final paper - narrative criticism

A POETIC APPROACH TO NARRATIVE MEDICINE 2

Abstract

This research looks at the speech and poetic work of Ted Kooser, the United States Poet

Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006. This research draws

primarily upon the work of Kooser, as well as other notable rhetorical criticism pieces of

narrative artifacts in the past. Narrative pieces focuses on the personal aspect of writing that

connects the audience to the speaker and brings both those listening and speaking together under

a unified subject such as medicine. Kooser focuses on his connection with poetic greats such as

Karl Shapiro and the ways that his life indirectly influenced him to return to poetry, especially in

the face of a serious diagnosis. Through this research the question of how narrative can bring

different people together when facing a similar situation is addressed as well as how the use of

poetry in a narrative context might add another dimension to the connection due to the artistic

and unique approach to storytelling through poetry. The concept of narrative medicine and

creating a more humanized approach to the medical field is also addressed.

Keywords: Narrative, connections, audience, poetry, storytelling, narrative medicine


A Poetic Approach to Narrative Criticism

Ted Kooser delivered this speech on June 26, 2008 at the American College of

Physicians-Alaska Chapter meeting. “The American College of Physicians, or ACP, is a

national organization of internists — physician specialists who apply scientific knowledge and

clinical expertise to the diagnosis, treatment, and compassionate care of adults across the

spectrum from health to complex illness” (ACP American College of Physicians, 2015). Kooser

was addressing a physician group of internists, internal medicine subspecialists, medical

students, medical residents, and medical fellows striving to “to enhance the quality and

effectiveness of health care by fostering excellence and professionalism in the practice of

medicine” (ACP, 2015). As the United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library

of Congress from 2004-2006, Ted Kooser’s poetry has been collected in volumes, special

editions and has appeared in many literary periodicals (Ted Kooser, 2015).

Justification

Narrative medicine is defined as “medicine practiced with the narrative competence to

recognize, absorb, interpret, and be moved by the stories of illness” (Charon, 2006, p. vii). It is

the “compassionate care” quality of the ACP that corresponds with narrative medicine.

Narrative medicine has emerged as a result of combining both a humanistic aspect with the

medicinal aspect in healthcare in order to study doctor-patient relationships as well as

relationship-centered care. In her book, Charon references poetry and how she wishes she could

“present recurring concepts or images with simultaneity…mutually informing thinking and

actions” (Charon, p. xi). There is something to be said about poetry in the delivery of

information. It is the apprehension of temporality and ethicality which allow people to grow in

the understanding of how patients tell of themselves, their medical status, and their bodies. It is


in developing such a capacity for attention and representation that allows for total

comprehension of care and thus turning a patient into a person. Narratives, even in a medicinal

context, are “stories with a teller, a listener, a time course, a plot, and point” (Charon, p.3).

From teachers to novelists and patients to health professionals, all who write or listen to

narratives of illness interpret the stories, working to fully understand. It is about creating

bridges between patients and doctors, building community with other patients, and bringing

people together in a chaotic and scary time.

The objective of this speech is to show the importance of connecting people to their

healthcare and how “thinking about the words you write out with your hand” (Kooser, 2008) can

help people who are struggling with similar problems. It is about telling stories to connect

people and to add a humanistic aspect to healthcare, since medicine and healthcare is something

that often seems disconnected from the regular, everyday person. The action the speaker is

taking here is to describe what is happening in life through poetry, in a “unique book,” weaving

sentimental parts of life into poems, moments and epiphanies, jotting down obsessive thoughts…

all of these things help to create “clarity and order in a chaotic time” (Kooser, 2008).

