Migrant Narratives: Sympathy and the Importance of Point-of-view
Proposal Description
Fictional narratives allow authors to frame issues in ways that allow readers to learn about issues that affect migrant people. This method of drawing attention to social issues can be less abrasive and combative than presenting said issues in a purely educational context. Given the increasing hostile attitudes in the United States toward migrant people, it’s important to look for ways that the migrant perspective can be better understood. People form their opinions and beliefs based on fictional depictions and real facts, so narratives can have tangible effects on the ways in which individuals treat real migrants. The adolescent and infant point-of-view can especially present issues from an unbiased perspective due to the perceived innocence of the child narrator. The film Los Lobos (dir. Samuel Kishi, 2019), Antonio Skármeta’s novel No Pasó Nada, and Carlos Fuentes’s short story “La Pena” were used as examples of narrators in the adult and child perspectives. All perspectives provide scaling degrees of being able to teach and present migrant issues to spectators. Notably, the infant perspective can serve as a starting point but can’t teach readers/spectators much. The adult perspective can teach by itself but can tend to be more combative and alienating. This paper proposes that the best point-of-view allows readers/spectators to be able to process representations of migrant issues while also leaving them open to learning more, all in accordance with audience needs and educator purposes.
Migrant Narratives: Sympathy and the Importance of Point-of-view
Fictional narratives allow authors to frame issues in ways that allow readers to learn about issues that affect migrant people. This method of drawing attention to social issues can be less abrasive and combative than presenting said issues in a purely educational context. Given the increasing hostile attitudes in the United States toward migrant people, it’s important to look for ways that the migrant perspective can be better understood. People form their opinions and beliefs based on fictional depictions and real facts, so narratives can have tangible effects on the ways in which individuals treat real migrants. The adolescent and infant point-of-view can especially present issues from an unbiased perspective due to the perceived innocence of the child narrator. The film Los Lobos (dir. Samuel Kishi, 2019), Antonio Skármeta’s novel No Pasó Nada, and Carlos Fuentes’s short story “La Pena” were used as examples of narrators in the adult and child perspectives. All perspectives provide scaling degrees of being able to teach and present migrant issues to spectators. Notably, the infant perspective can serve as a starting point but can’t teach readers/spectators much. The adult perspective can teach by itself but can tend to be more combative and alienating. This paper proposes that the best point-of-view allows readers/spectators to be able to process representations of migrant issues while also leaving them open to learning more, all in accordance with audience needs and educator purposes.
Comments
The paper which this presentation is based on has been provided. However, the presentation will be in English.