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In the Shadow of the Banyan


A hauntingly powerful novel imbued with the devastation of monumental loss and ...
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How does the power of storytelling liberate Raami throughout the novel?

Created: 05/24/13

Replies: 6

Posted May. 24, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
davinamw

Join Date: 10/15/10

Posts: 3442

How does the power of storytelling liberate Raami throughout the novel?

How does the power of storytelling liberate Raami throughout the novel?


Posted Jun. 04, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
rebeccar

Join Date: 03/13/12

Posts: 548

RE: How does the power of storytelling liberate Raami throughout the novel?

Talking things out can be a catharsis and provide a turning point. That's what this tale is for Raami, the fictional character that basically tells the author's real life story.


Posted Jun. 06, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
terri

Join Date: 04/11/12

Posts: 102

RE: How does the power of storytelling liberate Raami throughout the novel?

The stories that are told give Raami hope. Hope is the key to survival. It can also give her a distraction from the atrocities that are going on around her.


Posted Jun. 09, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
lesleym

Join Date: 05/12/11

Posts: 34

RE: How does the power of storytelling liberate Raami throughout the novel?

The storytelling is something she shares with her father, who is the most important influence in her developing mind and knowledge of the world around her. It represents a way of looking at life through magical imagery which Raami needed to endure her daily life.


Posted Jun. 19, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
elizabethl

Join Date: 06/19/13

Posts: 19

RE: How does the power of storytelling liberate Raami throughout the novel?

Given that the amount of stories and magical imagery decreases as the story progresses, I did not see them as a distraction or coping mechanism. The stories seemed more representative of childhood wonder and thus they decrease as Raami's innocence is stripped away.


Posted Jun. 19, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
rebajane

Join Date: 04/21/11

Posts: 320

RE: How does the power of storytelling liberate Raami throughout the novel?

I never thought about that elizabethl, but you are right, the stories do seem to diminish as her innocence diminishes as well. Its said that we lose that piece of our selves that creates stories when we are young no matter what our life experiences


Posted Jun. 20, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
jeanniet

Join Date: 06/20/13

Posts: 27

RE: How does the power of storytelling liberate Raami throughout the novel?

As Raami was able to survive and live to tell the story of the horrific events that her country endured, she not only unveils the truth of the Communist at that time, but can give hope to so many people that have endured similar tragedies. The Khmer Rouge did not break her, they did not take her father's stories from her, and her storytelling throughout the novel showed how strong her spirit was and told the events through the viewpoint of a child. I think the storytelling was genius, and she pulled off a very complicated piece of history through the eyes of a child.


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