Retellings in German-Italian Interviews with Bilingual Speakers
Abstract
Processes of retelling, by means of which the speakers reshape and reinterpret the same memories in a new speaking context, represent a fruitful topic in the field of bilingualism as well. This article seeks to address the recall and reconstruction processes of the same autobiographical experiences recounted by German-Italian bilinguals in both languages. On the basis of the qualitative analysis of explicative interview passages from the corpus Zweisprachige Narrationen (Thüne 2001), it will be shown that the retrieval language brings about a more precise access to autobiographical memories and emotions connected to that specific language. Moreover, it will be highlighted that retellings represent reconstructed forms characterised by their own structure.
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