Storytelling By Silko Essay Research Paper Leslie

Storytelling By Silko Essay, Research Paper

Leslie Marmon Silko is a Laguna Pueblo Indian who has written many novels and

poems in her lifetime. One of these poems, "Storytelling," is very

interesting to me. This poem excites me because it tells of the impact that

storytelling has on people in Laguna culture. I will analyze and explore many

parts of this poem. One of these subjects is theme. The theme of

"Storytelling" is actually the art of storytelling. Another aspect of

the poem I will look at is tension. There is a specific tension between the

husband and the wife in this poem. Next, I will explore how imagery helped Silko

strengthen her writing. Then, I will look at how the form of

"Storytelling" is different from that of other poems. Finally, I will

compare "Storytelling" to another poem, written by Luci Tapahonso

entitled, "Blue Horses Rush In." All these aspects put together will

enable me to do a complete textual analysis of "Storytelling." Larson

2 To start, I will begin with the theme of "Storytelling." The theme

of the poem is the art of storytelling, hence the name. At the end of the poem

the author says, "My husband left after he heard the story and moved back

in with his mother. It was my fault and I don?t blame him either"(Silko

424). As the reader, you think that the woman is feeling bad about lying to her

husband and she doesn?t blame him for leaving her because she has sinned. Then

the next line reads, "I could have told the story better than I

did"(Silko 424). This surprises the reader because the ending’s not

expected. This shows that the woman isn?t really feeling bad about what she

did, or what happened; she only wishes that she could have told a better story

so her husband would stay with her. These quotes prove the theme of the poem;

that storytelling is very important in the Laguna culture. It is what the people

pride themselves on and the woman in the poem could have done a better job.

Earlier on in the poem the husband says, "You better have a damn good

story"(Silko 423). It is almost as if the husband is expecting a better

story than what he receives, so not satisfied with the lines his wife feeds him,

he leaves. From these lines it is obvious that the stories told, and how the

people tell them is the theme of the poem "Storytelling". This is not

only a theme in the poem, but I Larson 3 believe that it also represents a very

prominent theme in the Laguna culture. Other themes in the poem are adultery and

lying, but these also portray the main tensions in the poem in addition to

themes. The tension is between the husband and the wife. A mysterious being

shows up and kidnaps the wife. When she returns she tries to tell her husband

what happened in terms that he would understand. The husband, now very upset,

believes that his wife committed adultery. The tension starts when the husband

says, "You better have a damn good story about where you have been for the

past ten months and how you explain these twin baby boys"(Silko 423). You

can tell from this quote that the husband is not happy and wants an explanation;

and it better be a good one. The wife retaliates by saying, "No! That

gossip isn?t true"(Silko 423). The wife feels that she needs to defend

herself against the false accusations that her husband made. The rest of the

poem the wife tells her story in order to try to persuade her husband of the

truth. She wants to resolve the tension. Her attempts to persuade her husband

are unsuccessful. So the tension is never really resolved because the husband

leaves. Therefore, there is probably still tension surrounding the subject.

Larson 4 There are many images in "Storytelling" that help set the

scene and develop a mood. A couple images that help to set the scene are,

"?the sun came over the long red mesa"(Silko 422) and, "She

looked into the shallow clear water"(Silko 423). This gives an image of how

mystical and magical the scene was when the "Buffalo Man" came to get

the woman in the story. This image gives the reader the impression that this is

a mysterious event. The images are also calm and soothing which relay those

feelings over to the reader. This way the reader can understand what the woman

in the poem is feeling at the time. However, I don?t think she feels that way

for too long. Another image produced later on in the poem sets up a very

different scene, "?in a red `56 Ford and the F.B.I. and state police hot

on their trail of wine bottles and size 42 panties hanging in the bushes and

trees all along the road"(Silko 423). This image is a very graphic one. The

wife is using this picture in her story to try to explain to her husband what

she went through. When you pic

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