Biography: a life, a story

"Traditional biography, so often presented as 'A Life', in fact counters the errant trajectory of life with the smooth curve of dramatic narrative form. It might more properly be called 'A Story'. Its unity and closure stand at odds to the open-endedness and incoherence of life as it is lived."

Bill Nichols, "History, Mythe and Narrative in Documentary", Film Quarterly, vol. 41, nº 1 (Autumn 1987), University of California Press, p. 10.