In the midst of the court case, the backstory strategy is employed as Abina recalls her childhood experience with her mother and brothers (Getz and Clarke 22). Skillfully, Clarke has illustrated the scenes of Abina's childhood in such a way that they appear to have brighter colors than the rest, which implicitly reveals the joy Abina felt during that time, as well as the untouchability of her memories. This effective application of backstory helps Abina and important men seem more realistic and convincing. Another literary strategy present in the text is that of the cliffhanger. At the end of the story, Abina's final fate remains unknown. While this is simply due to the lack of documents about his life after the case, it still remains an effective literary strategy as it leaves the audience engaged and curious, ensuring that the work remains historiographically relevant.