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The Valley of the Nine Families

Themes are a critical part of any storyline. They help establish the mood of the story while at the same time enabling the story to have a mission. In the Valley of Nine Families, the theme of cumulative advantage is prevalent throughout chapter three. The cumulative advantage is when a social agent work has another agent in the social setup. Although it might be small, it eventually grows over time to become an immense advantage. The heng clan, for example, has a cumulative advantage over the Ji and Haah Clans. When the family was attacked, and a man from the Heng clan kidnapped to reveal where their hidden treasures were, he tells the raiders but changes the location where the treasure is hidden. Although all of the valley was raided, all clans suffered, but the Heng clan still possessed d the money, so they had a competitive advantage.

The theme of secrecy is also prevalent in the chapter. The elder brother’s motive of telling the village of how supporting his plan would help them survive better is egoistic because his main ainm is to gang up to create a cumulative advantage and power. Similarly, when the Heng family member gives away their community by telling where the gold was and then changing its position to gain more cumulative advantage is dishonest. While the other clans suffer fully, their family is prepared.

Security is the condition where an individual or group is free from any threat or imminent danger. The theme of security depicts when such risk is everted or experienced. The theme of security in the valley of nine families shows vividly in the third chapter. The village is raided with those whose intentions are to take by force. The security condition is compromised for all the members, but individuals try to save the material security by ensuring it is safe in a different location.

Question two

When power comes into control, those who have the power often do their best to maintain it within their cocoon. To do this, those without power are downtrodden at the expense of the regime. The story told about the king raider and the young man changes overtime since there are secrets that a particular group is holding. The story starts with real happenings with how the confrontation takes place, but when the young man starts, and their clan is better off, then the story is reformed to suit the interest of those with power. To protect this secret, the story is modified to fit the interest of those who possess the most cumulative advantage. The heng family has this power which they have to protect its origin from remaining rich and distinct from the others. This, however, has led to a great division between the clans creating a divide between those who were cheated upon becoming the poor in the village and the lazy ones and the thieves being the well off in the society.

Question three

At the end of the story, the Ji clans and the Haah clans are worse than the Heng clans, which is blamed on the lack of hard work and intelligence. However, the children from the Heng family tend to believe this because it is the story that has been formulated to cover up the truth that actually is. Being that they have differentiated themselves and are better oof the question of why would be prominent. To ensure that everyone is satisfied with their current situation, the story has to change over time and be told so frequently that it is believed to be the future generation’s truth.

Work Cited

Cervantes, Willan A. “Nine native Mexicans families in the Willamette Valley.” (2006).