The set of political decisions made over time must make some sense, and this sense must come from the narrative that is superimposed on historical events. The narrative itself is socially constructed and only marginally bound by fact.
相反，纯粹的边沁主义观点把政治视为一个基于空洞的功利主义算计的不相关的决策的集合。但这让人感觉就像“一件鸟事接着又一件鸟事”。各个时间的政治决策集合都必须有意义，而这一意义必须来自叠加于历史事件之上的叙事。叙事本身是社会构建的（socially constructed），只是若即若离地受到事实约束。