KnoWhy #129 - Why Did Mormon Include Flashbacks in His Narrative? (Alma 21:13)

After Alma is reunited with the sons of Mosiah in Alma 17, Mormon’s narrative spans the next ten chapters in recounting their experiences through a flashback sequence. What is especially remarkable is that this section actually contains a flashback within a flashback. The end of Alma 20 recounts how Ammon and Lamoni rescued Aaron and his missionary companions from the king of the land of Middoni. Then, Mormon immediately presents Aaron’s record of his preaching, imprisonment, and rescue. The sophistication and intricacy of Mormon’s record can easily be discerned in these chapters. There is no fumbling or confusion on Mormon’s part, who, despite the “twists and turns of [the] narrative . . . handles them smoothly.”