Rukmini Bhaya Nair is Professor of Linguistics and English at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. Her previous publications include Lying on the Postcolonial Couch: The Idea of Indifference (2002), Translation, Text and Theory: The Paradigm of India (ed: 2002) and Technobrat: Culture in a Cybernetic Classroom (1997).

• Introduction: First Conversational Steps 1 Chapter 1 Structural Simplicities The Grammar and Context of Narrative (Guru: Labov) Chapter 2 Force, Fiction, Fit and Felicity Narrative as a Speech Act (Gurus: Austin, Searle) Chapter 3 Performatives, Perlocutions, Pretence Deconstruction and the Narrative Speech Act (Gurus: de Man, Derrida) Chapter 4 Cooperative Conventions Implied Meanings in Narrative (Guru: Grice) Chapter 5 Rationality and Relevance Mental Codes and Cultural Memes in Narrative (Guru: Dennett) Chapter 6 Turns at Talk Ethnomethodological Analysis of Narrative Chapter 7 Self, State and Solidarity The Politics of Narrative Chapter 8 Explaining Enigmas from Evidence The Cause of Narrative, Conclusion: Final Narrative Sutras

'Narrative Gravity is a truly international effort and a path breaking theorisation. It is going to inspire a legion of studies in the interpretation of narratives as cultural texts.' - Gurupdesh Singh in The Hindu'Somewhat grandly, we need to learn how to hail Nair as one of the first to transform swords into plough-shares in the world of theory.' - Probal Dasgupta in The Journal of the Central Institute of the English and Foreign Languages'[Narrative Gravity] is a rich source of material for those interested in the relation between the study of mind and literary narrative. Its synthesis of technical discourse analysis with postcolonial theories of nationalism is novel and exciting.' - Jonathan Goodwin in Modernism/Modernity, Johns Hopkins University Press.

Rukmini Bhaya Nair is Professor of Linguistics and English at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. Her previous publications include Lying on the Postcolonial Couch: The Idea of Indifference (2002), Translation, Text and Theory: The Paradigm of India (ed: 2002) and Technobrat: Culture in a Cybernetic Classroom (1997).

• Introduction: First Conversational Steps 1 Chapter 1 Structural Simplicities The Grammar and Context of Narrative (Guru: Labov) Chapter 2 Force, Fiction, Fit and Felicity Narrative as a Speech Act (Gurus: Austin, Searle) Chapter 3 Performatives, Perlocutions, Pretence Deconstruction and the Narrative Speech Act (Gurus: de Man, Derrida) Chapter 4 Cooperative Conventions Implied Meanings in Narrative (Guru: Grice) Chapter 5 Rationality and Relevance Mental Codes and Cultural Memes in Narrative (Guru: Dennett) Chapter 6 Turns at Talk Ethnomethodological Analysis of Narrative Chapter 7 Self, State and Solidarity The Politics of Narrative Chapter 8 Explaining Enigmas from Evidence The Cause of Narrative, Conclusion: Final Narrative Sutras

'Narrative Gravity is a truly international effort and a path breaking theorisation. It is going to inspire a legion of studies in the interpretation of narratives as cultural texts.' - Gurupdesh Singh in The Hindu'Somewhat grandly, we need to learn how to hail Nair as one of the first to transform swords into plough-shares in the world of theory.' - Probal Dasgupta in The Journal of the Central Institute of the English and Foreign Languages'[Narrative Gravity] is a rich source of material for those interested in the relation between the study of mind and literary narrative. Its synthesis of technical discourse analysis with postcolonial theories of nationalism is novel and exciting.' - Jonathan Goodwin in Modernism/Modernity, Johns Hopkins University Press.

Rukmini Bhaya Nair is Professor of Linguistics and English at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. Her previous publications include Lying on the Postcolonial Couch: The Idea of Indifference (2002), Translation, Text and Theory: The Paradigm of India (ed: 2002) and Technobrat: Culture in a Cybernetic Classroom (1997).

• Introduction: First Conversational Steps 1 Chapter 1 Structural Simplicities The Grammar and Context of Narrative (Guru: Labov) Chapter 2 Force, Fiction, Fit and Felicity Narrative as a Speech Act (Gurus: Austin, Searle) Chapter 3 Performatives, Perlocutions, Pretence Deconstruction and the Narrative Speech Act (Gurus: de Man, Derrida) Chapter 4 Cooperative Conventions Implied Meanings in Narrative (Guru: Grice) Chapter 5 Rationality and Relevance Mental Codes and Cultural Memes in Narrative (Guru: Dennett) Chapter 6 Turns at Talk Ethnomethodological Analysis of Narrative Chapter 7 Self, State and Solidarity The Politics of Narrative Chapter 8 Explaining Enigmas from Evidence The Cause of Narrative, Conclusion: Final Narrative Sutras

'Narrative Gravity is a truly international effort and a path breaking theorisation. It is going to inspire a legion of studies in the interpretation of narratives as cultural texts.' - Gurupdesh Singh in The Hindu'Somewhat grandly, we need to learn how to hail Nair as one of the first to transform swords into plough-shares in the world of theory.' - Probal Dasgupta in The Journal of the Central Institute of the English and Foreign Languages'[Narrative Gravity] is a rich source of material for those interested in the relation between the study of mind and literary narrative. Its synthesis of technical discourse analysis with postcolonial theories of nationalism is novel and exciting.' - Jonathan Goodwin in Modernism/Modernity, Johns Hopkins University Press.