The Journal of Basic Writing publishes articles of theory, research, and teaching practices related to basic writing. Articles are refereed by members of the Editorial Board (see overleaf) and the Editors.
Using conversational data from an ethnographic study of a quilting guild, this article examines the way narratives are used to situate quilted objects and techniques by indexing particular alignment frames for the viewer recipient. As a community of practice, the quilting guild provides an excellent interactional context to explore how narratives are used to construct and reinforce community practices. Working within the framework of conversation analysis, the study found that quilters utilized narratives argumentatively to support specific characterizations of quilted objects and quilting techniques. In the data, situating narratives initiate an interactional sequence consisting of two parts: the narrative and an expansion and integration sequence. Quilters make use of different syntactic and story elements in order to signal the appropriate alignment frames. Further, the expansion and integration segments provide space for the women to negotiate and integrate individual and group meanings for the quilting practices presented in the narrative.
Using conversational data from an ethnographic study of a quilting guild, this article examines how narratives are used to negotiate the tension between maintaining solidarity and upholding group standards. The quilting guild, as a community of practice, provides an excellent context to investigate how narratives are used to construct and reinforce community practices. In this community, the socially situated activity, the quilted blocks on display, and their relationship to the narratives in the discourse are integral components of the interactional frame. The analysis specifically focuses on the role exemplar narratives play in negotiating the tensions between not criticizing other quilters and the group’s need to maintain quilting values and appropriate sewing skills. Through self-disclosure, exemplar narratives construct a less than perfect quilter. This self-portrayal acts to mitigate any implied criticism of intended recipient(s). Drawing on the sociocultural resources of common experiences and self-disclosure, exemplar narratives perform different interactional functions such as modeling accepted quilting practices, constructing both individual and group identities, and preserving an egalitarian floor. Thus, they are a strategic means to negotiate tensions between criticism and support necessary for participant learning in this community of practice.
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