next rule is an EVALUATION, which suggests the meaning and importance of the events in the story. The fifth rule is a RESOLUTION, which lets others know how the story ends. The final rule is a CODA, which returns the recitation of the story to the present time. She also points out what Bahktin pointed out in his theories, that we must anticipate what is going to come next in our conversations. J.F. Lyotard, a French scholar, compares conversations to a game, as there are rules we follow just as there are in a game. The chapter later discusses the ideas of Laurel Richardson. She believes stories are the main way humans organize their experiences into something meaningful that other people will listen to. She goes on to say that narrative is both a mode of reasoning and a mode of representation. People comprehend their experiences in the form of a story and also tell of their stories to other people in the form of stories. Both modes are rational ways of making sense of something. In our advertisement, an abstract is seen after the host, Monica Blake, comes on stage and tells the audience that "no one likes to play with dirty equipment". An orientation is seen in the ad when the camera focuses on the men in the audience, while the women on stage wash the different sports equipment. This continues when the host actually uses the AXE product on stage to demonstrate how it works. The complicating action is seen in the commercial as they go through different sizes and ages of sports equipment.There are a few evaluations in the ad, seen after each of the different balls have been cleaned and polished. The attitude of the narrator is not of surprise at the cleansing of the balls, but she takes more of an "I told you so" stance on the product . She is very confident that the AXE gel will work. The resolution of the story comes when the old man steps on stage. He feels as if there is nothing that can be done about his balls, but after the AXE product has been applied, they are like brand new again. The coda can be found in the ad when the host makes her call to action to the audience. She lets the audience know where to go if they would like to purchase any of the AXE products and recommends anybody with dirty balls should definitely give it a try.