Oldal 18 [18]
Part I. Interdisciplinary Approach to Storytelling | 17
crystallizes from elements of several texts (such as a national saga), even if
they are passed down by word of mouth.
Information transfer is the key to the survival and development of our
species. In his theory of cultural transmission, Tomasello (2001) argues that the
human species’ superiority over other primate species can be explained by its
capacity for cultural learning, which is learning based on social cooperation.
In the knowledge-transferring process, the child absorbs what the culture
has to offer in a given social group and social context through linguistic
interactions with members of his or her species (Tomasello, 2001). Narrative
construction represents a specific form of cultural transmission, in which
individual narratives reflect the emotions and experiences of the narrator.
Narratives are links in a web of cultural memory, delivered to a recipient who
identifies with the content of the narrative, reflects on it, creates a dialogue,
establishes an analogy between his own life experiences and those of the
narrator, and draws new knowledge from the lessons learned. Mythological or
literary artifacts in certain cultural circles are works of cultural transmission.
Donald (1993), based on his theory of cultural evolution, divides human
cultural evolution into distinct stages, each of which is associated with a
specific system of representation and knowledge transfer. In the mimetic
culture, human knowledge transfer was characterized by mimesis (i.e.,
imitation). Later, in the mythic culture, language emerged as a form of
representation and communication, together with verbal semantic memory
and the use of linguistic symbols. The ability to create narratives can also be
linked to this period, which represented a leap forward in terms of information
transmission since narratives are systematic and logical sets of information
that contribute to the reception and interpretability of the message.
Donald (1993) views human cultural evolution in terms of cognitive
representational systems, all of which are embedded in human mental
architecture. During the period of episodic culture, our primate ancestors
lived their lives in the present, experiencing the world as a series of episodes.
The social sharing of experiences was not yet typical of humanity, as the
communication tools of self-expression had not yet developed; therefore we
cannot speak of a separate system of representation. Conscious representation
of memories only became present in the next period with the development
of mimetic culture, when mimesis (i.e. conscious imitation) appeared in
communities of homo erectus based on social structures. The major difference
with the previous period was that this was already a conscious representation
of events in the context of social action. An important role in communication
was played by the prosodic control of body language and voice: the conscious
manipulation of tone volume and accent which was not yet speech. The real
breakthrough was the gradual emergence of spoken language in the process
of becoming human. Following the development of mythic culture, humanity
acquired the ability to create and decode verbal semantic memory leading
to the use of linguistic symbols and narrative. Sharing stories about reality