An Elephant Never Forgets

"The greatest story ever told is the one told today," the master storyteller explained. "The greatest story ever told is also the most original. The greatest story ever told is the first story. Does anyone know what this story is?"

"It's the story of everything, teacher," answered a member of the audience to the master storyteller.

"And who are the characters in this story?" asked the master storyteller.

"We are, teacher," said multiple members of the audience.

"Yes, and because you are all characters in the story, so are all in the past and future. Every character has a role to play. Does anyone remember when mankind hunted beasts out of necessity?" questioned the master storyteller out of curiosity. "No? Yes, well, man wasn't always as self-reliant on the creatures of their own creation as they are today. They were once dependent on the creatures outside of their control."

"There once was a man named Ucas. Ucas was in charge of more than just himself. He was responsible for his family and an entire village. Quite often Ucas would lead an expedition into the wilderness to secure food for the village. The journey would be long and difficult to the destination. Then came the real fight of hunting and killing the creature. On one journey back from a hunt, Ucas noticed in the distance how a pack of predators cornered their prey against a steep hill. Ucas suddenly had an idea. What if instead of hunting the creatures they needed for food they kept them within walls and killed them when necessary? Thus containment was born," the master storyteller postulated.

"Teacher, were all creatures kept in walls once Ucas put them there?" wondered a child in the audience.

"No, not all. Some creatures were too mighty for the walls of the men, then. Not for long, though," the master storyteller responded. "There once was a man named Alker. He grew rich from all the creatures he held in captivity. He would sell them to others. Over time he developed methods of making the creatures tame when the time came for their killing. His methods worked so efficiently that he wondered why he hadn't sold his ways to others. So he did."

"Who did Alker sell his methods to, teacher?"

"Alker sold his methods to a man named Ohn. Ohn's interest was in the spectacle of certain beasts. He used the methods of Alker to tranquilize animals and transport them far distances. Ohn's trouble came with training the beasts. The time spent training was greater than the time spent showing the creatures to those interested. However, Ohn's descendants persevered in their desire. As did Alker's descendants."

"Teacher, what did it mean for the men to persevere?"

"Child, it meant their methods were carried as far as they could go. There once was a man named Teven. His methods were so advanced he created his own beasts and creatures. He kept them in walls of his own making and showed them to those he wanted to. The old beasts and creatures were no longer kept captive, nor were they used for food any longer. Teven's creations satisfied the needs of man, so the old creatures were no longer of any use. That is why we elephants now live in peace," finished the master storyteller.

"Teacher! I am sick of your idealism! All along the way man used us for their own purposes and discarded us when finished. From captivity to emancipation, we are only doing what they let us. Those who built bonds of affection with man were thrown away just as easily once beasts were created. What is this 'peace?' We are hunted by the characters of the story you tell our children!" cried out a disgruntled member of the audience.

"My story," clarified the master storyteller, "is for the children. Not for you. In the end, an elephant never forgets what it wants to remember."

Author's Note: You would probably never be able to guess what story this is based off of without me telling you. The major takeaway I took from Arabian Nights is the power of storytelling. Wow, actually there are far more similarities than I originally gave myself credit for. In Arabian Nights, a sultan betrayed by his former wife is marrying a different woman every day and then cutting off her head. A brave woman named Scheherazade marries the sultan. She wants to put a stop to the sultan's cruel behavior (what a euphemism) by telling the sultan such an interesting and long story he'll never be able to cut off her head. At least that's how I think it will go. The version of the story I read doesn't have an ending. The interesting part about Scheherazade's story is that it has multiple layers. There are characters in stories telling other characters stories and so on. I didn't quite accomplish this. Another interpretation of mine for Arabian Nights is that Scheherazade is simply extending her life as long as possible and delaying any other woman's beheading. The nobility of that futility is also present in my story.

For anyone wondering, all the names I used were just regular names with the first letters missing. I thought it would be fun to do that. If I were to go back to this story, I would use progressively complex language to tell the story. The language would go along with the innovation man makes. Simple to more complex. Thank you for reading.

Bibliography:

The Arabian Nights' Entertainments by Andrew Lang and illustrated by H. J. Ford (1898)

Banner Image: Elephant Hunt (Source)