In his article, “Godzilla vs. Post-Colonial,” King discusses Robinson’s collection of stories. King explains that while the stories are written in English, “the patterns, metaphors, structures as well as the themes and characters come primarily from oral literature.” More than this, Robinson, he says “develops what we might want to call an oral syntax that defeats reader’s efforts to read the stories silently to themselves, a syntax that encourages readers to read aloud” and in so doing, “recreating at once the storyteller and the performance” (186). Read “Coyote Makes a Deal with King of England”, in Living by Stories. Read it silently, read it out loud, read it to a friend, and have a friend read it to you. See if you can discover how this oral syntax works to shape meaning for the story by shaping your reading and listening of the story. Write a blog about this reading/listening experience that provides references to both King’s article and Robinson’s story.
In “Godzilla vs. Post-Colonial”, King discusses powerful storytelling in Robinson’s stories. King argues that Robinson uses “oral syntax” to “defeats readers’ efforts to read the stories silently to themselves” (186). Written Vs. Oral Syntax
King reminds us that there is something special which is lost when oral stories are translated to literature. He uses the word “metamorphosis” when he describes Robinson’s method of translating the literature to oral form because he thought there was something valuable which results in it (187).
I believe there is something special and advantageous that listeners can take away from a storyteller’s performance which readers cannot when reading silently to themselves. For example, certain phrases in Robinson’s story like “Do you know what that angel was? Do you know?” (66) would be an amazing spectacle if accompanied by an external performance.
According to King, Robinson’s method “encourages readers to read the stories out loud” (186). Performance has the ability to alter the interpretation to the masses and meaning is most effective in the form of someone sharing the story with another.
I enjoy reading outside of assigned academic works, which helped my understanding of Robinson’s story about a First Nations amorphous being such as Coyote. He is a mix of creator, hero, and trickster wrapped up in First Nations myth and culture. Having a vast imagination and extended knowledge in popular culture also helped me interpret or guess at the character motivations and identities.
More About The Native Trickster God
Silently Reading-
I found a comfy, silent area of my house and read the text silently to myself. This was an easy task for me as I just listened to myself in my head.
Reading to myself out loud-
I did enjoy reading this text to myself because I am a verbal learner. Only after I’ve heard it spoken to myself, do I actually take the material to heart. When I read the “Coyote Makes a Deal with the King of England”, I would stop and backtrack but I found it easy to absorb. I liked my voice narration because I could pace myself with the content. I often listen and read at the same time when I’m absorbing a novel outside of school. Furthermore, this is my personal best method for retention and enjoyment.
Reading to another-
When I’m reading the text to another person, I find that I’m more focused on the reading than the meaning of the text. This might be because I already read it to myself so I already understand the meaning.
Having it read to me-
I find that I could understand the story fully when it is read to me. As I listened, I understood the symbolism embedded in Coyote’s tale. This isn’t the best method of deciphering the meaning, but I started to understand the “associate literature” that King discusses in Godzilla vs. Post-Colonial. It is quite pleasurable to hear a story being read to me.
What is your favourite method of deciphering information and novels and why?
What do you think about my preference for oral syntax rather than silent reading?
Works Cited:
King, Thomas. “Godzilla vs. Post-Colonial.” Unhomely States: Theorizing English-Canadian Postcolonialism. Mississauga, ON: Broadview, 2004. 183- 190. Web. 17 Oct 2016.
Native American Mythology “COYOTE – the Native American Trickster God” N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Oct. 2016.
Niebergall, Claire. How the Coyote Got It’s Cunning. Philadelphia: Philadelphia Film and Animation Festival, Jan. 2011. Image.
Robinson, Harry. “Coyote Makes A Deal With The King Of England.” Living By Stories. Ed. Wendy Wickwire. Vancouver: Talon, 2005. 64-85. Print.
English Forums “Oral versus Written Syntax? – Englishforums.com.” N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Oct. 2016.
Hi Chloe,
Thanks for the great post! I enjoyed your links as well. I was drawn to the beginning of your post when you talk about the significance of performance and listening to a story, rather than just silently reading it. I definitely agree with you about this and I find that it is easier for me to learn from listening to stories and videos rather than just reading. You mention that you were able to take the story to heart after reading it out loud and I also found myself connecting with the story more while reading out loud to myself. I think that perhaps reading silently is something that we can enjoy, but that reading out loud brings more life to a story because we all have unique ways of speaking, performing, and interpreting a story’s meaning into our performances.
Thank you for the thought-provoking post Chloe!
– Chloë
Your comment about how something is lost when oral stories are written down made me think about how we translate and interpret oral stories. So much is lost/added in translation from the oral to the written word. The experience of reading Harry Robinson’s stories out loud, for example, is so different from reading them. I liked how Wickwire translated his stories in poetic form- she at least tried to translate the effect of the oral story onto the page. I’m a verbal learner as well- when I’m studying for an exam I have to say everything out loud as if I were explaining it to another person, so in terms of deciphering information it was a lot easier to do that orally. You can hear where Robinson may have meant to add emphasis here or a pause there. It allows for a much more nuanced reading of the story.
Hi Chloë,
Nice name haha!
Thank you for taking your time to comment and read my post! 🙂
I’m glad you think the same because performance is an art and a rarity. It’s a great way to tell a story and I think it’s a better method than just silently reading it. I agree that reading a story out loud brings it to life.
Hi Marissa,
Thank you for taking your time to comment and read my post! 🙂
I know how it feels to be a verbal learner and having to sound out everything before an exam! I agree that reading stories out loud brings out the emphasis of words and the meanings that the author is trying to portray.
Hey Chloe,
I liked the way you approached the different ways of reading Harry Robinson’s story. I found when I read it silently I had a hard time paying attention and comprehending what was happening, I got distracted easily. I found the experience similar to reading a Shakespeare play without silently mouthing the words. I also greatly enjoy the idea of a performance art for the stories. The stories Harry Robinson tells would make a great play, or even an amazing movie.
Hi Karolina,
Thank you for taking your time to comment and read my post!
I get easily distracted while reading silently as well. I find that reading out loud helps retention and dramatization of the story that the author intended. Performance brings the story to life and I agree that Robinson’s story would be an epic play.