Homo sapiens likes to protest that all conclusions come from a dispassionate consideration of the evidence. But again and again, you will observe that when a certain homo sapiens agrees with the main thrust of a certain narrative, the supposedly dispassionate consideration of evidence involves compiling every factoid and theory in support, as well as denigrating those who believe otherwise as liars and fools; conversely, when a different homo sapiens disagrees with the main thrust of certain narrative, the supposedly dispassionate consideration of the evidence involves compiling every factoid and theory in opposition, and again denigrating those who believe otherwise as liars and fools. Homo sapiens often brandishes facts and theories as a nearly transparent cover for the homo narrativus within.
That is his gloss on Robert Shiller’s recent address to the American Economic Association.
Narrative is the new narrative. Shiller is conflating narrative, meme, and persuasion.
The Laffer Curve is persuasion. The napkin is meme. Narrative is conservatives convincing themselves tax cuts raise revenues and liberals convincing themselves peak government revenue equates to efficiency. As with “deficits don’t matter, ” I bet liberals were seduced by cost-free tax cuts. Only now they are now changing their narrative now that the results are in to conservatives fall for narratives.. The two party system exercise is blaming the other guy when it was both yours fault.
Related: consider the article on verbal overshadowing at this year’s edge symposium
https://www.edge.org/response-detail/27092
Imposing words / a narrative structure on claims tends to bias judgments.
i suspect the one counter example, that might shed light, is shopping for some expensive thing you know little about, and are not yet invested in. of course this is always an exercise in wading through other people’s narratives.
it seems to me that an instrument, either deliberate or evolved, for rallying support for some cause, is to smother the other narratives in noise.