I found a possible and interesting connection between the subjectivity framework from Foucault and the analytical terms proposed by Curium and Holstein (1995), which can be useful if we are taking advantage of both narrative analysis and subjectivity analysis as a methodology to understand subjectivity constitution through personal life history stories.

The first term is narrative linkage, which means “the experience that residents link together to specify the subjective meaning of the qualities of care and nursing home living” (as cited in Kim, 2015, p. 214). This, I found, actually highlighted the importance of narrative in the process of interpretation. Foucault argues that our past life history has shaped or constituted our subjectivity, or, in lay terms, our mindset to understand the work. The above quote sheds light on how this is done, as we are bringing our life history and narratives from the past to help us reconceptualize what is happening now. This also opens the possibility for reconstitution of subjectivity through providing alternative life histories or stories of other people’s lives for them to relate to.

The second term is local culture, which “refers to the locally shared meanings and interpretive vocabulary” (as cited in Kim, 2015, p. 214). This is connected to the Foucauldian concept of the discursive construction of knowledge. Knowledge is produced through and with discourse, and discursive resources are locally embedded in the everyday surroundings of our lives. So, if someone lives in a certain social and political environment with certain clusters of discourses, then this limits the ability of the individual to comprehend other discursive systems beyond the local immediacy. I think this can be important to argue for the need for global citizenship education, as we are becoming global as we traverse between two or more discursive systems and build our ability to make meaning and construct knowledge in those systems.

The third term is organizational embeddedness, which shows how the structure of the organization influences the interpretive practice. Well, this is very well related to the technologies of power and modes of subjection discussed by Foucault and the thinkers he drew. For example, if an organization has a preference for a certain type of teaching that an individual teacher is lacking, then this standard may as well become the mode of subjection in the personal reflection of the teacher.

Thinking about the connections and possible differences between these terms is an interesting process, as the connections and overlaps are very intricate, but can be helpful to establish more dialogue between researchers of different disciplines.