Narrative Essay: Courage Under Pressure - English 101

This narrative essay recounts a harrowing experience from the perspective of a classmate. The story centers on Stefanie, a shy 16-year-old, whose life takes an unexpected turn when her mother and sister are threatened by an armed robber. Despite her introverted nature, Stefanie demonstrates extraordinary courage and resourcefulness, confronting the criminal and protecting her family. The essay details the events, from the initial encounter to the eventual apprehension of the robber, highlighting Stefanie's transformation from a quiet observer to a decisive protector. The narrative emphasizes the contrast between Stefanie's previously perceived personality and her remarkable bravery, showcasing her ability to rise to the occasion in a moment of crisis. The essay also includes a reference list of relevant sources on narrative essay writing and rhetorical criticism.

Running head: NARRATIVE ESSAY
Narrative Essay
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author note:

1NARRATIVE ESSAY
The story is of Stefanie, the 16 year old high school mate of mine, with whom I had little
scope to interact, simply because she was too calm and composed to strike a conversation with
anyone. However, after the incident happened, I changed my notion as I realized that she has a
much stronger persona than we ever knew in class. The story was narrated to me by Stefanie,
after the incident which I am going to narrate, happened with her, and she re-discovered her
hidden potentiality of challenging odds, instead of getting intimidated by the same. It was 8 am
in the morning, as Stefanie said, when Stefanie was happily chattering with her tiny 2 year old
sister, who would barely communicate with her with the indistinct words she could utter. While
Stefanie’s mother and her aunt were laughing at the meaningless conversation Stefanie indulged
in, with her tiny sister, Stefanie found immense pleasure in spending quality time with her baby
sister within the car.
Stefanie was a 16 year old girl, who loved going to high school, had limited number of
friends, and was very shy and withdrawn. She had been labelled as a recluse multiple times by
her friends. She had always been this way, shy in class and at the playground as well. At class,
she would attend lectures, and during breaks, she would gaze at the playground. Although some
of her friends invited her to play with them she would rather stay distant and detached. At home,
her only constant companion has been the tiny sister with whom she would never experience the
kind of social awkwardness she faces with others.
“I am going to get down here and come back in a while fetching milk from Viesta”, said
her mother, as she stopped the care and parked it nearby, to finish the work she has come for.
“Take care of Camry, Stefanie, I will come back in a while”, she added in a tender voice.
Stefanie remained calm, maintaining her silence, as she does. As the mother took the leave,
Stefanie’s eyes kept on gazing at her mother until she took one of the bi-lanes, and disappeared

2NARRATIVE ESSAY
for the time being. Stefanie is very calm and composed, and it takes her much time and courage
to break through her shell, and establish connection or even initiate conversation with the near
ones. Camry was becoming more and more restless, as her mother was not to be found, and
Stefanie could do little to manage her creams and cries. However, Aunt helped her with that. The
50 year old aunt was experienced enough in handling babies, and she took Camry on her lap, and
started cajoling the poor thing, when she noticed her mother coming back. Camry’s eyes
sparkled with joy as she saw her mother coming, while Stefanie remained calm, as she was.
As the mother was about to get inside the car, Stefanie yelled : “ Mom! Pay heed to the
truck”. A blue truck rushed towards their car, and unaware of the man coming out of it, as her
mother was about to get in, she heard a high-pitched voice saying “Give me what you have, or
else I shall shoot you with this gun”. Her mother started panicking at the very sight of this rogue,
the forty year old scamp, whose very countenance reflected the mischievous and boorish nature
of a criminal. With the face of a loathsome reptile, the man had long beards which he might have
not shaved for almost a year, and his hands smelled so foul, that even Stefanie could sense it
from within the car. “Give me the purse, right now, or else I shall shoot you, lady”. Stefanie’s
mother could barely utter a word, and although she could easily retort wittily to any mischievous
person, that day, her feet became numb, as she was standing a few inches away from death. “Oh
wait, Give that cell phone to me as well”, the man hardly waited for anybody’s reaction, before
he was taking everything as his own. Stefanie’s aunt had fainted half, and her sister started
screaming at the top of her voice, realizing something was remarkably wrong in whatever was
happening around. Stefanie remained silent and composed, though she knew the palpitation she
was having inside. As a security officer after having observed this, came to save the family, he
was being shot dead on the spot by the merciless rogue.

3NARRATIVE ESSAY
The man rushed towards her sister, and tried to snatch away the diamond ring her aunt
had gifted the tiny girl. The child started screaming louder, as she was daunted by the sight and
gesture of this new man. While her mother kept on crying and asking for help with her meek
voice, the ma kept on trying to reach out to the Stefanie’s sister and pull her away from the car.
Being panic-stricken as well as furious at the moment, Stefanie could not control her emotions,
and she came out of the car in utter desperation.
Sefanie’s mother was astonished and perplexed, as she saw her calm and composed
daughter, furiously confronting a stranger. Her mother exclaimed in fear “ Someone help us, or
this man will shoot my poor daughter. She ca...”. Stefanie did not pay any heed to what her
mother was saying, nor was she mindful of the desperate cries of her mother, as she was also
trying to do something to save the family. Stefanie’s eyes burned with the determination to set
ablaze and ravage anything and everything that would try to harm her family. She remembered
how her father asked her Mom to ask the driver to take the car and bring milk, and how her
mother wished to drive all on her own, just to spend quality time outside the house with Stefanie.
Stefanie took away the gun from the rogue, after biting hard on his fingers, and as blood
started rolling out of his finger, the man tried to exert all his power to take back his destructive
weapon from the young girl. Stefanie shouted, while still desperately trying to control her gun,
with all the might she ever had with herself, and asserted “ I shall not give you this gun. I will
even stoop to the level of becoming a criminal and kill you, if I need to, in order to protect my
family”. She added, with equal fierceness “ I shall shoot you right here if you try to move a little
from your position”. She kept on pointing the gun at the man, and her eyes were focused on that
of the rogue, who although was not willing to surrender fast, wished to save his life. Holding the
gun in on hand, Stefanie called up the police with other hand, taking away forcefully the phone

4NARRATIVE ESSAY
from the hands of the criminal. As she felt that the crowd was surrounding her and her mother,
and she could still understand that her mother was unnerved as before, she remained steady and
focused. Meanwhile, as the police came in, they arrested the man, and said that he was a
notorious convict who had escaped the prison a few days back. Now, the man is in prison.
While Stefanie narrated the entire story, she was as poised and self-controlled as ever.
However, I shall always remember how she was able to rise to the occasion, battle all the odds
that came along the way of a young 16 year old girl, and exhibited such bravado. I have come
across many of my friends who openly proclaimed their courage, and yet barely exhibited
courage, when required. On the other hand, here is a girl who was so tranquil, her eyes so serene,
and yet she had the ability to fight the odds of her life.

5NARRATIVE ESSAY
Reference List:
Ali, Fawziyah Binte. "HOOK ON TO THE FIGURE (A strategy to the Teaching of Narrative
Essay Writing)." Proceeding 7th International Seminar on Regional Education. Vol. 3. 2016.
Ali, Fawziyah Binte. "HOOK ON TO THE FIGURE (A strategy to the Teaching of Narrative
Essay Writing)." Proceeding 7th International Seminar on Regional Education. Vol. 3. 2016.
Foss, Sonja K. Rhetorical criticism: Exploration and practice. Waveland Press, 2017.