Can you imagine a world without storybooks, stories, storytelling or even a storyteller?
I see a few puzzled faces.
First, try to imagine a land without storybooks where people have forgotten how to tell stories. Since there’s no storytelling, there’s nothing to talk about. All communication is limited to “Yes” or “No”. There’s no singing, either, because songs do contain some sort of stories. There are no newspapers, books, radio, not even television, without storytelling. The food is bland and uncooked without a story about fire, cooking food or even recipes. No pizza or momos.
Now that’s scary. To continue further, there’s no religion, too, as all religions have stories to tell.
Worst of all, people, lands and places have no names, as names have some stories associated with them. Can you imagine life without names? I, for one, can’t. There’s no explanation for questions asked, as answering them again is telling stories.
Can you explain water flowing down the mountain in a creek that went into a river? Or even talk about the sun rising in the east and setting in the west without telling a story?
I know it’s not possible, and life would be a bore. Exactly, a place that has no story is definitely a dead place.
So, you see, storytelling is a way of communicating with the world. The more you think about it, the more you’ll realize that everything has a story. It’s a way of teaching and learning. Everything starting from theories about creation, the nature of the world, the nature of humanity, or just how our children grew up, you name it, all have stories. The programs on television or movies or news all have a story.
I can hear someone asking, “Almost everyone is telling stories. Is there a special skill to it?”
Yes indeed! Everyone can tell stories, but not all are good storytellers. Effective storytelling is a form of fine and beautiful art. A well-developed and presented story sees no age binding, as long as it captures the interest of the listener. Stories told by expert storytellers are remembered for a long, long time because of the skillful application of the basics of storytelling used to strengthen the story to make it interesting for the listener. While telling the story, the expert makes sure that the action is sequenced, with the selection of new words and gestures that are just right for the story. With each storytelling, the narrator shows the art of movement and gesture, the art of voice modulation, timing and delivery, and facial expressions. That’s the art of storytelling.
Despite storytelling being an art, it is also largely considered an activity, done almost exclusively by grandparents. I can hear a few “Wow!”-s out there. Yes, it’s very hard to be an accomplished storyteller.
Often, this activity is associated with children, but we’ve been telling stories all along. Whatever we choose – call it science, history, psychology or language arts – storytelling has always has had a reason, from educational to healing. Although we don’t give much thought about the act of storytelling beyond entertainment, they do serve various purposes. Storytellers in today’s world are scriptwriters, authors, reporters, poets, singers, journalists, to name just a few. They indeed are all storytellers.
So, the next time someone starts with “Once upon a time…,” ride your imaginary horse and follow the voice of the storyteller to lands unknown, and let your horse be swept away by the waves of imagination and see how you feel. I’m sure all of you will like it.
Pokharel is an educationist, consultant and author of several children’s books.
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