The Storyteller Research Paper

In “The Truth about Stories”, Thomas King, demonstrate connection between the Native storytelling and the authentic world. He examines various themes in the stories such as; oppression, racism, identity and discrimination. He uses the creational stories and implies in to the world today and points out the racism and identity issues the Native people went through and are going through. The surroundings shape individuals’ life and a story plays vital roles. How one tells a story has huge impact on the listeners and readers. King uses sarcastic tone as he tells the current stories of Native people and his experiences. He points out to the events and incidents such as the government apologizing for the colonialism, however, words remains as

When the Starzynski family was taken from their home by the French police, the onlookers exhibited dehumanization. In this instance, dehumanization was portrayed in the form of indifference, “...shutters began to open, faces peered out from behind curtains... nobody moved, nobody said anything. They simply watched” (Rosnay 18). The onlookers did not view the Starzynskis as their human equals, and they allowed the police to take them to their death without saying a word. Their Jewish religion made them be viewed as less than human, and therefore they felt it was acceptable for them to be taken away to be killed. Once the Starzynski’s friends and acquaintances discovered that they were Jewish, by the yellow star on their clothing, they began to treat them differently. “...most girls stopped speaking to the children with the stars. Or... stared at them with disdain” (47). Once captured and inside the Vel’ d’Hiv, the Jewish people of Paris are treated as animals; the conditions inside the Vel’ d’Hiv are heartless and inhumane. “The girl had to squat against the wall to relieve herself, fighting against the overpowering urge to vomit, her hand clapped over her mouth. People were... defecating wherever they could... cowering like animals near the filthy floor” (30). The captured Jews are not only deprived the basic right of privacy,

Joseph Campbell has a theory called The Hero’s Journey in where an individual is shown in a mundane world, called to an adventure, and goes on the adventure. In the adventure, the individual goes on the path of trials that consisting of making new friends, new mentors, new enemies, facing new challenges, gaining new skills, and new knowledge. When the individual comes back to their mundane world, they are the master of two worlds through their new experiences they've gained in the adventure. The Hero’s Journey has been repeated in literature and films through many years: two examples that have The Hero’s Journey are the films, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief.

A good novel entertains the reader. An excellent novel entertains and enlightens the reader. Set in a Cajun community in the late 1940’s, A Lesson Before Dying is a heart-warming tale of injustice, acceptance and redemption. A Lesson Before Dying by Earnest J. Gaines is an excellent novel. Not only does Gaines inform the reader, he entertains will his effective storytelling. His use of symbolism, voice and stylistic devices keeps the reader enticed to the very last page.

Lamed Shapiro’s “The Cross” tells the story, in vivid and disturbing detail, of a Russian Jewish man who is attacked in a pogrom, alongside his estranged mother, and is branded on the forehead with a cross by his attacker. Blume Lempel’s “Images on a Blank Canvas” tells another story, in equally vivid and disturbing detail, of a woman mourning the death of her friend, a prostitute who committed suicide. In these two stories, there is one striking similarity: The survivor is portrayed by the non-survivor. In “The Cross,” the Russian Jew is depicted by his mother as the brutally murdered non-survivor of a pogrom. In “Images on a Blank Canvas,” Blume Lempel, the survivor, is depicted by her fallen friend Zosye. Through the depictions of survivors by non-survivors, Shapiro and Lempel are able to unpack the trauma stemming from a pogrom and a suicide and its effects on the survivors.

The ending of The Storyteller is contrasts the rest of the story in quite a few ways. It has quite a deflated tone as it ends with tension between the aunt and the bachelor. The bachelor makes a prideful comment on his ability to entertain the kids better than the aunt. He also makes observations about the aunt's character and amuses himself in the knowledge that he’s changed the children and their new expectations for stories they may be told in the future.

