From time to time we all tend to wonder what sort of “story” our life might comprise: what it means, where it is going, and whether it hangs together as a whole. In The Stories We Are, William Lowell Randall explores the links between literature and life and speculates on the range of storytelling styles through which people compose their lives. In doing so, he draws on a variety of fields, including psychology, psychotherapy, theology, philosophy, feminist theory, and literary theory.

Using categories like plot, character, point of view, and style, Randall plays with the possibility that we each make sense of the events of our lives to the extent that we weave them into our own unfolding novel, as simultaneously its author, narrator, main character, and reader. In the process, he offers us a unique perspective on features of our day-to-day world such as secrecy, self-deception, gossip, prejudice, intimacy, maturity, and the proverbial “art of living.”

First published in 1995, this second edition of The Stories We Are includes a new preface and afterword by the author that offer insight into his argument and evolution as a scholar, as well as an illuminating foreword by Ruthellen Josselson.

William Lowell Randall is a professor in the Department of Gerontology at St Thomas University.

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“In this meaty, heavily referenced, and insightful book, William Lowell Randall ... speaks to both literary and psychological establishments about the importance of stories to our definition of ourselves.”

Canadian Book Review Annual

“[Randall] provides an incredible wealth of information ... A serious study enhanced by a knowledge of several disciplines.”

CHOICE

“A rich and comprehensive investigation into the metaphor of life as story ... The Stories We Are is a well-written and well thought out work. It presents a very complex metaphor in a not simple but coherent and effective manner. It is a fascinating journey through the life as story metaphor.”

Canadian Journal on Aging

“Bill Randall’s artistry and vitality provide an important point of reference, a work of some imagination and artistry, to assist many others on the journey. For this, we owe him a great debt.”

International Journal of Lifelong Education