Storytelling and Listening Theme Analysis

Because of Winn-Dixie introduces readers to Opal, a 10-year-old girl who recently moved to the small town of Naomi, Florida with her daddy—and who finds and adopts a scruffy-looking stray dog in the grocery store one day. The dog, whom Opal names Winn-Dixie after the store, is Opal’s first friend in Naomi—and over the course of their adventures that summer, Winn-Dixie helps Opal make friends with others in her small town. As Opal befriends Winn-Dixie and others, and as she becomes increasingly curious about her absent mother, Opal begins to learn important lessons about the power of storytelling. Through telling her own stories and giving others the opportunities to tell their stories, Opal discovers that while storytelling can be a cathartic and positive experience for the storyteller, the act of listening is arguably even more important and meaningful. Listening to others’ stories, the novel suggests, is a way to build community, show respect, and help people find a sense of dignity and purpose.

When the novel begins, Opal has been in Naomi for several weeks but doesn’t yet have any friends. She craves someone to talk to, especially since her father (whom she calls “the preacher”) “spends so much time preaching or thinking about preaching or getting ready to preach” and therefore doesn’t have much time for Opal. When Opal finds Winn-Dixie at the local grocery store one evening and lies that he’s her dog so that he doesn’t get taken to the pound, Winn-Dixie promptly begins to fill the void in Opal’s life. Opal begins talking to Winn-Dixie almost immediately. He’s her first confidante, and simply having someone to talk to has almost instantaneous benefits for Opal. During Winn-Dixie’s first bath, Opal tells him as much as she knows about her Mama, who left the preacher when Opal was three—and then, with Winn-Dixie’s “prodding,” she asks the preacher to tell her 10 things about Mama. This demonstrates how being able to tell her own story and verbally work through her problems gives Opal the confidence she needs to ask the preacher for information she’s desired for years. Even if she’s only speaking to a dog, not a fellow human, the simple act of telling her story and having someone listen to it makes her feel more secure, confident, and at ease in Naomi and in her family.

As Winn-Dixie assists Opal in befriending a number of Naomi’s adult residents, Opal takes this lesson about the value of being able to tell one’s story and pays it forward by asking for and listening to the stories of Otis the pet shop employee and the elderly ladies Miss Franny Block and Gloria Dump (the town librarian and a woman believed to be a witch, respectively). Especially when it comes to Franny and Gloria, Opal sees firsthand how meaningful it can be to have someone listen to one’s story. Though Franny is a reasonably well-respected fixture in town as the librarian, Opal witnesses fellow library patrons treat Franny coolly and as though she’s not a real person. However, Franny opens up and becomes someone entirely different once Opal agrees to sit and hear a story. Gloria, too, transforms in Opal’s mind from possibly being a witch to being a kind and generous lady who desperately needs a friend as the two exchange stories. The bond that she and Opal form is rooted in their daily practice of sitting outside, eating peanut butter sandwiches, and sharing stories and wisdom. Listening to these women and Otis is a way for Opal to demonstrate that to her, Otis, Franny, and Gloria are individuals who have rich histories of their own, entertaining tales to weave, and wisdom to impart. In turn, they show Opal that they believe she’s worthy of their time and attention by telling her their stories—but the novel implies that the dignity and respect that these individuals gain by having someone listen to them is just as meaningful, if nor more so.

Through this, Because of Winn-Dixie positions storytelling as something far more than an entertaining pastime. Rather, storytelling is how people learn about themselves and about their history—and most importantly, it’s how people pass what they know onto others. While silence can isolate a person and make them feel alone in the world, telling stories and listening to the stories of others can build community, friendships, and family—and make even those who exist in the background come to life.