Grant from Åke Wibergs Stiftelse to Maria Graziano!

Gestures have often been studied in narrative production, and there are suggestions that different kinds of gestures are likely to be differentially distributed in a narrative. Yet, little evidence is provided to support this claim. The purpose of this study is twofold. First, it aims at making a systematic analysis of gestural production relative to narrative structure in order to test claims in the literature; second, it aims at performing this analysis in two languages in order to compare narratives by Italian speakers (who are proverbially known for gesturing a lot), and by Swedish speakers (who are generally described as being less prone to use bodily movements). The study will provide important empirical observations and much needed new insights for both narrative studies and gesture studies, in particular from a crosslinguistic perspective. Congratulations, Maria!