The Storytelling Animal

In The Storytelling Animal: How Stories Make Us Human, Jonathan Gottschall integrates the growing body of literature into the science of narrative, situating his work at the intersection of literary theory, psychology, and anthropology. His interdisciplinary approach draws significantly from a lineage of Western thought that combines scientific inquiry with humanistic scholarship in an attempt to bridge the gap between the sciences and the arts—a division that is particularly pronounced in Western academia.

Gottschall’s work is influenced by the field of evolutionary psychology, which is a product of Western scientific and cultural narratives about progress and rationalism. This field posits that many human psychological traits, including behaviors and cognitive patterns, are adaptations shaped by natural selection. His reliance on this framework aligns him with thinkers like Steven Pinker, who explores how evolutionary pressures shape language and thought, suggesting that storytelling behaviors might similarly be molded by evolutionary needs for survival and social cohesion. Gottschall also engages with the ideas of scholars who examine narrative from an evolutionary perspective, like Brian Boyd and Lisa Zunshine. Boyd’s notion of storytelling as a form of cognitive play that enhances mental faculties complements Gottschall’s views, whereas Zunshine’s work on why fiction might be good for humans aligns with Gottschall’s exploration of narrative’s role in social bonding and identity formation. These perspectives are continuations of the Enlightenment’s valorization of science as a key to unlocking the mysteries of human nature.

Gottschall also taps into the Mythological Structuralism popularized by Joseph Campbell, who was influenced by Carl Jung’s ideas about the collective unconscious. Campbell’s work suggests that certain story structures and character archetypes recur across cultures because they resonate with universal psychological experiences and needs. Gottschall’s interest in the universal aspects of storytelling reflects this view, though his approach is more empirical and scientifically oriented than Campbell’s.

Beyond the realms of psychology and mythology, Gottschall is conversant with Western literary theory, particularly narratology—the study of narrative structures. This area, which evolved from Formalist and Structuralist theories in the mid-20th century, has traditionally focused on how stories are constructed and understood. Gottschall extends this interest to explore not just how narratives are formed, but why they play such a crucial role in human societies. Additionally, his work intersects with cultural criticism and anthropology, fields that have often examined how stories reflect and perpetuate cultural norms and values. Gottschall follows a broader Western tradition of using scholarship to comment on and critique societal norms.

While Gottschall primarily explores storytelling through a Western scientific and literary lens, his arguments also resonate with Indigenous storytelling traditions. Indigenous stories often carry significant spiritual meanings, explaining cosmological origins and the behavior of the cosmos, which aligns with Gottschall’s views on how stories help humans understand and navigate their universe. Moreover, these narratives serve as moral compasses, instilling communal values and ethical norms akin to Gottschall’s observations on the role of narratives in fostering social cohesion and personal identity. In the contemporary world, storytelling in Indigenous communities also acts as a form of resilience and resistance, preserving cultures and languages threatened by colonization—a dimension not deeply explored by Gottschall but implicit in his acknowledgment of storytelling’s power in maintaining cultural identity. Thus, while The Storytelling Animal is rooted in Western traditions, its examination of the universal aspects of storytelling opens up pathways for dialogue with other storytelling practices around the world.

Through these conversations, Gottschall both aligns with and challenges existing theories, proposing a comprehensive view that acknowledges the functional aspects of storytelling as well as its role in fostering human empathy and understanding. This discourse places him in an academic debate about the significance of narrative in human life, where he advocates for the importance of stories in shaping individual experiences and collective human behavior and societal structures.