Dual Narrative Dynamics

Dan Shen is Boya Chair Professor of English at Peking University, China. She is on the advisory boards of Narrative and Style, the editorial board of Language and Literature, and also a consultant editor of Routledge Encyclopedia of Narrative Theory. She has published seven books, including Style and Rhetoric of Short Narrative Fiction with Routledge.

“Dan Shen’s Dual Narrative Dynamics is a compelling intervention into studies of plot and progression with important implications for multiple fields. A sequel to her Style and Rhetoric of Short Narrative Fiction: Covert Progressions Behind Overt Plots (Routledge, 2014), this book extends her earlier work with a meticulous theorizing of Shen’s concept of ‘dual narrative dynamics’ and a new series of powerful, original readings of well-known short stories by Kate Chopin, Ambrose Bierce, Franz Kafka, and Katherine Mansfield. Rigorously argued, methodically structured, elegantly and engagingly written, Dual Narrative Dynamics is an invaluable contribution to narrative theory, stylistics, and translation studies.”Kelly A. Marsh, Professor of Mississippi State University, USA, Style“There are several reasons why Dan Shen has made, and continues to make, significant contributions to narrative studies. One reason is the original way in which she incorporates stylistics into her version of rhetorical narrative theory and analysis; a different yet linked reason is her insistence on the need for careful reading and rereading; a third one is her insightful exploration of the ethical dimension of narrative fiction—and thus also of the act of reading and interpreting a narrative text. All these critical qualities are observable in her Dual Narrative Dynamics.”Jakob Lothe, Professor of University of Oslo, Norway“Dan Shen's Dual Narrative Dynamics deals with a central phenomenon of narrative and enriches narratology with essential insights into the acts of reading and giving meaning.”Prof. em. Dr. Dr. h.c. Wolf Schmid, the University of Hamburg, Germany

• Introduction Part I Theory 1. Uniqueness of "Covert Progression" and its Different Relations with Plot Development 2. Why Covert Progressions Have Been Neglected and How to Uncover Them 3. How Dual Dynamics Can Transform and Extend Narratology 4. How Dual Dynamics Challenges Stylistics and How to Meet the Challenge 5. How Dual Dynamics Challenges Translation and How to Meet the Challenge Part II Practice 6. Naturalistic Covert Progression behind Complicated Plot Development: Chopin's "A Pair of Silk Stockings" 7. Dual Dynamics versus Single Dynamic: Bierce's "A Horseman in the Sky" and "The Affair at Coulter's Notch" 8. Societal Conflict Hidden Behind Personal Conflict: Kafka's "The Judgment" 9. Actually Unrequited behind Superficially Mutual Love: Mansfield's "Psychology” 10. One Focalization, Dual Progression, and Twofold Irony: Mansfield’s “A Dill Pickle” 11. Gender Reversal behind Miserable Life: Mansfield’s “Life of Ma Parker” in Contrast with Chekov’s “Misery” Conclusion