1.
What evidence is there in the text that is a story that has been passed down generations
and a tale often told? Use specific references.
At the beginning of the essay, the narrator explains some beliefs that his people have. The one
that is mentioned is, “respect thy parents if you want to live long”. He says that along with this
belief, there is a story, which is the story of the whitigo. He explains that this story was told so
that people would respect the elders. Another way that is proven that the story has been passed
down through the generations is when the narrator says, “That is one of the stories that I used to
hear as a young boy”. This shows that when he was younger, someone would tell him this story,
the person most likely being a parent or an elder (e.i. Grandparent). Therefore, the story has been
passed from one generation to the next.
2. What elements of an essay did you find in the text? What elements of a short story?
The story used mean elements of an essay as well as many elements of a short story. The
elements used from an essay were an introduction and conclusion. The author introduced the
topic of the story by telling readers one of his people's beliefs. He concludes the story by telling
readers that these stories are simply disciplinary instruction. As for short story elements he uses
many, some being setting, character, theme, plot, etc.
Setting: Spring had just begun, so the families had moved from their winter camp to a site closer
to the river enabling them to have easier access to it.
Characters: There are many characters within the story however, the main characters are, the
young boy, the grandmother, and the whitigo.
Theme and plot: The theme of this story ties in with the plot. The story is about a young boy who
disobeys his grandmother. She tells him to stop yelling and come inside before it gets dark and
warns him that the whitigo will come if he doesn’t. Eventually the boy comes in however it is
too late, the whitigo has come now, all the people must act fast to protect themselves from this
creature. The theme of the story is to always obey your elders/parents; if you do not there will be
consequences
3. Do you believe that this form of storytelling as moral regulation is effective? Explain
using references to the text and/or your own experiences.
Near the end of the story the author/narrator says “They were so vividly described and they
seemed that you could experience fear when a person told you the story, especially the children”.
Stories, similar to this one have always been told and most cultures have their own. The general
premise of the story is to scare young children into behaving themselves. I believe that this form
of storytelling as moral regulation is effective since children are very easily scared and are quite
easy to persuade.
4. Find 3-5 examples of literary or rhetorical devices in the text and comment on the
significance of each.
- Anaphor: An anaphor is the repetition of a word or expression in a verse or sentence.
This rhetorical device can be found in these phrases: “Respect thy parents if you want to
live long. It was very important amongst our people that the young people respect their
parents, and their elders, if they want to live long.” The repetition used here shows that
respecting parents and elders will be an important theme throughout the story.
- Foreboding: Is a hint or suggestion that something bad will happen later on in the story.
“So one beautiful evening when it was quiet and very calm, the echoes carried sounds
very easily.” This is important to the overall story since it shows the calmness and
quietness of the campsite. One of the main themes in the story is to not make noise
outside when it is dark, to which the boy disobeys. This shows that the young boy is
going to disrupt the peace, summoning the whitigo to them.
- Motif: A motif in this story would be the mention of making noise. As we know, making
too much noise between sunset and twilight, especially in the springtime would cause the
whitigo to find the camp. It is important to the story that noise is mentioned because it is
the only thing that can summon the whitigo. Disobedience to being told to be quiet and
come inside causes the whitigo to find them hence, showing children that if they disobey
their elders, there will be consequences.
