The Storyteller

In class we discussed things that were "startling".  Being that "The Story Teller" was basically the point of view of a completely different culture than our own I did not find only one thing startling but rather the whole aspect of the story.  Reading about their ways of life, beliefs, customs, their stories, I was being startled quite often.  I found Mascarita's fascination with the tribe intriguing, mostly because of the fact that if he was born into the tribe he probably would have been killed for having his birthmark.  Yet, he still had a passion for their ways of life.  What also startles me is the fact that these people still exist the way they do.  I find it remarkable that their culture has remained generally unchanged for hundreds of years.  While technology is progressing and apparent in most corners of the world the Machiguengas and other tribes remain untouched by the modern world. What a deal! It is just amazing that the world we know was and still is generally unknown to many of these people.  Part of Mascarita's dream was to keep the modern world's ideas away from the tribes, to preserve their ways of life and let them exist in their own ways.  I thought about this and I want to agree with him.  Very few of these tribes that live away from the modern world exist; I think allowing their traditions to carry on may be important.  However, their customs are often cruel ones and wouldn't it be in our best interests to end them and teach them better? But what they do is their way of life, though cruel is it our place to tell them otherwise? It is a tough thing to consider.