Rain city chronicles: storytelling and authenticity in Vancouver, BC

摘要

This thesis folkloristically examines a Vancouver-based storytelling night calledud“Rain City Chronicles,” founded in 2009. Specifically, this thesis examines issues of theudperformance of truth in storytelling, as well as the folk aesthetic of the event – inudparticular, what makes a “good story.” Stories at Rain City are supposed to be “true” andud“personal,” and therefore fall into the category of personal experience narratives.udThrough narrative analysis and interviews of past storytellers, I determine that the mostudmemorable Rain City storytellers use humor, authenticity, and storytelling skill to connectudwith the audience. Ultimately, I show that Rain City narratives have much in commonudwith contemporary legends, as well as with folktale and stand-up comedy.