"It's not our opinion, it's the opinion of our roles"

Theories and concepts of intercultural learning and Fremdverstehen have been discussed for decades in foreign language education. However, we still know only little about their actual realisations in the classroom: What exactly happens, for example, when learners are asked to put themselves in the situation of another person and tell a story from that person’s perspective? And how can narrative texts by learners be assessed, i.e. when can a change of perspective be considered ‘successful’? This contribution aims at exploring these questions on the basis of empirical data and by drawing on insights from cultural narratology. It shows how the framework of cultural narratology can also be used beyond text analysis in order to explain learners’ actions and evaluate their work in classes focusing on intercultural learning.