Maynard1988a
| Maynard1988a | |
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| BibType | ARTICLE |
| Key | Maynard1988a |
| Author(s) | Douglas W. Maynard |
| Title | Narratives and narrative structure in plea bargaining |
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| Tag(s) | EMCA, Narratives, Plea Bargaining, Courtroom Interaction |
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| Year | 1988 |
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| Journal | Law and Society Review |
| Volume | 22 |
| Number | 3 |
| Pages | 101–133 |
| URL | Link |
| DOI | 10.2307/3053625 |
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Abstract
During plea negotiations, attorneys use stories to tell what happened when a defendant was charged with an offense. This paper is concerned with how attorneys tell stories, and includes a consideration of narrative structure and how components of this structure are used in plea negotiations. Components of narrative include: (1) a story entry device; (2) the story itself which may contain a backgrounding segment, action report, and reaction report; and (3) a defense segment in which an attorney denies or explains the defendant's behavior. Systematic employment of these components results in four patterns of negotiations: (1) routine processing, (2) assessing character; (3) disputing facts, and (4) arguing subjectivity. Narrative structure is part of the interaction order of negotiations and is a mechanism through which participants assemble features of a case and aspects of the courtroom setting. Narrators reflexively become part of the stories they tell, which provides a structural motivation for them to perform well during negotiations.
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