Folktales of Recovery – From Addiction to Becoming a Helper: Deep Structures of Life Stories Applying Propp’s Theory: A Narrative Analysis

Abstract

ABSTRACT Addiction research suggests that recovery narratives share common structural elements. For further investigation of this topic, the current study invoked Propp’s folktale theory and method to identify narratemes within retrospectives to depict the stages of recovery. Semi-structured interviews were recorded about the experiences of six recovering helpers who had been sober for a minimum of five years and worked as a professional for at least one year. A deductive narrative analysis was carried out. From the 31 Proppian narratemes, 28 were identified and different recovery stories were threaded into a commonly shared narrative strand, where the hero’s relationship and struggle with the villain (drug) are depicted in process. Applying Propp’s narratemes to analyze recovery stories is a new development that seems applicable according to our results, as it is consistent with fairytale therapy within addiction treatment, which helps the lost wanderer to create structure in their life.