ABSTRACT
There is a tendency to think of storytelling as inevitably lost to modernity, and it is generally true that when people work away from the home and farm, when children go to school, and when television invades family gathering places, then storytelling appears to be irrelevant as a means of entertainment and cultural maintenance. Stories are still told, but shorter anecdotes and jokes are preferred among adults. The fantastic stories of kings and queens are relegated to the children's hour and/or replaced by the magic of professional performers. However, it would be a mistake to assume that the shifting of cultural practices under the force of progress is exactly the same in all cultures. This essay explores the current status of storytelling in well-educated, middle-class families in India and suggests that expanded literacy does not necessarily mean the end of storytelling.
