On Scientific Narrative

Abstract

Despite the prevailing assumption that narrative and scientific discourse are incompatible genres, in this article the authors show that scientific texts typically follow a narrative pattern. This simple observation that narrative and scientific texts are similar is not all that surprising when we recognize that scientific discourse, like all narratives, describes what happened and what it meant. Indeed, scientific texts are almost always accounts of scientists' experiences in reality. After developing a vocabulary of narrative, the authors analyze the works of Newton and Einstein, using narrative analysis to illuminate scientific texts as stories.

Journal
Journal of Business and Technical Communication
Published
1999-07-01
DOI
10.1177/105065199901300306
Open Access
Closed

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (3)

  1. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  2. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  3. Technical Communication Quarterly

Cites in this index (0)

No references match articles in this index.

Also cites 6 works outside this index ↓
  1. 10.4159/9780674029019
  2. 10.1002/andp.19053220607
    Annalen der Physik  
  3. 10.1080/03637758709390221
  4. 10.1515/9783110838626
  5. 10.1017/CBO9781316534984.014
  6. 10.1080/00201749008602217
CrossRef global citation count: 13 View in citation network →