Vital narratives - Narrative Intelligence - page 108

around by those who believed that the status quo was equivalent to the “right
way” to do things. One of the remarkable strengths of the Constitution is its
humanistic spirit. The founders foresaw a country that would undergo much
growth and change. The Constitution was a guide for accomplishing change in
a democratic way. It detailed both the rights and the responsibilities of citizens.
It even set up ways for citizens to amend it. In our day, the responsibilities of
citizenship are in danger of fading from consciousness.
A good patriotic narrative makes citizenship its centerpiece. If we have a
corrupt campaign financing process, only active voters can change it. If we have
low voter turnout, only citizens can change it. If we have domestic or global
policies that deprive people of the rights that our Constitution proclaims as
belonging to every person, only active participants in our democratic republic
can change them. If political spectacle and sloganism displace meaningful dis-
course, only the people can change it. We need patriotic narratives that can re-
vitalize citizenship. Such narratives may also be understood as actionable nar-
ratives. In the realm of citizenship, the actions to be promoted are engaging in
discourse, becoming well-informed, communicating with your representatives,
voting, and exercising the right to peacefully assemble.
Other actionable narratives that are much needed in our day would help
people understand what actions they can take to improve their world. These in-
clude activism, volunteer opportunities, ways to become involved in their chil-
dren's educations, honesty-based techniques for persuading others, and ways to
advance unpopular causes without falling into the trap of self-marginalization.
The narrative of education, for example, revolves around explanation of the
statusquo.“Thisishistory.Thisisscience.Thisismathematics.”Totransform
this view of education into an actionable narrative, a 180 ◦ turn is needed: the
focus must be shifted from what is known to what is to be discovered, and
whatcanbedonewithpresentandfutureknowledge.Lifeischange.Thebest
education helps a student to survive, manage, and direct change.
Finally, we come to the category of geopolitical narratives. These are the
“grand narratives” that percolate through all our stories and actions. Among
the most damaging, in my view, is the narrative that links business and eco-
nomic growth to prosperity. We demand “growth” from our economy and our
business institutions every year. Futurist and writer Paul Hawken sees growth
in a different light - instead of prosperity for the whole citizenry, he believes,
growth typically transforms natural capital into wealth for the usual suspects -
a wealthy elite (Hawken et al. 1999). If a steady stream of disastrous oil spills or
clear-cutting the Pacific Northwest is required for growth, then the narrative of
business, economic growth, and prosperity wins.