Marabou Stork Nightmares gains its narratological interest from its use of a strange ANP and a variety of ENPs. On the basic level, the narrator is intradiegetic and homodiegetic, writing with internal focalization throughout the novel. However, there is plenty of innovation in the use of this basic format.
As discussed in class, Marabou Stork Nightmares presents the reader with an interesting quandary concerning the ANP. Since the story is told in the first person subsequent voice, it is clear that there must be one somewhere.
[...] I used to climb down there and just hang from the rungs, suspended in semi-darkness.” The narrative style diegetic, with reported dialogue such as “Gordon said if I told anyone I would get the blame.” This helps maintain the iterative frequency, since it is not a direct quote and can therefore be construed as a paraphrasing of something said a number of times. This iterative continues for several paragraphs until a metonymic syllepsis, brought on by the statement of Roy's father's general like for moves the story into the singulative with the mention of a specific event: was a drinking session in downtown Johannesburg that led to us leaving South Africa and returning to Scotland.” However, the following paragraph is simply a descriptive summary of Roy's school experiences which again has an iterative feel. [...]
[...] and what follows is a series of sentences that feel more part of the ANP the ENP2. This goes on until only real talk I remember . The difference is subtle, but the first part of the paragraph is more associated with what Roy thinks about the situation strictly in the ANP—not even attempting to put it in the ENP2. At other points when he says remember” etc. it does remind the reader of the existence of the ANP, but does not make the reader feel as if they are in the ANP. [...]
[...] Conclusion: Marabou Stork Nightmares is fascinating as a narratogical study because of its movement between various ENPs and the uncertain nature of its ANP. Although it has a typical format of a homodiegetic and intradiegetic, internally focalized narrator, Furthermore, the play with varying speeds and voices adds to the interest. Both ENP2 and ENP3 offer continuous storylines that always pick up wherever they have left off, while ENP1 is disjointed. Considering that ENP2 and ENP3 are in his mind and memory, where he is more in control, while ENP1 is motivated by external forces, this approach makes sense. [...]
[...] Analysis: For my analysis I have chosen chapter Huckled in the City of Gold. It covers nearly all of the major interesting narratological aspects of the novel and therefore offers much in the way of analysis. The chapter opens in ENP2. As mentioned previously, Roy is an intradiegetic and a homedeigetic narrator, since he is in the story which he is narrating. The narration is in the subsequent voice, referring to a past event, and represents a heterodiegetic analepsis from the ANP. [...]
[...] In this chapter, this syllepsis seems to exist merely to act as a catalyst to get Roy out of ENP2 so that he can get back to ENP3. This generally happens when the nurses tend to him. At times, this almost seems to be a cop out on the part of the author. Instead of coming up with a more interesting link, perhaps metaphoric syllepsis, he forces the change through this sort of contrived event. As usual, the “DEEPER DEEPER DEEPER” motif is used to send Roy into ENP3. [...]
APA Style reference
For your bibliographyOnline reading
with our online readerContent validated
by our reading committee
