Short Story: First They Killed My Father

First They Killed My Father, a tile which fits both the tone of the book and the storyline. It is a foreshadowing for the cruel events of murder in the book; and though Keav was the first of the family to pass away, Loung’s father was the first to be killed. As Professor Inness-Brown says: the title already tells the audience that her father is killed, but the word “first” shows us that there are more cruel events to will follow.
Also mentioned by Professor Inness-Brown: these events are parallel to what we have seen in our world today, with ISIS. However, gruesome scenes of brutality and oppression is bombarded to us not only from news sources, but also from everyday entertainment (movies, TV shows). It is almost like people, even myself …show more content…
The scene starts on the busy streets of Phnom Penh, a scene not different from that of American towns and cities, even to this day. Kids laughing, playing, wearing colorful shirts, being careless of the grumpy food vendors in their way. A busy city, full of life. Loung and her parents are at a local noodle shop. In this scene we see traits of the everyday interaction of Loung with her parents. She conflicts with her mother because she is expected to act more ladylike rather than like a playful child. On the other hand, with her father, she is very attached to him, as he is to her. Loung is always in awe and blindly trusting of her father. For example, when in the noodle shop she mentions …show more content…
Particularly, on page 67, when she mentions how the Angkar banned the practice of religion. Since we learn Sem Im Ung (i.e. Pa) was a monk, it is expected for to have great knowledge of the Buddhist religion, and we specifically see this when he and Loung visit the religious site of Angkor Wat; as he holds her hand, picks her up, and tells her about the temple and what it means. It is also another moment of the book in which we see how close the two really