The non-fiction book First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers written by Loung Ung recounts of her and family’s experiences during the Khmer Rouge. Many families such as Ung 's family had to evacuate their homes and from that point on had to strategize for their survival. Survivors of the Khmer Rouge used several tactics in order to stay alive and/or keep their remaining family members alive. One strategy survivors used was lying about their identity/background because that determined people’s fate to remain alive or killed shortly after. The second strategy was relocation because this method allowed families to have a fresh start in order lower the chances of being detected within new communities. The third strategy involved
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The Ung family was desperate to stay alive, even if it meant separating the entire family. Pa stating “They must lie and tell everyone that they are orphans… This way, maybe, we can keep them safe…” allows readers to see the mindset on applying the strategy of separation to protect his family. Separation meant a higher chance of survival to the family and the act of lying about their background was a way the children can remain safe. The idea was that if the children were not together, sent away, and label themselves as orphans then they would not be suspected by the Khmer Rouge. Separating the children from their parents was a way to avoid exhaustion or starvation which would have been the end result if they continued to stay where they were. As a worker for the former government, the father knew he would eventually get caught, but he tried to prevent the capture of his family. Therefore, reinforces the idea that these strategies eventually come to end. The father coming to the realize that he needs to separation the family demonstrated that strategies that were previously mentioned such as lying about identity, relocation, and stealing food cannot protect a family for long. The constant struggle to create new strategies has a certain amount of time to remain
The Ung family was desperate to stay alive, even if it meant separating the entire family. Pa stating “They must lie and tell everyone that they are orphans… This way, maybe, we can keep them safe…” allows readers to see the mindset on applying the strategy of separation to protect his family. Separation meant a higher chance of survival to the family and the act of lying about their background was a way the children can remain safe. The idea was that if the children were not together, sent away, and label themselves as orphans then they would not be suspected by the Khmer Rouge. Separating the children from their parents was a way to avoid exhaustion or starvation which would have been the end result if they continued to stay where they were. As a worker for the former government, the father knew he would eventually get caught, but he tried to prevent the capture of his family. Therefore, reinforces the idea that these strategies eventually come to end. The father coming to the realize that he needs to separation the family demonstrated that strategies that were previously mentioned such as lying about identity, relocation, and stealing food cannot protect a family for long. The constant struggle to create new strategies has a certain amount of time to remain