They refuse and resist. "Books," I say to them. "Books," I say. I throw my weight against their locked doors. The door holds. I am smart. Iam arrogant. I am lucky. I am trying to save our lives.
This line stands out to me as the author emphasizes the statement, "I am trying to save our lives". This is because Alexie wants to be a role model to students so they don't have to suffer like their parents, who have sacrificed a lot for them to gain access to books or even a proper education.
It is always useful to teach the stories in context of the culture. In some cases, the culture depicts the times of the stories. For example, in many native peoples stories, the trickster Coyote tales can only be told during certain times of the year. Each folktale has the folk behind the tale. One can teach respect for the culture by sharing the traditions that build the tales.
This section emphasizes where different genres or stories originate from. As culture plays a big role in how stories are shaped. This is due to how, in the past, when brutality was common. Stories would not sound like our modern-day fairy tales; rather, they would be more focused on adults and violence.
When an educator tells about “Little Red Riding Hood” or “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight,” the classroom can disappear for the tellers and they not only see Red or Arthur’s woods, but they experience it. The storyteller creates the landscape upon which the listener experiences the tales.
This made me think of how crucial imagery is when writing or telling a story, as it sets the mood and scenery up for the audience. As a result, the audience can easily visualize and imagine what is happening in the story, thereby conveying the message to them.
Labov (1972) explains that narratives are not told in the same order as the events that are detailed; instead, narrators or storytellers recapitulate the past and reconfigure the events to imbue significance.
I feel like this is what makes stories unique and different compared to other passages of writing. The organization and sequence of a story are crucial to how it makes the story sounds as a whole, as it is used to signify important symbols if an important event has occurred in the past or present.
Our brains seem wired for narrative, making us naturally receptive to it; we use stories to make sense of the world and to share that understanding with others (Rose, 2011), so telling personal stories becomes a way for us to both define and project ourselves.
I felt that this sentence stands out as it shows that one of the methods that humans use to express themselves or their thoughts is through storytelling. This illustrates how humans can either bond through storytelling or use this as an opportunity to show their true selves.