Conclusion

In the sense I have used the term, reading literacy narratives in the DALN “relationally” involves asking questions that bridge individual narratives and the larger network of contexts and information represented by the archive. In closing, I offer the following questions as a heuristic for such “relational” reading.

• In what circumstances was the narrative recorded and collected/preserved, and in what medium? What differences might the circumstances and medium of recording and collection/preservation have made to the composition of the narrative?
• Was the narrator asked to associate any additional information with his or her narrative , or was any additional information recorded by others? If so, what sort of information? In what medium? How was the information gathered and recorded (e.g., Was a controlled vocabulary used? Was the information optional? Was it supplied via an interview or Web/paper form?).
• Who was present at the time of composition? What were their roles? How did they interact with the narrator (e.g., as interviewer, audience, technician, researcher, teacher, and so on)? What difference might the audience/interlocutor have made in the composition of the narrative?
• Is the narrative part of a larger group or collection of narratives? What did the narrator know and/or understand about that larger project? How was the project presented to the narrator? How might the larger group affect your understanding of the individual narrative?
• What information associated with the narrative by virtue of its contribution to an archive, and use as an item in an archive, contribute to our understanding of its meaning and reception?