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Ransom malouf5/10/2023 ![]() As King of Troy, Priam is used to the former-highly stylized arguments, speeches, and exchanges that follow rigid formulas. Whereas the stylized speech of the court tends to bind people more tightly to a set role in life, storytelling encourages them to look beyond the boundaries of self, space, and time.īroadly speaking, Ransom deals with two types of language: ceremonial and narrative. Most importantly, however, they provide a contrast to the rigid and formal language of the Trojan royal court. These interludes serve different purposes over the course of the novel, from offering necessary backstory to providing entertainment. Still, it is striking just how often Malouf interrupts the main narrative to tell a story-within-a-story. Given that the novel is a reworking of a preexisting story-told most famously in The Iliad-this is not surprising. ![]() In the Afterword to Ransom, Malouf says that he considers the novel to be, at heart, about storytelling. ![]()
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