MASTER NARRATIVES Defining Master Narratives Master narratives are dominant cultural stories and norms shared across a society. They provide scripts for understanding events, integrating information, justifying behaviors, and meeting cultural expectations. Characteristics  Guide being a "good" societal member  Explain lower-level personal/interpersonal stories  Bring coherence, shared past, principles for future behavior  Constantly evolving and changing Studying Master Narratives  Difficult to precisely define and study scientifically  Often examined top-down by assuming a narrative  Better to study commonalities bottom-up from people's stories Functions of Master Narratives Myths and Archetypes  Myths are embedded historically with archetypal characters  Provide inspiration, direction, templates for living  Condensed cultural models to interpret events Identity  Shape personal identity development  Master narratives fuse personal and cultural/historical  Provide conceptual framework relating self and society Politics  Define interests of dominant classes and institutions  Rebels try changing master narrative through radicalization  "Framing theory" shows identifying with groups against adversaries Problems with Multiculturalism  If multiple cultures, then multiple/conflicting master narratives  Risks separating groups, eroding social values  Better to assimilate useful cultural elements into one narrative Counter Narratives  Challenge elements of master narrative but accept others  Transform and reshape culture from personal narratives  Focus more on content than method of countering