Months Narrative Analysis

Before comparing and contrasting these stories, however, I wish to discuss an important aspect of nearly all accounts of the tornado. Although these stories do not recount the smell of the tornado, all three narrators spoke of it on other occasions. For these three, and countless others, the odor remains the most visceral trigger for intrusive memories. Labeled simply as “the tornado’s smell,” citizens could not specify an exact source, listing the two most prevalent as natural gas, leaking from the multiple broken lines, and sap from the hundreds of trees uprooted, splintered, and often debarked by the powerful winds. Either one, taken individually, reminded survivors of the unique tornado smell when encountered at a later time. Months …show more content…
Ordering these stories by degree of narrative coherence, DeeDee’s tale is clearly the most complete, leaving very few gaps and temporal backtracking. Faith’s account is second, containing several instances of jumping forward and back on the narrative timeline, yet incorporating a detailed recollection of each part of the story. Jonathan’s tale shows the least coherence with noticeable disordering of events, long pauses, unfinished sentences, stopping to correct inaccuracies, and missing segments which he attributes to traumatic amnesia without specifically using that term. Further, these accounts are marked by a significant decrease in the long pauses and the degree of coherence …show more content…
Although agitated and occasionally struggling to verbalize while narrating the events of driving into the storm, her emotional distress level was far less. It seemed easier for her to express the fear for her own safety than to discuss her fear of losing loved ones. Additionally, she showed great distress and limited ability to discuss what she saw at the triage station. She attempted to relay her experience, starting with the person covered in a blood-soaked blanket, but stopped after that. Since the initial interview, Faith added additional details of the horrors she observed. The experience of driving, exposed to extreme danger while attempting to find safety, yet unable to find shelter for an extended period of time, heightened the degree of Faith’s distress. Coupled with uncertainty about her family’s fate and the uncertainty about where to go after being prevented from entering the city, Faith’s prolonged experience of distress most likely exacerbated the stress from an already traumatic