narrative writing by eguriase s. m. okaka

NARRATIVE WRITING

BY EGURIASE S. M. OKAKA Always remember that is the act of telling a story or giving an account of an event or something that happened or something you witnessed. In this write-up, you will learn about the type of narration based on saying or proverb. Thus, like other types of narration, may be real or imaginative or a combination of both. Examples of a narrative writing question based on a saying or proverbs are listed below: • Write a story that ends with the saying ‘I wish I had listened to my mother’. • Write a story that ends with the saying ‘I wish I had not cheated in the examination.’ • Write a story to illustrate the saying ‘One good turn deserves another.’ Features of Narrative Composition A good story should have the following characteristics or features: • Good and interesting beginning: If your story has a good start it will win the interest of the reader. • Body: In the body, you try to sustain the interest of the reader. The main theme should be divided into subtitles. Here, you try to build up your story to a climax. The climax is the highest point of your story. At this point something good or bad happens to your main character. The climax is the saddest or the most interesting part of your story. • Good conclusion: Your conclusion should be brief and should end with a saying or proverb Here, is a clear example of what a narrative writing looks like. Read the following story and answer the questions on it. I Wish I had listened to my Mother The eleventh day of November 2013 was a special day for many but for my family and me; it was a day that crumbled our dreams and made us becomes paupers. My mother had warned me not to leave the house that day so that I would be able to do my chores and also for security reasons. She said this before traveling to Ibadan with my elder sister for a wedding. I was then left alone in the house. They were supposed to be back later on the same day as Ibadan was not too far from Lagos. My mother had prepared my favorite meal: fried rice and chicken, and instructed me not to use the gas cooker to cook anything at all except to warm my food whenever I wanted to eat. I was told not to leave the house for any reason. I later felt hungry and as I had just put the pot of rice on the cooker to warm my food, there was a knock on the door. It was Prisca, my classmate who lives two houses away from us. I opened the door for her and as we got chatting, I forgot I had put something on the fire. She took the book she had come for and asked me to see her off. I remembered mum’s instruction not to leave the house but I brushed it off with the thought of coming back as soon as possible. We got downstairs and there was a fight between two naughty boys in the neighborhood that caught our attention. Some elders tried to separate them but they refused and continued to fight. We stayed back to see the end of the fight. When the fight was over, I wished my friend goodbye and rushed back to the house. The stench of smoke that greeted me was enough for me to know what had happened. I tried to get to the kitchen: there was fire, wild and threatening. I could not risk my life. I thought of my mother and her warning, and felt devastated. I ran out in confusion shouting, ‘Help! Help! Fire! Fire! Passersby, neighbors, everyone rushed in the direction of our house. Some were carrying buckets of water, some had sand but the fire had grown too wild for them to handle. I screamed and rolled myself on the ground and refused to be consoled. Hefty men battled to saved our house and property but to no avail. Some good Samaritans called the fire service men and, as usual, it took them one hour to get to our house. By then, the house was in ruins. It was a sorry sight to behold. Nothing was saved. I had only the dress I was wearing. Late in the evening, my mother came back with my elder sister. Looking at what used to be our house made her faint. She was rushed to the hospital. The doctors, like the fire fighters, battled hard to save her life and in the end they succeeded. I hated myself for bringing doom to my family. How I wish I had listened to my mother. NB: It is always good to listen to the instructions of our elders. Do not disobey their instructions for any reasons, what happened in the above story that made the family to become paupers and almost caused the life of their mother; would have been avoided if only she had kept to the instruction of her mother. What elders see most times are not seen by little children that is why we should listened to their instructions. By Eguriase S. M. Okaka