This paper discusses how the values preserved by cultural heritages can be understood by people, and how to create meaning through spatial narrative methods as a way to understand cultural heritages. Cultural heritages serve as the witness of narrative text or events. Events often take place in a specific space and time, which is the methodological orientation of historical narratives that use space as a narrative. This is a particular way of interpreting or understanding events. The holistic discussion of historical places is also related to the interpretation and presentation of the characteristics of preserved values, and the interpretation of the meaning of Genius Loci. The narrative in the cultural heritage space takes narrative as the interpretation method. As an action or representation, the meaning can be realized through subjective consciousness. When the subjective consciousness carries out the narrative expression, it also reproduces or interprets the so-called real inquiry like a filter.
This paper examines the current issues in the preservation and restoration of cultural heritages in Taiwan with regard to the concept of preserving the integrity and authenticity of the historical cultural heritage sites. In the process of urban modernization, we re-examine the cultural heritage space as a social product and its use value, and to construct a method of spatial narrative of cultural heritages. Through the interpretation of historical writing with space as the narrative subject, it helps to understand and preserve cultural heritages. In the design and interpretation of the narrative space of cultural heritages, we discuss how to create meaning through the reproduction of space, the narrative of space and the design and production of space are used as a method of place creation.
The research method is mainly based on literature review and historical data collection, field observation, surveying and in-depth oral history interviews to construct spatial narrative texts, including: physical spatial narrative texts, historical spatial narrative texts, action spatial narrative texts, and empirical spatial narrative texts. Spatial narrative work is conducted through the methods of discourse analysis and narrative research. Narrative is also seen as a process of cultural social action, subjective experience production and self-learning.
This study constructs a spatial narrative methodology of cultural heritages, including: the narrative characteristics and meaning creation of cultural heritages; the design and interpretation of cultural heritage narrative space; the interpretation action and place creation of cultural heritages. Through a theoretical review of the literature and a case study of practical experience, we explore the dilemmas and opportunities between narrative and practice.
The study concludes that spatial narrative research is a way to understand the life of cultural heritages, emphasizing the importance of the "presence" of historical sites. Through the symbiotic care of people and places, the process of action, participation, interpretation, and practice of cultural heritage preservation, the spatial life narrative of cultural heritages is created.
In the transition from material preservation to the understanding of cultural society of cultural heritages, we propose that participation is also a part of the preservation of historical sites. This helps to reconnect cultural values with the present to create the future together. With the idea of preservation in a contextual way, culture is preserved in people's lives and cultural heritages are expected to be reused and regenerated. The mediating role of cultural heritages from the initiation of social forces to the realization of resocialization is realized through the identification of the value characteristics of cultural heritages and the regeneration of common experiences. By reshaping the sense of place, that is, through the process of resocialization, the meaning of cultural heritages for urban citizens is introduced, and the spatial narrative of cultural heritages is constructed as an analytical model for mediating the governance of cultural space and the interpretative content and methodological framework for the spatial design of cultural heritage narratives.