The Metanarrative reference article from the English Wikipedia on 24-Jul-2004 (provided by Fixed Reference: snapshots of Wikipedia from wikipedia.org)

Metanarrative

A metanarrative is a term used in postmodern discourse to refer to a narrative about narratives. It is a story that justifies stories; that determines which other stories are "central" and acceptable, and which are "marginal". Metannaratives are thought to prevent narratives deemed "marginal" from upsetting or subverting the cultural order. According to Jean-François Lyotard (1984), postmodernism, which represents an openness to the authority of "marginal" narratives, is defined "as incredulity toward metanarratives".

A metanarrative is often equated to the concept of an ideology or world view.

Examples of metanarrative's include:

• Emancipation of the dissonance

References

• Lyotard, Jean-Françoise. The Postmodern Condition: A Report on Knowledge. Minneapolis: U of Minnesota P, 1984, reprint 1997. Translated by Geoff Bennington and Brian Massumi.

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