Life is a precious thing, and it is so precious that some people will undergo severe anguish to hold on to it. During the 1930’s and 1940’s in Germany, people of the Jewish religion were diabolically oppressed and slaughtered, just for their beliefs. Some Jews went to extreme measures to evade capture by the German law enforcement, hoping to hold on to life. Krystyna Chiger was only a small child when her family, along with a group of other desperate Jews, descended into the malignant sewers to avoid the Germans. After living in the abysmal sewers for fourteen months, her group emerged, and when she became an adult, she authored a novel about her time in the sewer. When analyzing the literary elements utilized in her novel, The Girl in the Green Sweater, one can determine how tone and mood, point of view, and conflict convey the message of struggle and survival that was experienced during the Holocaust, and how they help the reader to understand and relate.

Many Aboriginal populations have been using storytelling as a way of communication for centuries. Storytelling is used on a day to day basis whether it be reading a story to kids or telling friends about an experience. The importance of storytelling is highlighted constantly throughout the book Three Day Road by Joseph Boyden and the entire story itself is a recollection of memories. Niska tells stories of her past to warn and teach Xavier. Xavier tells stories of his haunting and innocence shattering experience at war to help him heal. Elijah tells stories about his life before and during the war as an attempt to maintain what is left of his aboriginal culture and to heal himself by reminding himself of his achievements and what he has proudly accomplished . Storytelling plays a significant role in the novel by teaching and helping to heal the characters.

Tim O'Brien was right when he said “Stories can save us”. They saved him. Writing stories helped Tim turn into Timmy and also into a solider when he was retired and forty three years old. When O'Brien says “Stories can save us”: he lets us know that his stories helped him through the war, they also helped him stay psychologically relaxed after the war, and helped him create better versions of his memories as Timmy and Tim the soldier.

She then contrasts Sarah’s struggles with an aging journalist named Julia. As it turns out, on an assignment to commemorate the sixtieth anniversary of the roundup, Julia discovers that the family that she married into has a connection to Sarah. Through her investigative journalism skills, Julia is able to write about history on personal level revealing hidden truths. The French committed a mass atrocity against their own people and sent the members of the Jewish community off to Auschwitz. Those survivors like Sarah were not only mistreated, but their story

Relevance to Audience: When thinking of this brave 13 year old girl, most think of the Jewish culture, Adolf Hitler, and the Nazi Soldiers of Germany. But of us really know the pain and suffering the Jewish

“I’m gonna go after Sarah!” Luke screamed over the noise and without second thought, he took off running. My eyes went wide as he was immediately lost in the crowd of walkers.

Shy Glizzy the self-proclaimed “Jefe” of D.C. had something to say about D.C. schools in his song “Tru Story,” in the song he describes the feelings of many young men in the DCPS system by rapping, I got kicked out of high school Then I got kicked out another one Then I got kicked out another one Then I got kicked out another one Man f**k D.C. schools (28-32)

I grew up in California where both of my parents were involved with gangs and drugs by the time they were in middle school. They grew up like this, getting involved with the wrong people, getting into fights for dumb reasons, even getting in trouble with the authorities. Of course, that was normal for them because they were surrounded by it through friends and family. They continued to live that life style even when they met each other at the ages of 18 and 23. They didn't like each other at first, but they eventually started dating. My mom ended up getting pregnant later that year and tried to take a break from all of it, but my dad didn't stop and that caused some tension and arguing between them.

Brandon Sanderson, one of my favourite science fiction authors once said, ““The purpose of a storyteller is not to tell you how to think, but to give you questions to think upon.” (Sanderson, 2010). This was a saying that stuck with me throughout my love and passion not just for storytelling but art in general. The beautiful thing about art is that it creates a sense of emotion that you can interpret the meaning for yourself; there is no right or wrong answer. Whenever I am reading poetry or a novel, what I love most is that it makes my imagination go wild. I create an idea of what their voices sound like, what the characters look like, the setting, etc. Whenever I’m reading or listening to someone telling me a story I get to create my own art piece in my mind which I think as humans is one thing that makes us so unique is our abstract mind and the use of an conscious imagination.