Story as Research Methodology

Abstract

Ubuntu storytelling is about engaging our relational selves. This is why my people the Ngoni say, “The story of one cannot be told without unfolding the story of many.” This means that the diverse and sometimes contradictory analysis of the same story is welcomed as long as it is exercised responsibly. If we relate to each other through storytelling then our Ubuntu storytelling is a research method. In this paper I share why and how using Ubuntu stories as methodology is an effective way to encourage Indigenous Ubuntu scholars to think about the endemic tools that make their scholarship accessible to our larger Black communities. The Ubuntu have always used the art of oral storytelling to extol the power of experience as a teaching tool because a story can allow a culture to regenerate itself. As a Maseko Ngoni, I highlight how we use Ubuntu storytelling to produce knowledge, by addressing the following themes: What Ubuntu storytelling is; why I use Ubuntu storytelling and how I address the challenges of using Ubuntu storytelling in a colonial context. I end with an example of an Ubuntu story.