Narrative writing provides opportunities to bring comfort or relief to situations, clarify

thinking, make sense of something, create community, and gain self-knowledge (Foss, 2009,

p.311-312). In Ted Kooser’s speech, all of these aspects are touched upon. The setting,

characters, narrator, events, relationships, audience, theme and type of narrative all affect the

objective of a narrative piece and it is important to identify these features and how they affect the

assessment of the narrative. Through his poetry, Kooser was able to bring clarity to his own life

as well as make sense out of chaos. Through his invitation to others to do the same, he creates a

sense of community between patients. He shares his own poetry as an example but also as a way


to bring to life the experiences that he and many others are facing. His presentation to an

audience of medical professionals allows for them to better understand a patient’s perspective

and brings the often dark, lonely or misunderstood aspects of being a patient into the light.

This speech raises the question of how poetry and the concept of personal narratives and

connections affect a speech (especially one to medical professionals, although trying to reframe

the ideas/concepts behind medicine and patient treatment/care). “The encounter between a

health professional and a patient lies at the heart of medicine” and there is a special relationship

formed between medical professionals and patients (Charon, 2006, p.33). According to Charon,

the professional may not be smart enough, patient enough, imaginative enough; a patient may not

be trusting enough, brave enough, or receptive enough (Charon, p. 33). Narrative, particularly in

the form of poetry, may decrease the gap between medical professionals and patients through

vulnerability, and human connection. Kooser wanted to “talk a little bit about what was

happening, in the event that it might be helpful to [the listener] at some point.” Order was

extremely important to Ted Kooser and his writing and poetry is his evidence that there is an

order to everything. In addressing the audience in a way that invites them to be a part of the

story creates a sense of community and connection. This theme of community and order is

present throughout Kooser’s speech and is summed up well in his last statements when he says “I

think if patients write letters to other people – real letters, not emails necessarily, but real letters

to other people where you actually have to think about the words you write out with your hand –

I think that surely could be of help to people. Again, it’s all this business about clarity and order

in a chaotic time” (Kooser, 2008).


Rhetorical Situation

Around the time of Ted Kooser’s speech and the rest of the early 2000s, there was a

growing popularity in medical narrative shows and documentaries. In a New York Times review

article, writer Alessandra Stanley portrayed these shows as “true traumas, for patients and

doctors,” stating that “Johns Hopkins is the place to go for a liver transplant, a gunshot wound, or

separating twins conjoined at the head” (Stanley, 2008, para. 1). The seriousness of those

realities is sharply contrasted by her comment stating “it’s also the place to go to make a

documentary about medicine.” Medical shows and documentaries like these “interweave the

narrative of one medical crisis with other story lines,” sometimes taking it even further

contrasting a scene of doctors panicking about a young child’s cardiac arrest with another scene

of a young surgeon rehearsing ballroom steps, almost as if to tell both the stories of the patients

and the doctors (Stanley, para. 8). Through images such as these, the viewers are able to see

both a story attached to the doctors, as well as the patients creating a more narrative experience

out of a seemingly detached experience associated with medicine and hospitals. Not only were

shows of this nature affecting the way viewers approached the medical experiences, I would

assume that doctors, physicians and medical professionals also take something away as well.

“Medicine is itself a more narratively inflected enterprise than it realizes” (Charon, 2006, p.39).

However, people did not necessarily agree that the emergency room was any place for

television cameras. Nevertheless, these shows created a connected experience for viewers and

the medical world. “The raw material is compelling and often moving, but the producers over-

refine it, real life matters of life and death don’t need that much adornment” (Stanley, 2008, para.

12). This so-called “reality programming,” was both creating a positive connection with viewers

and patients but also a negative over-glamorization of what is traditionally something very


serious – a person’s health. Such programming is Hollywood’s attempt to bridge the gap

between a person’s story and their health which could “open doors toward the search for

meaning in routine clinical practice” (Charon, 2006, p.200)?

Around the time of Kooser’s speech, many celebrities facing serious illness were making

headlines as both being an “inspiration” and “maintaining a game face” when confronted with a

severe diagnosis (Hoffman, 2008, para. 1). “As public figures are stricken with harrowing

illness, the images of them as upbeat, accompanied by stirring martial language, have almost

become routine” (Hoffman, para. 1). A sense of bravery was attached to such situations, creating

a story that tells of a journey through treatments and a battle against a disease, even for those

who are famous and far removed from our everyday lives. “Whether you're a celebrity or an

ordinary person, it's obligatory, no matter how badly you're feeling about it, to display optimism

publicly," said Dr. Barron H. Lerner, the author of "When Illness Goes Public" (Hoffman, para.

