Maria Tumarkin is a cultural historian and the author of three books of ideas: Traumascapes (2005), Courage (2007) and Otherland (2010). She has taught at universities and writing centres, and holds a PhD in cultural history from the University of Melbourne. In this interview she discusses her essay ‘This narrated life‘, which critiques the culture of storytelling and the belief that stories are the best way for human beings to communicate and achieve understanding.

I know that you emigrated from Russia when you were fifteen, and had to learn English when you moved. I wonder how having to learn English affected your writing. Do you still write in Russian?