RESUMO
Human beings constantly narrate reality. They narrate themselves, to themselves and to others. They narrate each other and narrate humanity. They narrate the world and nature. They narrate meaning, the meaning of life and things. This article aims to explore this phenomenon of "narrating". Through a narrative review, we will attempt to gather elements of reflection on narrative, considered here as the ability to narrate, it means to represent oneself, to put meaning. Firstly, we will focus on how cognition, interpretation, and culture allow Homo Sapiens to narrate reality to himself. Then, we will explore why they do it and discover the evolutionary advantages of language, of sharing experiences between individuals through the phenomenon of cumulative cultural evolution, and how narrative facilitates the species' access to these advantages. Finally, we will delve into the clinical implications of narrative, discussing therapeutic interviews, therapy, and psychopathology. Narratives and pre-linguistic mental representations appear to have driven the Homo genus to develop cognitive abilities that enable the development of language and the sophistication of narratives as a cultural medium. Through language, Homo sapiens share their narratives and develop a cumulative common culture. Each individual's culture seems to be constructed in dialectic with this shared culture through narratives. This dialectic gives rise to psychopathological processes while also producing therapeutic leverage. Understanding the mechanisms of co-construction of these narratives is essential in clinical research in mental health. Furthermore, placing narratives in the perspective of an essential evolutionary strategy in the Homo genus solidifies the significance of the narrative faculty in the biological functioning of Homo sapiens, and so the importance of narratives in mental health.