4). These images both inspire patients, as well as create unreal expectations about how one

should face a devastating diagnosis or change in their life.

While it is important to keep a positive attitude in the face of disease, it is also important

to remember the reality of the situation and tell a story not only reflecting accurate feelings about

what one is facing but also a realistic story about the nature of the disease or illness itself. It is in

this realistic expression that connections are created through narrative and storytelling.

“Everyone can't be brave” but everyone can have hope according to Rachel M. Schneider, a

clinical social worker at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (Hoffman, 2008, para. 8).

"Hopefulness is real," Schneider said, "but patients say, 'I have to be positive, I can't cry, I can't

let myself fall apart.' And that is a burden." Crying, falling apart and having hope are what bring

patients together in their times of trouble. The “burden” of being forced to remain positive is not


a true reflection of a person’s emotions and their story. “In the last 15 years, as patients have

become more outspoken, a mushrooming number of cancer narratives has legitimized a soulful

range of responses to illness” (Hoffman, para. 11). Ted Kooser was a part of this narrative

movement. According to Dr. Gary M. Reisfield, a palliative care specialist at the University of

Florida at Jacksonville, a patient's process through illness, requires the metaphor of a journey

with byways, crossroads, U-turns, changing destinations and wins, losses, and failures (Hoffman,

para. 14). For Kooser, his poetry was almost a means of catharsis, an outpouring of emotion

expressed in creative language, trying to establish some sort of order to all of the chaos. “If I

could come home from a walk in the middle of this feeling lousy and make a little square of

words with ever one in its perfect place, then I had seized a little bit of order” (Kooser, 2008).

Through these tiny bits of established order, Kooser “began feeling better,” by not only

physically responding well to treatment but also “the assurance that there was order in the world”

(Kooser, 2008). This search for order was in fact what brought Ted Kooser to writing poetry and

making sure that everything is “solved and tied up together” (Kooser,2008).

Ted Kooser was Poet Laureate of the United States from 2004 to 2006, and it was

through poetry that he connected the patient and the medical process (Kooser, 2008). Separating

from the glamorization of television and dramatic documentaries, Ted Kooser used words and

poetic language. “I wanted to be a writer,” stated Kooser blatantly in his 2008 speech at the

American College of Physicians-Alaska Chapter meeting. After beginning his poetry writing at a

young age, Ted soon learned that all he cared about was poetry (Kooser, 2008). Just as his

poetry became an escape and place of comfort for him during his illness, Kooser found his place

in poetry growing up as well. Upon graduating from Iowa State with a teaching degree in high

school English, he decided to enter graduate school after completing one year of teaching. “I


taught one year of high school English and didn’t like that, and decided that I would go to

graduate school and perhaps could figure out a way of teaching college English and so on,” and

so started Kooser’s search for “fulfilling work” (Kooser, 2008). “I was a terrible student,” said

Kooser about his experiences in graduate school, “I don’t know that I am innately stupid, but I

could not do the academic work that they wanted of me” (Kooser,2008). Kooser found himself

under the instruction of Karl Shapiro at the University of Nebraska. “I fastened myself to Karl

Shapiro the minute I got there, and we spent a whole year basically together, talking about poetry

and writing and so on” (Kooser, 2008). Shapiro was an American poet appointed as the fifth

