Abstract
We present a theoretical discussion conceptualizing “community as story”—narratives that create and recreate one’s definition of and relationship to their community. We use a variety of disciplinary sources and representative quotes to help develop the theory. In so doing, we discuss the importance of subjective perception, narrative and place to the creation of a community story. Community stories take place in time and place, and as changes to the place occur, residents are compelled to adjust their stories and definitions. These changes are reflected in narratives that reminisce about what the community was and what it is becoming. The narratives then become part of a new community story. Above and beyond our theoretical conceptualization of “community as story”, to help illustrate our arguments in an empirical setting, we present a historical narrative from interviews with residents of Vance, Alabama, home of the Mercedes-Benz plant, which discuss the changing nature of and relationship to their community after the arrival of the plant in the 1990s.
Highlights
We present a theoretical discussion conceptualizing “community as story”—narratives that create and recreate one’s definition of and relationship to their community
This study offers a theoretical discussion for conceptualizing “community as story”—narratives that create and recreate a definition and relationship to community
Community narratives are typically reflected in stories that reminisce about what the community was and speculate about what it will be, and become part of a new community story
Summary
“Trying to study community is like trying to scoop jello [sic] up with your fingers. You can get hold of some, but there’s always more slipping away from you” (Pelly-Effrat 1974, p. 1). Community as story refers to the narratives and meta-narratives residents create about their community and changes in them. To better understand how stories establish community identity, we focus on scholarship attuned to understanding the relationship between emotional attachments and the place where community happens. We provide an example of community as story by highlighting a historical case study of residents’ narratives of Vance, Alabama, home to a Mercedes-Benz factory. Building the factory in Vance influenced shifts in the individual community stories and an emerging meta-community. By studying community stories, we do not discount other theories of community or the more objectifiable aspects of it. Our purpose is to draw attention to some aspects of community that often “slip through the fingers” of community scholarship by expounding on the theory of community as story
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