Essay Questions

How does Jelloun use narrative techniques in The Sand Child?

Firstly, Jelloun uses a frame narrative at the beginning of the text. By doing so, the validity of the main narrative can be questioned and doubted, as it is told by a storyteller. Throughout the novel, the first storyteller is accused by other storytellers and members of the audience of not telling the truthful story. As such, the frame narrative introduces the idea of an unreliable narrator.

Another narrative technique the author uses is to include entries from Ahmed's journey. Through these entries, we get an idea of Ahmed's personal struggle and her perspective regarding the events of the novel. We can understand her issues with identity and gender due to her parents raising her as a boy. The journal entries offer a unique and alternative perspective to the narrative, which leads to a discussion and questioning about whether the storyteller's account is trustworthy.

Why did Ahmed's father decide to raise her as a boy?

Before Ahmed was born, her parents had already had seven daughters, which was seen by her father as being shameful. When his wife again becomes pregnant, Ahmed's father wishes the child will be a son, due to his intense shame at the thought of having another daughter. He is also concerned about having a son as he wants to have an heir to his fortune. Otherwise, his wealth will be inherited by his younger brothers, which he doesn't want to happen. As a result, when his give gives birth to a daughter, Ahmed decides that the only option is to raise the child as a boy. Ahmed's father is therefore influenced by inheritance issues and also his attitudes towards gender.

How is storytelling significant in this text?

Storytelling is a key aspect of this text, as Ahmed's story is told by a professional storyteller to an audience in a public square. Her story is then continued by various other storytellers. This choice of narrative is an allusion to the Arabic tradition of oral storytelling. In questioning the validity of the narrator, Jelloun also introduces a different aspect to the text, whereby the reader has to question the story they are listening to.