Poet Laureate to the Library of Congress in 1946. “In the long run Shapiro's poetic reputation

rests, however, mainly on sharp snapshots of his era's everyday life--word pictures both elegant

and colloquial” (Moore, 2010). Through his poetry, Shapiro “found a place where proper

metrics and form could coexist with the controversial” (Moore, 2010, para. 4). Perhaps it was

from Shapiro’s influence that Kooser found inspiration in writing poems to connect the reader

with medicinal practices as well as his admiration of creativity and the non-traditional. Shapiro

himself did not complete his graduate studies after sporadically attending and eventually not

completing his studies at Johns Hopkins University (Meinke, 1989, para. 3). Kooser’s time at

the University of Nebraska was short lived as he was kicked out of the program for “bad

behavior” displayed in skipping classes and failing to “do anything that [he] was supposed to do”

during his assistantship (Kooser, 2008). Following his year spent in touch with Shapiro, Kooser

determined his need for a creative writing department which did not exist at that time. “There

was one class I didn’t show up for, ever,” said Kooser, “so they booted me out and I had to find

something to do” (Kooser, 2008).


After months of searching the want ads, Kooser eventually found himself at a life

insurance company, Bankers Life Nebraska, in Lincoln as a management trainee (Kooser, 2008).

At the insurance company, Kooser did a year of letter-writing to policy holders and eventually

moved into the medical underwriting part of it (Kooser, 2008). After working here for 35 years,

Kooser still could not find a concept of fulfilling work. He found himself in the position of Vice

President of this company as he noticed “everyone else falling away,” allowing him to “float to

the top” (Kooser, 2008). Without much passion for this work, Kooser found that success in work

like this came with attrition where he gradually became stronger and more effective in his work

with others effectiveness was gradually reduced. Holding a vice presidential position in public

relations for a substantial life insurance company “was a pretty high stress job,” especially upon

becoming an officer in the company (Kooser, 2008). Kooser also found added stress in his

mother’s illness and working with his sister to find an assisted living place for their mother, and

“driving back and forth to Cedar Rapids and letting things go” throughout this process (Kooser,

2008). Kooser experienced canker sores from stress and eventually developed a sore spot on the

back of his tongue. He put the appointments to get it checked out and eventually had to have it

biopsied. Upon receiving the results, Kooser discovered that this sore had become a squamous

cell carcinoma of the tongue (Kooser, 2008). And so began Kooser’s cancer treatment process

and finding fulfillment in what he has always known to be true, his writing.

In contrast to the narrative television shows and acts displaying bravery in Hollywood, as

well as those who are in the spotlight, Kooser’s work provides a real-life, down to earth

reflection of his fight against cancer. It is a sense of tangibility in his work that allows readers to

better connect to the situation and feel a sense of invitation into his story as well as the freedom

to better share their stories.


Organization and Style

Ted Kooser organizes his speech chronologically, developing the topic historically. He

starts with his past and the difficulties he faced both in his education process and career path in

finding something that he felt was worthwhile and meaningful for him. He works from the

beginning of his poetic career to the final outcome of the speech which is where he is standing at

that very moment, presenting his poetry before the crowd. He walks the listeners through the

many experiences which lead him toward, away from and back to poetry as well as the impact of

his cancer diagnosis on this process expressing how the poetry (which he is sharing the day of

the speech) was a form of therapy and healing.

According to Sonja Foss “a characteristic of a narrative is that the events in it are

organized by time order” (Foss, 2009, p.308). The way Kooser presents the events allows

listeners to follow along, appreciating the journey, which Kooser took to get to the point where

he was that day of the speech. “A narrative is not simply a series of events arranged randomly—

it is at least a sequence of events” (Foss, p. 308). Kooser establishes his early passion for the

arts, writing and poetry early on in his speech to lay the foundation for the body of his speech

which focuses on his search for meaningful work and ultimately his search for poetry. The

speech ends with Kooser ultimately regaining a connection with poetry as well as a regaining a

sense of himself through therapeutic poetic expression following a cancer diagnosis and

beginning his treatment.

This speech can be broken down into three statements:

1. A passion for poetry

2. A search for poetry

3. A need for poetry


The oral style is an important consideration of the speech because it creates the conversation

style that helps aid in the narrative process. His word choice is straightforward and clear and the

use of short, fragmented sentences, as if a conversation. The emotive expression of the speech of

course aids in the narrative nature but also portrays a clear deliberative attempt to connect the

listeners and the speaker. His words correlate with the general purpose of the speech which is to

create a connection between patients and doctors.

