Abstract

This text draws on the concepts of narrative identity and selfhood to analyze stories about accidents that resulted in severe facial burns. These adjustable accounts, regularly set out by the people concerned, are considered across two axes: for oneself and for others. The “story for oneself” mainly ensures the preservation of an identity fractured by severe trauma. For the severely burned person, it establishes continuity between an identity prior to the burn and an identity post-burn, which drastic changes to their appearance have shattered. As to the “story for others,” it serves other purposes. It is aimed, in particular, at helping to identify after-effects and in this way reducing discomfort around interaction. Whatever the varied forms that they can take, these two types of stories become the expression of a struggle for recognition, led by the burn victim, to restore a relationship as much with himself as with others