Max McGougan

IB Eng Inclass 5
3/1/2017

The selected passages purpose is to convey the feelings of the narrator

about his seeming abduction. To accomplish this, Choy employs imagery and vivid
description to give the narrators recollection, and describe his emotions. However,
the use of the first person perspective instills a sense of confusion in his language,
disorienting the reader in a manner similar to the narrator. The result is that the
reader is able to discern a sense of disorientation, yet visceral connection to the
moment the narrator was taken, as well as how he coped with both the negatives
and positives of his new life.

Choys vivid description enables the reader to understand the narrators

emotional response to the seeming abduction and to his new relationships. The
descriptive imagery of his taking evokes a sense of fear, confusion, and general
hecticness a chair fell over, curtains were whipped back, blinds whirled and
snapped up, Mr. Chin was shouting instructions. The imagery of shadows moved
shuddered around my room similarly provides an insight into how the narrator
perceived the mystery of the figures who were taking him. The descriptions of the
narrators new home show a new conception of his shadowy captors, however. In
the heated cabin, with the food he was feed, under the kerosene lamplight, the
narrator is able to enjoy the excitement of [Mr. Chins] storytelling, in a somewhat
picturesque manner. However, his description of the sweet tenor of his voice, the
feel of his hands, contribute to the conflict of never being able to hear his
mommys voice. These two descriptions and emotions are in contrasts feeling at
home, yet alienated from your mother, allowing us to glimpse inside the narrators
conflict between his new and old home.

Choys use of description is restrained, as the narrator does not fully

understand the situation, but this enables the reader to similarly understand the
confusion. Large points of confusion arent addressed in the essay. Who are the
Chins? Did they take the narrator? Why are the sheets wet with blood? An
omniscient narrator could make quick work of these questions, but the first person
format invites the reader to question it. Certain events are included because they
have some level of importance both the reader and the narrator know that yet,
the extent of that importance is unclear to both, and allows the reader to similarly
be unsure about the circumstances of the narrators taking as he is. If an omniscient
narrator recounted a neutral murder-abduction, itd be difficult to empathize with a
narrator feeling sympathy towards the family. The first-person narration style allows
us to understand the psyche of the character, the trauma, and possible connection
to his captors. Despite hearing the siren of the police car, Mrs. Chin scrubbing her
hands furiously, where we could, objectively, know that Mrs. Chin killed his mother,
we are still able to empathize with the more human portions of the characters and
why the narrator could feel a connection to them. The mothers loss isnt portrayed
as an overwhelming sadness as it would be conveyed in an omniscient perspective,
but rather a more confusing sense of loss. Sheets of wetness pulled away, or
sadly realizing he wont see his mother again. The muted and never explicit
descriptions give a more refined sense of the emotion the narrator feels about his
mother he truly loves her, and does feel detached but it wasnt as traumatic, at
least in the traditional sense, as it would seem.

Description is an important, especially when recounting important events.

The language utilized by Choy is vivid in certain parts to assess the full range of
emotions that were most readily accessible to the narrator at the time, but muted in
others due to the maturity and confusion of the narrator. This allows a reader to
experience similar connections, empathy, and emotions that the narrator
experienced, which couldnt be fully conveyed in an omniscient format. Although
the drawback is lack of clarity about the situation, we are able to intuitively assess
what happened while at the same time identifying with the narrator in a more
meaningful way.