A Passion for Poetry

To fully understand Ted Kooser’s passion for poetry, one must return to his early life,

when he was just a child growing up in Ames, Iowa. He described himself as “one of those kids

who didn’t fit in too well” (Kooser, 2008). “Language is not self-explanatory, but rather reflects

the goals, motives, and values of those using it” (Medhurst, 1987, p. 218). The introduction

begins Kooser’s sequence of events when he discusses his childhood and how he felt like an

outsider but also driven to be mysterious and different, accomplishing just that in the arts. Right

away, Kooser establishes his passion for the arts, setting him apart at a young age. He then goes

on to introduce his love of the poetic genre, discussing how he wrote a lot during his high school

years. He jumped ahead to a more present time, talking about his 50th high school reunion and

how someone still had his poems from high school. This reference interrupted the chronology of

the story but it created a sort of bridge connecting the past to the present, proving the timeless

nature of poetry but more specifically the poems pertaining to Kooser’s life. His passion for

writing poetry even outweighed educational priorities, eventually being “booted out of graduate

school for bad behavior” (Kooser, 2008). His language in describing the influence of poetry on

his early life was direct. “I fastened myself to Karl Shapiro,” speaking of his time spent under

Shapiro’s guidance in graduate school (Kooser, 2008). “We spent the whole year basically


together, talking about poetry and writing and so on” (Kooser, 2008). Kooser makes a point that

he was not caught off guard by this situation though, casually making note that “I had seen this

coming, of course” (Kooser, 2008).

A Search for Poetry

“So I wanted to be a writer,” said Kooser. He always made a point to come back to this

central idea, which he repeatedly returns to throughout the speech. He discusses a time of career

searching, only to find emptiness in his work, constantly coming back to writing and poetry as a

sense of grounding and fulfillment. It is when poetry becomes a portion of his healing process

that the speech comes full circle and the audience understands the full value of poetry in Ted

Kooser’s life. Despite his strong desire to write, Kooser “accepted that [he] was going to have to

work at something” (Kooser, 2008). He talked about his work at the insurance company and

how it was a good job financially but “never particularly being passionate about the work at all”

despite his eventual vice presidential position (Kooser, 2008). Kooser does make a point to

mention that he moved into the medical underwriting part of the job, referencing his love of

writing and underlying search for what ultimately made him feel fulfilled in his work.

A Need for Poetry

Through a poetic genre, narrative writing provides opportunities to bring comfort or relief

to situations, clarify thinking, make sense of something, create community, and gain self-

knowledge (Foss, 2009, p.311-312). Kooser invites the audience into his poetic journey,

providing vivid examples of his experiences growing up as well as examples of the poetry that

aided in his healing process. His need for poetry was made apparent upon discussion of his

cancer diagnosis.


Beginning with his conversation in the doctor’s office when asked how much public

speaking Ted does due to the possibility that the cancer treatment could result in speech

impairment. Kooser later found out that the doctor working with him checked out all of his

books and read them following that conversation (Kooser, 2008). “Now here’s a doctor for me,”

said Kooser, “and it has turned into a wonderful relationship” (Kooser, 2008). Kooser apparent

passion for poetry and writing stood out to the doctors treating him which is pertinent in the

conversation he is having with the audience in this speech. It humanized the cancer treatment

process and the doctor-patient relationship. This humanization as a result of the connection

made between two people through words and poetic expression. Ted Kooser was no longer a

patient to this doctor, but rather a poet and speaker who he was treating. It was through this

process of treatment and recovery that Kooser returned to his poetry, admitting “I’m a

compulsive writer” (Kooser, 2008).

