Analyzing Personal Narrative
This guide will help you conduct a personal narrative analysis. This exploration aids in reflecting on how you think, how your thinking has been shaped, and what impact it has on your experience of life.
A narrative is a story that tells us how we should live. A personal narrative reflects on how our assumptions about a good life have developed. These assumptions are deeply ingrained beliefs about ourselves and the world. They form the basis of our personal story, and we have come to accept them as normal, so we no longer question them.
In analyzing your personal narrative, you will observe your 'thinking,' which is the interplay of thoughts, feelings, and bodily reactions. Much of our thinking is an old reflex. Our bodies reproduce a response that was necessary in a past situation. This happens because our thinking is repetitive and almost uncontrollable, like addictive thoughts. Thought addictions indicate which assumptions we have made about ourselves and the world. The thought addictions that produce the strongest reflexes originated as defense mechanisms against fears and painful experiences often encountered in childhood. By observing and analyzing these thoughts, you can free yourself from them and create space for a new, desired narrative.
Analysis Steps:
1. Early Events Before Age 7:
Write about your early memories in detail. Describe them in the third person, as if you are watching a movie about yourself. What did the child experience, what did they feel, and what conclusions did they draw? Describe the spaces as well—what did the child see, and who was present?
2. Reflection on Narrative:
Analyze your early stories for deeper assumptions:
- Personal Assumptions: What personal assumptions about yourself have you developed? Examples might include "I must always do everything perfectly," "I must always be funny," and "I must not complain."
- Cultural Assumptions: What cultural assumptions did you inherit? What phrases do you remember from your past? What did you hear your parents or other caregivers say? What did you learn from school and other communities in which you lived?
- Intergenerational Assumptions: What do you know about your parents and their ancestors? What traumas and events did they experience? What emotions and familial assumptions did they develop?
- Thought Addictions:** What recurring defense mechanisms and the thoughts behind them do you recognize? What emotions do you feel in relation to them? What bodily reactions occur, and how does this affect your behavior?
- Qualities and Strengths: What qualities and strengths have you developed as a result of your assumptions?
- Awareness: Who are you without these assumptions?
3. Recognizing Current Patterns:
Observe your current thoughts, feelings, and actions. Identify recurring patterns related to your past assumptions. What events upset you? What recurring thoughts, feelings, and bodily reactions occur? How are these connected to your assumptions? Analyze which events and past assumptions your current feelings and thoughts are linked to.
4. Creating New Narratives:
Do you want to continue feeling and thinking this way? If not, what new assumptions would you like to adopt? Experiment with these new thinking patterns and observe changes in your experiences.
Conduct this analysis in a quiet place and be open to self-reflection. It may be helpful to involve a partner to clarify your thoughts. Good luck with your exploration of your personal story!