we all know stories
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The undertaker’s friend
This piece first came to life as a spontaneous oral story when talking casually with friends about how narrative could just come out of the air. The man and the horse walking together were suddenly there and I followed them to the bridge. Later I realised it was an echo of an anecdote I'd forgotten from my mother's family who raised horses in County Cork on her father's side, and I wrote it down.
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On being an invisible foreigner
Migrant, immigrant, foreigner. I have been all of these things. I have also learnt that there is foreigner and foreigner. Many of us have stories to tell about how our nationality or appearance affected a passage going through a border control, travelling abroad or simply when interacting with locals as tourists when visiting another country.. However, in society as a whole, the frequency with which migrant and immigrant in particular have become increasingly associated with conflict, rejection and even death, incites me to reassess who I am and take a fresh look at my status as a foreigner in this chilling new world. A tale of experience.
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Mario Rinvolucri, Master Teacher
Mario Rinvolucri, master teacher, passed away this week at the age of 84. He opened the door to teaching English as a Foreign Language for me. Then, once inside, he showed me how to open the windows and let in the light. He loved nothing more than a noisy classroom humming with conversation. He was one of a kind.
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Family secrets – learning to live with your own name
I was around the age I am in the photograph illustrating this piece when it slipped out casually in a family conversation that my father had had a elder brother called Gerald and I was named after him. That was just the beginning.
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The Card Sharp
When telling a story, it is essential to create an audience who feel compelled to pay attention. In exploring the theme of The Oral Tradition recently, certain memories have popped up which show how instructive everyday situations can be in developing an understanding of how this tradition works. Here's a memory of a card-sharp (or card-shark, if you prefer) from when I was 7 or 8 years old.
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Dublin Lad Learns Morse
Ken Kenny, our Dad, was many things in his lifetime, and among them was Marine Radio Officer in the Merchant Navy. He could always be coaxed into talking about the years he spent at sea. He loved telling people about this period because it took him and his listeners on a journey to places we'd all heard of, but that he'd been to, and come away with a story, or sometimes several. Here's one of those stories. A chance to explore the world of a Merchant Marine Radio Officer.
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We all know stories
We all know stories. But how can they become part of classroom learning? When I first fell into teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in 1981, John Morgan and Mario Rinvolucri were already developing their ideas on the use of storytelling for the language classroom. A chance encounter with Mario Rinvolucri would set me up for a life with storytelling in the classroom. Here's how it happened.
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Two tales of orality from Harlow street market
This is a story about primary orality : thought and expression untouched by the culture of writing or print. There are places where language takes root, grows and generally has a field-day. Street markets are full of people who use language to make us listen. Want to know more about the price of cabbages and today's unbeatable offer on sheets and towels? Read on, dear reader.