It was through poetry that Kooser indirectly expressed his emotions and experiences with

his treatment, not only creating clarity in his own mind but offering comfort and security to

others that may be dealing with similar situations. The language used in this part of the speech

was creative and imaginative, allowing the listeners to create images in their minds from the

poems. As a preface to his poetry reading, Kooser paints a picture of a quarry road which is

subject in the first poem of his book (Kooser, 2008). “This road I call the quarry road because

there was a gravel quarry at the end of it, and the idea that I could walk down this road and back

and pick up something, a stone from the road, or see a bird, or something or other like that, and

come home and write about it, had a kind of specialness to it for me” (Kooser, 2008). This is a

great way to open his poetry reading because it not only lays the foundation for the creative

nature of the next part of this speech but it sets the scene for the beginning of his healing process


through words. The language and images here create a tangible connection to reality both for

Kooser and the audience.

Conclusion

Ted Kooser accomplishes three goals in his speech through the application of narrative

rhetoric. He is able to express to his audience an innate desire for poetry, search for poetry and

the necessity of poetry in his healing process. According to Sonja Foss, “narratives are found in

many different kinds of artifacts” (Foss, 2009, p. 307), and in this case the narrative is found in

poetry. In Ted Kooser’s speech at the American College of Physicians, he uses narrative rhetoric

as well as personal poetry to connect with his audience and tell the story of his journey through

life and illness. A poetic approach is unique because narratives are often identified with stories,

but, “narratives can be distinguished from other rhetorical forms by four characteristic” (Foss, p.

307). These components include being comprised of two events, time order organization, casual

relationship among events, and a unified subject. The two events are active and stative events

which are events that express action and express the condition respectively. When events are

organized in time order, the order of events recounted is clear. The causal or contributing

relationship among events in the story defines the nature of the depicted change. And finally, the

events must be about a unified subject, altogether creating personal involvement in a narrated

world for both the storyteller and the audience.

Ted Kooser directly connects to his audience by addressing them using words such as

“you,” “we,” and “our.” Connecting with the audience creates a community of storytellers

among the people in the room. He focuses on the significance that writing can have on a

person’s mind expressing that, “by writing our experience down, we get out of that muddle of all

that language just sort of drifting around in there” (Kooser, 2008). He speaks of experiences that


all people face, not only patients, such as waking up in times of stress with a “tape loop” running

through the mind saying, “I should have done this, I wish I said that,” over and over again

(Kooser, 2008). He simplifies the whole process his has discussed during his speech into

“simply writing [thoughts] down on a notepad” (Kooser, 2008). The simplicity, personal

connection and real-life nature of this speech brings the audience back into connection with

themselves, but also each other through the art of writing.

Kooser’s speech included many personal narratives about his time growing up, as well as

his time searching for and finding work in his younger years. He also includes personal

narratives about his health struggles and freely shares his expression through his poetry readings.

Each of these narratives includes active and stative events, expressing his actions as well as the

conditions of the circumstances.

It is important to keep in mind the setting and audience for this speech. Kooser delivers

his stories directly to the audience which is comprised of medical professionals of all ages

looking to create a more personal and humanized doctor-patient relationship in medicine. Before

addressing more specific aspects of Kooser’s narrative, it is important to note the kernel and

satellite events which propel his story forward to the poetic culmination at the end. An important

satellite event might include Kooser’s story of his early childhood and teen years when he spoke

of his unique love of poetry. While he does not provide much more information about this

subject, he makes it clear that early in his life he had in interest in poetry and that he found a

place of comfort and solace in this. Kernel events would include his time with Karl Shapiro as

well as his cancer diagnosis. Both of these events were ones that caused trouble and adversity in

Kooser’s life, even if indirectly in terms of his experience with Shapiro. While his work with

Shapiro itself was not negative and, in fact, inspired growth, it eventually lead to his dropping


out of school. Although some may think of this as a setback, it created more of an incentive in

Kooser to keep pursuing his search for poetry.

