William L Randall
Biographic Data
| ID | 5142765 |
|---|---|
| NAME | William L Randall |
| GIVEN NAMES | William L |
| FAMILY NAME | Randall |
| SIGNATURE | RANDALL W L |
| AFFILIATIONS | St. Thomas University |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 12 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 54 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 12 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1997 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2023 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
Slower, deeper, wider
Recently retired as a professor of gerontology, the author reflects on his own experience of aging. Drawing on the sub-field of narrative gerontology, his area of specialization, and on age-related thoughts by writers like Florida Scott-Maxwell, Carl Jung, and Thomas Moore, he weaves together research concerning Gerotranscendence, Transpersonal Gerontology, and the transformative effects of so-called Near Death Experiences to articulate a vision …
Narrative and resilience
Aging, irony, and wisdom
This paper introduces the idea that aging inclines us naturally toward an ironic stance on life. The conscious cultivation of that stance through some form of narrative reflection is linked to the development of wisdom, where wisdom is understood in terms of deepened knowledge of the “stories” of our lives. Such reflection heightens our awareness of the inherently ironic nature of our inner world—a complex, quasi-literary world toward which we oc…
Positive Aging Through Reading Our Lives
Narrative foreclosure in later life
The Narrative Complexity of Our Past
In the course of normal aging, memory suffers losses in effectiveness, which, for many, spark anxiety about the onset of dementia. Against the background of Daniel Schacter’s (2001) overview of “the seven sins of memory,” this paper proposes that the line between “normal” and “dementing” is less definite than we may think. Indeed, when the narrative complexity of memory—i.e., autobiographical memory—is taken into account, such sins are not merely…
Getting my stories straight
From Computer to Compost
This paper introduces the compost heap as a metaphor for autobiographical memory. As an alternative to the computer, such a metaphor, it is argued, comes closer to capturing the dynamics of memory across the lifespan and how it feels to us as we age, particularly memory's narrative dimensions. After citing concerns expressed by psychologists and others regarding computationalism, the paper considers four entailments of the compost heap analogy th…
How listeners shape what tellers tell
Toward a poetics of aging
Inquiries concerning the nature of ‘biographical aging’ within the emerging field of ‘narrative gerontology’ have pointed to the need for a detailed consideration of the parallels between lived texts and literary ones. This article draws on a number of such parallels in order to outline what might be called a poetics of aging. The central proposal is organized around 3 key concepts: narrative imagination, narrative identity, and narrative environ…
Introduction
Restorying Our Lives
This is a new and important contribution to the explosion of contemporary interest in life as story and lifestories. Written in a lively and readable manner, the book explores theoretical, practical, ethical, and personal aspects of this fascinating topic area. It invites the reader, whether professional or general, to realize the potential to restory his or her own life and to coauthor others' lives in a positive way. This book is a refreshingly…
Narrative foreclosure in later life
How listeners shape what tellers tell
Introduction
Narrative and resilience
Getting my stories straight
Toward a poetics of aging
Inquiries concerning the nature of ‘biographical aging’ within the emerging field of ‘narrative gerontology’ have pointed to the need for a detailed consideration of the parallels between lived texts and literary ones. This article draws on a number of such parallels in order to outline what might be called a poetics of aging. The central proposal is organized around 3 key concepts: narrative imagination, narrative identity, and narrative environ…
Restorying Our Lives
This is a new and important contribution to the explosion of contemporary interest in life as story and lifestories. Written in a lively and readable manner, the book explores theoretical, practical, ethical, and personal aspects of this fascinating topic area. It invites the reader, whether professional or general, to realize the potential to restory his or her own life and to coauthor others' lives in a positive way. This book is a refreshingly…
Introduction
Toward a poetics of aging
Inquiries concerning the nature of ‘biographical aging’ within the emerging field of ‘narrative gerontology’ have pointed to the need for a detailed consideration of the parallels between lived texts and literary ones. This article draws on a number of such parallels in order to outline what might be called a poetics of aging. The central proposal is organized around 3 key concepts: narrative imagination, narrative identity, and narrative environ…
How listeners shape what tellers tell
From Computer to Compost
This paper introduces the compost heap as a metaphor for autobiographical memory. As an alternative to the computer, such a metaphor, it is argued, comes closer to capturing the dynamics of memory across the lifespan and how it feels to us as we age, particularly memory's narrative dimensions. After citing concerns expressed by psychologists and others regarding computationalism, the paper considers four entailments of the compost heap analogy th…
Getting my stories straight
The Narrative Complexity of Our Past
In the course of normal aging, memory suffers losses in effectiveness, which, for many, spark anxiety about the onset of dementia. Against the background of Daniel Schacter’s (2001) overview of “the seven sins of memory,” this paper proposes that the line between “normal” and “dementing” is less definite than we may think. Indeed, when the narrative complexity of memory—i.e., autobiographical memory—is taken into account, such sins are not merely…
Positive Aging Through Reading Our Lives
Narrative foreclosure in later life
Aging, irony, and wisdom
This paper introduces the idea that aging inclines us naturally toward an ironic stance on life. The conscious cultivation of that stance through some form of narrative reflection is linked to the development of wisdom, where wisdom is understood in terms of deepened knowledge of the “stories” of our lives. Such reflection heightens our awareness of the inherently ironic nature of our inner world—a complex, quasi-literary world toward which we oc…
Narrative and resilience
Slower, deeper, wider
Recently retired as a professor of gerontology, the author reflects on his own experience of aging. Drawing on the sub-field of narrative gerontology, his area of specialization, and on age-related thoughts by writers like Florida Scott-Maxwell, Carl Jung, and Thomas Moore, he weaves together research concerning Gerotranscendence, Transpersonal Gerontology, and the transformative effects of so-called Near Death Experiences to articulate a vision …
Narrative (11 works) · Psychology (10 works) · Identity, Memory, and Therapy (9 works) · Art (8 works) · Literature (8 works) · Sociology (8 works) · Philosophy (6 works) · Aesthetics (5 works) · Psychoanalysis (5 works) · Social Psychology (5 works)