REEL & MEDIA

Forrest Gump

Andrew Smart
Comm 1050-005

Andrew Smart
3/20/16
Comms 1050-005
Reel & Media
Narrative Paradigm
Hello. My names Forrest. Forrest Gump. Would you like a chocolate? My
momma said,
Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you are going to get.
From the opening line of Forrest Gump the movie, Forrest displays Narrative Paradigm.
To begin, what is Narrative Paradigm?
Created by Walter Fisher, Narrative Paradigm is defined as a theory of symbolic
actions words and/or deeds that have sequence and meaning for those who live,
create, or interpret them (Narration as a Human Communication Paradigm: The Case of
Public Moral Argument, 273). From this definition, we learn that we use Narrative
Paradigm in real world situations, to tell stories to bring meaning to what we say (show
facts to our argument), as well as draw closer to people through relatable stories we tell.
The main points involving narrative paradigm are stated below:
1. Humans are essentially story tellers.
2. What we do and how we think is swayed by history, biography, culture, and
character.
3. Decisions that humans make are based off of good reasons rather than proofs.
4. The test of narrative rationality is based on the probability, coherence, and
fidelity of the stories that underpin the immediate decisions to be made.

The movie Forrest Gump is a wonderful example of how people use Narrative
Paradigm. As a mentally challenged man, Forrests verbal filter is inhibited affecting him
to tell stories with great personal details; this makes the viewer of the film (the viewer
you is designed to be the person he is talking to on the bench next to him), grow to love
him as a person and truly understand where he is coming from because we learn so much
about his background through the stories he tells. This personality trait of Forrest
addresses the first first key point of the theory: Humans are essentially story tellers.
Forrests major influence in his life is his Momma. Because Forrest was mentally
challenged, His mother used certain phrases and wording to help him understand life
values; for example,
Dont let anyone tell you they are better than you. If God intended for everyone to
be the same, he would put everyone in braces. (referring to the time as a child when
he wore braces on his legs to straighten his spine and people looked at him strange)
Because of statements like this, Forrest became a man who was confident in who he was,
oblivious to the ailments that made him different than everyone else. Because his mother
was always blunt about his condition, and showed him constant love, Forrest remembers
these conversations in his life and reiterates them to others he talks to, giving proof to his
actions. This communication tactic addresses the second key point of the theory: What
we do and how we think is swayed by history, biography, culture, and character, meaning
each individual chooses stories that match his or her values and beliefs and re-iterates
those in daily story-telling. Forrest believed all the statements his mother told him about
himself and the statements she used to help explain things to him so that he might

understand. These beliefs became his values that shaped his moral compass, therefore, he
would use these memories when talking to people.
While talking on the bench, Forrest tells stories to many people. Some of them
believe his stories, and others dont. For example, in the very beginning of the film, he
talked to a woman about Elvis, and how dancing along with his guitar when he was a
child influenced Elvis dance moves. After this story, the camera flashed to the woman
whos face told the audience that she thought Forrest was some sort of crazy man and did
not believe in his story. Another time was when telling a man that he owned Bubba
Gump Shrimp Co., the man started laughing hysterically because he could not believe
that a mentally challenged man, sitting on the bench could be a multi-millionaire; even
though Forrest told the story of exactly how he became a shrimp boat captain and gained
his wealth. The mans judgments and prejudice influenced what he thought of the
truthfulness of Forrests story.
The reaction of disbelief the man and woman displayed addresses the third key point:
Decisions that humans make are based off of good reasons rather than proofs,
meaning people use their judgments made from past occurrences, the culture and
perceptions about ones status and character of the persons speaking and being spoken to,
to make a good decision of what has been communicated. The man who laughed at
Forrest used this decision making process in regards to Forrests story; the man logically
thought: Forrest is mentally challenged and therefore could never own the huge
corporation, Bubba Gump Shrimp. The man might have come to this conclusion by
looking back at his experiences with other mentally challenged men, who were incapable
of accomplishing such a goal. The man might also have noticed that Forrest was waiting

to ride a bus, when he knows to well that a multi-millionaire would never ride the bus due
to the status of being an elite. The mans prejudice of Forrest caused him to not make a
positive connection with him as he viewed Forrest to be a liar, reaffirming his previous
judgment that mentally challenged men cannot be successful. This reaction addresses the
forth key point: The test of narrative rationality is based on the probability, coherence,
and fidelity of the stories that underpin the immediate decisions to be made. Individuals
distinguish the truthfulness of a story by using Fishers concept of Narrative Rationality
which consist of two factors: Coherence and Fidelity.
Coherence relates to the storys structure: is the story consistent (are their any
loopholes or blatant lies), does the story have enough detail (its not too vague), does the
story have reliable characters (are the people involved real people and trustworthy), and
is the story free from any major surprises (unrealistic events, or added details to make the
story more entertaining)? People learn to judge the coherency of a story through their
experience theyve had with the certain topic being told.
Fidelity refers to a storys truthfulness. Narrative fidelity states that we will believe a
story if it matches our own experiences and beliefs. Fidelity also has the ability to
influence our actions; if we have experience enough to know a story could be true by
experiencing relatable situations discussed, then we can open our minds to the possibility
that what has been said is also true.
Forrest uses coherency and fidelity when talking with Bubba. Bubba tells Forrest
about his family knowing everything there is to know about shrimp. Forrest judges the
coherency of this story to be factual since he has never known other shrimpers. He has

no reason to disbelieve Bubba because Forrest has nothing else to refer to, therefore
Forrest practices fidelity by allowing the information in Bubbas story to influence his
beliefs about shrimpers. Also, Forrest tends to believe peoples stories because of his past
experience of his momma never lying to him about things, causing Forrest to be trusting
of others words.
The film is full of other examples that affirm the theory of Narrative Paradigm and
accurately represents the key points of this theory. What is unique about this film is that
Forrest is narrating to audience the whole time. By never breaking narration, we are able
to see the Narrative Paradigm theory in play more than in other films. Because Forrest
tells the audience a continual story about his life, we are able to understand Forrests
character (as an actual person). Seeing his flashbacks, the viewer can believe all of
Forrests stories to be factual because we see the evidence of his story. The people he is
talking to on the bench cannot see the flashbacks making it so they cannot believe the
truthfulness of his stories; they have to go off the key points of the Narrative Paradigm
theory to draw their own opinion about Forrest.
If you think about it, we tend to believe people easier if we know them really well; we
know their character (if they are honest or not), we know the trials they have faced and
what makes them who they are. It is harder to believe a persons stories if we do not
know them as well because we dont have enough experience with them to know if they
are telling the truth. This film allows the audience to experience these two feelings; on
one side, we can believe Forrests narrative because we can see his past, and on the other
hand, we can understand why the other characters on the bench dont believe Forrests
narrative because they are going off their own experiences with a person like Forrest.

Learning about this theory has influenced me to not be so judgmental of others; just
because I dont believe in what someone is saying doesnt mean its not true.