The most obvious narrative characteristic in Kooser’s speech is the organization of

events. Kooser clearly organizes the speech in chronological order starting in his youth and

talking up to the exact point in time he is speaking to the audience. He includes flashbacks and

parts of other stories to bring the ideas in his speech full circle but, “the order does not have to be

chronological and may involve devices like flashbacks and flash-forwards, but at least the

narrative tells in some way how the events relate temporarily to one another” (Foss, 2009,

p.308). Overall, Kooser’s speech takes a chronological organization but he breaks the

chronology with other devices in order to keep the audience’s attention and reference other

stories to create further connections. I further broke down the organization of his speech into

three sections which depicted his passion, search and need for poetry. The early events of the

chronology including his youth and time as a student both were important aspects of describing

his passion for poetry. His search for poetry is addressed during the parts of the speech which

focus on his work-life up to his diagnosis. His discussion with the doctor about the possibility

for a speech impairment with the cancer treatment and Kooser’s realization about how this

particular doctor was concerned with not only healing Kooser, but also his quality of life and

what was important to him as a person (Kooser, 2008). From his diagnosis to his reading of

poetry, this part of the speech comprises the section portraying Kooser’s need for poetry.

The second characteristic includes the casual or contributing relationship among the

events in the story which ultimately help express the depicted change which takes place over the

course of action being described in the narrative. Basically, Kooser takes the audience through

the years of his search for and eventual finding of poetry in the times when he most needed it.


The causal events in the story include how in school he was not particularly involved in much,

but he found comfort in writing his poetry. Another causal relationship that was particularly

important to the progression of this narrative was Kooser’s academic association with Karl

Shapiro. Through his studying with Shapiro, Kooser realized the significance of poetry in his

life.

The third and final characteristic includes the unified subject. The subject throughout

Kooser’s speech includes that of a search for fulfillment through poetry. Whether it was in his

youth, his young working years, his successes in business, or his fight against cancer, Kooser

always addressed his desire search, need, and eventual return to poetry as a means of fulfillment

and expression. Although Kooser includes many different aspects of his story, there is a

common thread of poetry throughout his speech. He always makes a point to address his return

to poetry in times when he is searching for fulfillment in school, work, or his fight against

cancer.

The narrative world includes participants because it is particular, sharable and personal.

The particular aspects include specific details and images which connect the storyteller and the

audience through experiences. There is a joint achievement between storyteller and audience

which is sharable and creates rapport. The personal aspect includes the audience’s response to

the narrator’s evaluation of the world allowing the audience to engage in their own ethical and

moral inclinations, giving them another way to be involved in the story. It is through the act of

narrative that a speaker can connect with the audience, both to tell a story, and to create a sense

of oneness among those who can relate to the story or are intrigued by the topic. In terms of

healthcare and health communications, narrative communication helps build a bridge between

the doctor and the patient, creating a more personal and welcoming medical experience. It is


about creating positive out of a negative and taking the negative experience of medical adversity

and creating positive connections between those who are facing the same troubles.


References

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Charon, R. (2006). Narrative Medicine Honoring the Stories of Illness. Oxford: Oxford

University Press.

Foss, S. (1989). Rhetorical Criticism: Exploration & Practice. Prospect Heights, Ill.: Waveland

Press.

Hoffman, J. (2008, June 10). Keeping a game face doesn't work for all cancer patients. Chicago

Tribune. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com

Kooser, T. (2015, September 27). About Ted Kooser. Retrieved from

http://www.tedkooser.net/about.shtml#pro

Kooser, T. (2008, June 26). Lecture presented at American College of Physicians-Alaska

Chapter meeting, Anchorage, Alaska.

Medhurst, M. J. (1987). Eisenhower's ‘atoms for peace’ speech: A case study in the strategic use

of language. Communication Monographs, 54(2), 204-220.

Meinke, P. (1989). A poet’s early years, Karl Shapiro’s autobiography. St. Petersburg Times.

Retrieved from search.proquest.com

Moore, J. R. (2010). Karl Shapiro. American National Biography. Retrieved from

www.lexisnexis.com

Stanley, A. (2008, June 26). Hospital's true traumas, for patients and doctors. New York Times

Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com

final paper - narrative criticism

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