Memory as a Narrative Engine
Summary: Memory is not a recording — it is a storyteller. Recollection edits itself to maintain coherence.
Memory as a Narrative Engine
How recollection edits itself.
Memory is not a storage system. It is a storytelling device. Every recollection is reconstructed, reshaped, and reinterpreted to maintain narrative coherence.
Memory as interpretation
We do not remember events. We remember our last interpretation of them. Each retelling alters the memory further.
The emotional editor
Emotion determines which memories are emphasised, which are softened, and which are erased. Memory serves the story the mind wants to tell.
The myth of accuracy
Accurate memory is rare. Coherent memory is common. The mind prefers coherence.
The narrative engine
Memory is not the foundation of identity — narrative is. Memory simply supplies the raw material.