Moral Choices

The overriding theme of The Storyteller is the concept of moral choices. The book explores how much choice people actually have when it comes to moral issues and how those choices are made and/or justified. The reader must grapple with not only whether an inherently good person can be compelled to do something unthinkable (i.e. Sage), but also whether someone who has done unthinkable things ever truly make up for them by leading an exemplary life afterward (i.e. Josef).

In Sage's case, she is faced with a moral dilemma when Josef asks her to kill him. At first glance, it would seem an easy choice because she is not the kind of person who would condone such an act. However, the choice becomes more complicated when she learns what Josef claims to have done, along with learning the extent of her grandmother's...