Introduction: Narratives and Social Identities

Abstract

THIS ISSUE of Social Science History inaugurates a series of five articles, to be published over the next few issues, on the subject of narrative and the formation of social identities. The series originated in a session of the November 1989 Social Science History Association meetings in Washington, DC. That session included an early version of the article by George Steinmetz, published here, in addition to papers by Kathleen Canning (1992), Janet Hart, and Margaret Somers. The session inspired such enthusiastic interest and vigorous discussion that Ron Aminzade, now an editor of Social Science History but then an ordinary citizen, proposed that we think about collecting these papers in a special edition of the association's journal. Since then, two other articles, by Mary Jo Maynes (in this issue) and Luisa Passerini (to be published later), have been added to the set.