Storytelling and Its Relevance

Storytelling, in many ways, allows one to express their imagination through fanciful adventures and tales; thus, serving a purpose in terms of allowing an individual to cope with their tragedies, but also to entertain one another. In Yann Martel’s Life of Pi, and in Tim Burton’s Big Fish, the audience comes to realize that the conflict between fact and truth, combined with storytelling, are the central themes; it becomes clearer that facts have to be proven, whereas the truth is usually straightforward. These stories focus around the protagonists’ views, teaching the value, truth, and purpose of storytelling; in which, it is the pieces that collectively form the importance of storytelling. Storytelling allows the protagonists of both stories to cope with their struggles, and assists them in overcoming their adversities. It partly influences their decisions, and ideas; ultimately, changing their own perspectives in their struggles. Both show that stories can be incredibly meaningful and take on significant roles for the characters, which can be used to answer important questions about the truth.

Equiano was born on the year of 1745 in a “charming fruitful vale” (Olaudah, Chap. 1, Par. 2), called Essaka. His father was a Chief and he was expected to follow in his father's footsteps. Slavery was part of Equiano’s culture, as his family owned slaves as well. “Those prisoners which were not sold or redeemed we kept as slaves: but how different was their condition from that of the slaves in the West Indies! With us they do no more work than other members of the community, even their masters; their food, clothing and lodging were nearly the same as theirs, (except that they were not permitted to eat with those who were free-born); and there was scarce any other difference between them, than a superior degree of importance which the head of a family possesses in our state, and that authority which, as such, he exercises over every part of his household. Some of these slaves have even slaves under them as their own property, and for their own use” (Olaudah, Chap. 1, Par.9).

Let’s talk about the world about 2,000 years ago. It was a world where the mass of people were illiterate, taxes were extremely high, and the leaders would cheat and kill to feed their ever growing need for power. We all can relate to having a good storyteller in our lives, most were read to at night by their parents or are parents themselves that read to their children. What is the purpose of storytelling? It’s simple, comfort. A good story can ease your psychological unrest as well as offer a moral purpose. Sometimes you can even relate a story to your own life and offer an explanation to something you may be experiencing. This is exactly what the four gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were. They told their stories of Jesus to offer comfort to their people in a time when people could not pick up a story and read it themselves. It is part of human nature to have the desire for a good story. This paper will describe several events that were written by great storytellers in the bible.

The narrative perspective helps us discover the underlying moral of the story– that is its argument about how we ought to and ought not to believe or behave (Sellnow 2017). Part of the narrative perspective is the viewer’s narrative rationality which refers to the assessment of good reasons used to persuade masses of the moral (Sellnow 2017). Another element in this perspective is its coherence defined as plausibility. Often times viewers will better agree with a moral whose story is believable and characters relatable. And the more believable and relatable the more the story resonates and that connects to its fidelity or the degree to which the values in a story ring true (Sellnow 2017). Under a narrative lens several different aspects are examined such as the actions and conditions that create the active and static events, the setting, characters that based on their depth are either round or flat. With predictable characters being flat and the unpredictable round.

Throughout time, storytelling has evolved and changed with society. While oral storytelling is not as prevalent as it once was, the stories that were once passed down orally have now been written and passed through generations and cultures in this manner. However, the form that the story takes has not had an effect on storytelling as a whole. Storytelling has provided a way for tellers to pass along ideas on culture, ways of life, and traditions that may otherwise have been lost. Oftentimes, stories can become convoluted after being passed on via word of mouth, yet, others keep their integrity. No matter the truthfulness of the story, storytelling has consistently been harmful due to its ability to influence the listeners’ or readers’ thinking. In this paper, I will prove that stories are inherently harmful due to the ability the teller has to influence the listener through relatable or believable stories, whether they be fact or fiction, to solidify the gender hierarchy as shown in literary stories such as Lysistrata, the Tale of Genji, and Sunjata.

All stories consist of a few common structural elements found universally in myths, fairy tales, dreams, and movies. They are known collectively as The Hero’s Journey. Understanding these elements and their use in modern writing is the object of our quest. Used wisely, these ancient tools of the storytellers craft still have tremendous power to heal our people and make the world a better place (xxvii).

Once there was a woman who told a story. However, she had more than just an entertaining tale to tell. She chose common images that everyone would understand, and she wrapped her story around them, and in this way she was able to teach the people . . .

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

Popular Sovereignty is a concept where the power of government in a democracy is granted by us who elected that government. This is the idea of people having the power to vote and have a voice in the government. We have the constitution that was made by James Madison in order to limit both the powers of government and the powers of the people according to the discussion. Madison made the constitution to deal with factions so no single group or faction will be too powerful compared to the others. According to the discussion and videos, faction is a group of people working to benefit itself at the cost of others.

Storytelling helps other people to emotionally connect themselves to the author so that they know they are not the only ones who are experiencing a painful or exciting experience, and are able to share the same emotions. It often helps other people to know what they should do in order to get over it when it comes to a painful experience. Maya Angelou’s I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings explores the life of Maya Angelou and the struggles she has been throughout her childhood to her adulthood. Richard Wagemese’s Indian Horse explores the life of Saul Indian Horse and the struggles he has been through after departing from his family. The power of storytelling can unfold questions which ask the audience of how and why are the events are unfold the

Stories are told through various forms of literature, and the overall point of telling a story is to convey a message, a meaning that the author wants the reader to interpret and understand. The author does

Patrick Rothfuss, an American writer, once said, “It's like everyone tells a story about themselves inside their own head. Always. All the time. That story makes you what you are. We build ourselves out of that story.” Rothfuss explains how storytelling is always a part of everyone. Stories are told in different ways, and those stories shape the person tremendously. Many of the stories told today are what shape the audience. In “The Things they Carried”, by Tim O’Brien, and the film “Big Fish”, directed by Tim Burton, stories are portrayed to be productive because the characters all have an American Dream and their stories help the characters achieve tasks to get to their American Dream.

The power of storytelling can create connections between people and allow individuals to find their inner

Today's society contains stories that model the ideal life that each individual lives each day. Stories may shape our mind in creative and positive ways that may enlighten the road towards the future. They have been examples for us to survive by and thrive on for decades: in the past, and now, continuing in the future. People around the world have been told stories that may have influenced their lives in a unique way. Children long to be enlightened by stories that fill their young and fruitful minds, allowing thoughts and new ideas to be instilled. Throughout the worlds' cultures and literature, stories have influenced the actions and morals of man with their underlying

They way stories are told may morph, but never will storytelling cease. From their people skills to their memories, there is no argument that storytellers possess boundless talent and intelligence. They were the first educators. And now, storytelling is a large part of everyday life. The news in the morning, the gossip throughout the day, the casual response to the casual “What’s up?” – It’s all a form of storytelling. Our lives are steeped in it. In almost every conversation a story is told. At every turn a story is born. So we all are storytellers, and the world is our audience, just waiting to hear the gospel leave our