In “Everything is Story: Telling Stories and Positive Psychology,” Pamela B. Rutledge introduces the idea of a “story portfolio” as a tool for life. Select one of the story portfolio topics Rutledge suggests:
1. What story do you tell to introduce yourself? 2. What is your favorite story to tell about yourself? 3. How do your friends or colleagues introduce you? What stories do they tell about you regularly? 4. Recall a story from the past few months that someone told about you. What was the reaction? How would you like the story to be told?
Half of the assignment (about 400 words) will be the story itself. Another half (also about 400 words) will be analysis of the story. When analyzing the story, keep in mind that your overall goal, as Rutledge says, is “increasing awareness of how we construct stories and identifying core elements that drive the themes in stories that we tell ourselves and use to make judgments of others” (157).
In generating ideas for your analysis, you may wish to consider the elements Rutledge suggests:
• What structuring principles, plot (with introduction, conflict, resolution), characters, tone, and genre shape the story and how do these reflect the meaning and purpose of the story?
• What underlying values does the story reflect, and how might it influence understanding of yourself and your world? • What details have you added or left out and why? • How does your story change with your audience? Is it a completely different story or a different way of telling? • Consider your intentions for the story. What is your goal? What does the story say about you? Is this the story you want to be telling? • How might you revise the story for change and what effect might these revisions have on self-perception and future action? Resources
• Rutledge, Pamela B. “Everything is Story: Telling Stories and Positive Psychology.” Exploring Positive Psychology: The Science of Happiness and Well-Being, edited by. Erik M. Gregory & Pamela B. Rutledge, ABC-Clio Praeger, 2016, pp. 154-180. Text: Rutledge, Everything Is Story.pdf
