Colloquium on “Narrative thinking: principles of storytelling”
Aspen Institute España, in collaboration with Sílex ediciones, hosted a colloquium on “Narrative thinking: principles of storytelling” on the occasion of the publication of the book by Fernando Ariza, Professor of Spanish Literature at the CEU San Pablo University in Madrid; and Miguel Herrero de Jáuregui, Professor of Classical Philology at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid and Aspen España Fellow.
The colloquium took place last Thursday, March 23 at 7.00 pm in the Sala Valle-Inclán of the Círculo de Bellas Artes in Madrid (entrada por C/Marqués de Casa Riera).
Paula Quinteros, journalist, CEO of The Objective Media and Aspen España Fellow, and Vanessa Rousselot, deputy editor-in-chief of Diario Vivo and documentarist, discussed the book with the authors.
The colloquium was followed by the book sale and signing.
Narrative thinking: principles of storytelling
This book discusses the fundamental principles of the narrative approach to understanding reality, and provides the main insights into this dimension of our mind that distinguishes us as a species. Narrativity is based on permanent formal elements: the identification of a conflict and its possible solutions, the creation of characters, the development of plots, the selection of the perspective, which are present in every story, from the most common anecdote to the great political and religious narratives. In a work that combines the practical and the academic, the discoveries of neurology and the dynamics of the literary workshop, classical myths and current cinema, high literature as well as successful series, Fernando Ariza and Miguel Herrero reveal the insights that govern storytelling: the techniques of plot articulation, the strategies to achieve the maximum effect on the audience, or the ethical and ideological values embodied in each narrative. Readers interested in the theory of storytelling and its practical application to the personal and professional sphere, to public discourse and to individual narrative will find in this book the tools to tell and analyze stories with the highest quality.
Miguel Herrero de Jáuregui
He is Professor of Classical Philology at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid. He was trained as a researcher at the Max Planck Institut, Harvard, Oxford (Christ Church), Zurich and the Royal College of Spain in Bologna, he has been Junior Fellow at the Center for Hellenic Studies (Washington DC) and Visiting Professor at the Universities of Toulouse and Cambridge (Pembroke College). He is the author of various publications on classical Greek poetry, religion, politics as well as philosophy, and the reception of Greek culture in ancient Christianity and modernity. His latest book is Catabasis: The Infernal Journey in Antiquity. He is Aspen España Fellow.
Fernando Ariza
He is a professor of Spanish Literature at the CEU San Pablo University in Madrid, a novelist, and a literary critic in various media. He holds a Ph.D. in Philology from the Complutense University and a Masters in Publishing from the University of Salamanca. He has carried out research stays at the universities of Columbia, Texas and libre de Bruxelles. In addition to numerous articles and book chapters, he has published a dozen books including novels, monographs, reading guides and critical editions. His latest novel is Fuiste el Rey (Tres Hermanas, 2019).
