‘First They Killed My Father’ is a historical memoir that combines a variety of literary devices that allowed readers to empathize and build a connection with the author and Cambodia. Written from the perspective of author Loung Ung, she fights through the genocide and her losses as she fled with her family all over Cambodia. Her personal battles touched readers consequently of her use of key themes, the relationship between characters and the events that unfold in her memoir. All this combined contributes towards the reader putting themselves into her shoes, understanding her perspective and connecting with a part of Cambodia’s history.
The key themes within the book are what Loung strives for and embodies the spirit of the novel. The theme of survival is the one priority inhabiting the minds of Cambodians then, clearly shown as Loung had mentioned that “No matter where we go or in which direction we turn, there are people marching ahead and behind
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Readers may know that survival is hard but Loung’s point-of-view gives the reader context that the war is only starting to begin, realistically and personally. Sometimes sacrifices have to be made, and for Loung, “[…] the uprooting is a choice. Pa says we have to keep moving to stay safe. For many others they have no say in the matter.” (Loung, pg 72, line 22-24). Using tone, Loung hints that survival means taking the hard path and for them, it is to continue skipping from village to village, not having the luxury of staying indefinitely to have the best chance of surviving - eventually leading to the family’s split and reunion every so often but many don’t get the chance because they aren’t lucky enough to escape as the Khmer left many to die on their own, starving or sick as food rations getting increasingly smaller,