The Power and Impact of Personal Narratives

We read personal narratives in order to relate to other’s experiences and place ourselves in other’s to relate to their conflicts or learn about conflicts that we have yet to face. Reading about a similar experience helps us increase our sense of connection to others. Reading about an experience we haven’t encountered will better prepare us to face new challenges or help other people face them. In order to do these things, outstanding personal narratives should place the reader in the narrator’s shoes so the reader could understand everything the narrator went through in their experience. The most powerful personal narratives effectively deliver these benefits when they use imagery that connects us to the narrator’s emotional experience, have

Each compelling personal narrative should contain is a well-developed theme that makes the reader think. For example, in “My Fanged Tooth” by Jim Son a reader could tell that the theme of the story is that we live in a survival of the fittest world. Son goes on vacation for a few days with expectancy of coming home to his hamsters just like he left them. However, He comes home to the realization that one hamster had eaten the other hamster. Coming home to this he realizes that the hamsters are not as cute and fluffy on the inside as they are on the outside. Son realized that hamsters have an instinct to survive and can be ruthless (by using cannibalism in this instance) as one of their methods of surviving. His mother even told him “Every animal, including human beings, has an instinct that makes them want to survive, no matter what.” (14) As a young child Son is protected and sheltered and wouldn’t really expect to learn this lesson. What makes it even worse for young Son is that his hamsters had the be the way he learned this lesson. But when you see one hamster literally ripped into pieces, the mother could not have given a better explanation than what she gave. Additionally, Son then realizes he thinks, and makes us think that he sees a sharp tooth coming out of his mouth before he goes to sleep that night. “That night before going to bed, standing in

Character development is the growth of the character as it unfolds throughout the story, the storyline or series of episodes. The writer should incorporate the idea of change, growth, adaptation, and learning. In a narrative, you should see a character evolve and some type of change from the beginning of the story. Character development in a personal narrative is key in the reader’s connection with the character. Furthermore, character development is important because it allows the reader to see who the character really is, why the character is the way he/she is, the thought pattern of the character, etc. By the end of the narrative, the reader should understand, sympathize, and connect with the character in the narrative. Sometimes the reader may not be able to identify with a writer’s particular problem, but by using character development and incorporating change, growth, adaptation, and a learned lesson, the reader should be able to empathize for the writer or they could possibly be better prepared if something similar is to happen to them. The total purpose of showing change, growth, adaptation, and learning is to make the reader reevaluate expand their perspective on whatever the theme the writer is writing