The Shining Mountain analysis
The Shining Mountain, written in 1992 by Alison Fell tackles a theme relevant and
relatable for everyone, parenting. Regardless if you’re the one parenting, or the one
getting parented, everyone has gone through it, whether for good or bad.
The Shining Mountain is a faery tale. This can be seen in the first six words of the
text: “Once there was a Scottish girl.” This is a simpler and more modern version of
the well known ‘Once upon a time’ that faery tales usually use. When the author
uses this newer version of the fairy tale introduction, it arguably makes it more
relatable and therefore the message of the story will feel like it’s relevant.
The text is structured in a chronological order, though it skips a few years in the
beginning. Furthermore it is written after the home-out-home model, which is also
characteristic for faery tales.
Following the home-out-home model, the story starts at the home, where we are
introduced to the protagonist Pangma La. Pangma La was teased for her peculiar
name, but her father told her, “I called you after a shining mountain so that you would
stand tall and be proud. Pangma-La,” he said. “Scotland has enough ordinary
Morags and Janets already.” (p.1 l.5) He says that there are enough Morags and
Janets already, which shows her fathers unhealthy expectations for her to be special.
Pangma-La is an obedient girl, “So Pangma-La dried her tears and vowed never to
be ordinary and disappoint him.” (p.2 l.1) This shows that she is an obedient girl, who
does not want to disappoint her father. Her father wants her to climb the mountain,
which she is named after, so they begin training. The story skips forward a few
years, and now they’re on the plane towards The shining mountain, once again
following the home-out-home structure, they’re out now. On the plane Pangma-La
has a nightmare, “Pangma-La woke lip frightened and wanting her mother, but she
said nothing, for she was afraid her father would be disappointed in her.” (p.2 l.23)
This indicates that they have a bad relationship. She is so afraid of her fathers
disappointment, that she stays quiet about the things that troubles her. This
quotation also shows that the text has a third-person omniscient narrator, who knows
the thoughts and feelings of all the characters.
Upon arriving at the mountain they start climbing it. After three days of climbing,
Pangma-La collapses into the snow, and a sherpa woman appears and offers her a
deal, “Give me your heavy, heavy heart, daughter”, she said, “and I will fill you with
swan’s down. Then you will get to the top of the mountain, and your father will never
tell the difference” (p.4 l.5) She gave away her heart to reach the top of the
mountain. This shows the terrifying lengths she is willing to walk to not disappoint her
father.
At the end of the story, her father realizes that Pangma-La gave her life away just to
please him, and he fell on his knees for the first time and wept tears like any human.
This brings Pangma-La back to life, and she sees her father crying for the first time,
a great weight lifted from her shoulders, and she was never again afraid that her
father would be disappointed in her.
This text is a contribution to the subjective debate on how to raise your child,
camouflaged as a faery tale. Allison Fell uses a third-person omniscient narrator to
help with developing the relationship between father and daughter. Their relationship
starts unhealthy, as Pangma-La is so afraid to disappoint her father, because her
father is a hero and therefore she feels an obligation to achieve all the extreme
expectations he has towards her. However, in the end of the story when Pangma-La
sees her father crying, she realizes that he is no hero, but merely a human and
never again is she afraid to disappoint him. This perfectly describes the message of
the story, which is clearly a re-education about parental ambitions and how to raise
your child. And you’re not supposed to raise your child with a lot of parental
ambitions, as that would put pressure on the child, and be good for neither the child
who lives in constant fear of disappointing their parents, nor for the parent, who
raises a unhappy child.
