Narrative Identity

The author addresses the theme of narrative identity in an interpretative itinerary that employs sociological, psychological and psychoanalytic concepts to explore the circular relationship between sense of identity, self/other recognition and the space-time perspective. Observing the solitude of the individual in late-modern society, the second part of the book proposes a way out: becoming actively involved in the crafting of our lives by writing our own story. Autobiography is not a melancholic withdrawal but a way to restart the journey of life with greater awareness of one's limits and possibilities. In addition to being a learning process, developing the negatives of one's life can foster a sense of both serenity and selfresponsibility. The story could have been different, but when we try to tell it honestly we may learn to love it a little more or at least see and accept it for what it truly is.

Pierluca Birindelli PhD, Sociologist and Cultural Anthropologist, is a Marie Sklodowska-Curie Alumnus and Docent (University of Helsinki). He teaches at Gonzaga University in Florence, International Studies Institute and New Haven University. He has authored a number of articles addressing the themes of individual and collective identity, three books on youth and generations, a monograph about self-identity in late modernity. He is also the author of the book The Passage from Youth to Adulthood: Narrative and Cultural Thresholds (2014). His current research project is a comparative study: "The Cultural Experience of International Students: Narratives from North and South Europe".