Storytelling Week 6: Anansi's Change of Heart

Anansi, his family, and his village were struggling due to a long famine that had been plaguing the land. They hadn't eaten in forever and were so hungry. One day, while he was desperately searching for food, Anansi saw an island far away with a palm tree on it. Seeing it as his last resort, he decided that he would sail out to the island in hopes of finding food. 

When the day arrived to set sail, all Anansi could find was an old broken down boat. He decided he would have to take it because he had to get to the island. He climbed in and tried to set sail, but the waves knocked him back everytime. After SEVEN attempts to put off from shore and a lot of spent energy, Anansi finally found his chance to sail into the water. After a bumpy trip, he finally made it to the island.

Ansani's boat on the island

Once he was there, he climbed the palm tree and found nuts. He couldn't help but rejoice. He was so hungry that even the few nuts felt like they would be a feast fit for a king. The only challenge now was to get the nuts into the boat. 

That'll be easy! I'll just climb up and drop them in!

Anansi climbed the tree and proceeded to drop the nuts in. However, to his complete dismay, each and every nut missed the boat and fell to the bottom of the ocean. All of his hopes for food were gone. The idea was so devastating to him that he decided to throw his body into the water and proceeded to do just that. He closed his eyes and let go of the tree, allowing his body to fall. However, when he hit the water, he was amazed because he was not drowning. Rather, he found himself standing underwater next to a cottage.

What on Earth is going on??

Shortly, a man named Thunder walked out and asked Anansi what he was doing at his cottage. Anansi explained his situation and Thunder took pity on him. He welcomed him into his underwater home and presented Anansi with a gold cooking pot. With the pot, he gave him a promise that he would never be hungry again. Anansi could not believe it.

Never be hungry again? How could this be?

Anansi could only wait until he was back on his rickety old boat to try the pot. All he had to do was ask and a huge meal appeared right before his eyes. He ate to his heart's content and felt such relief that he was finally full. 

When he arrived back at the mainland, he started to feel scared. What if the magic of the pot wore off? What if it could only provide a certain number of meals? His first instinct was to hide the pot so that he would be ensured meals forever. He was so afraid of being hungry again. However, upon second thought, he realized that he needed to take care of his family and maybe even the village as well. He had learned his lesson through his past experiences that greed would get him no where. So, he ran home to his family and provided them with a wonderful meal that filled not only their stomachs but also their hearts, restoring hope that the famine would one day be over. 

Black and white photo of the magical pot 

After his family had been fed, Anansi went out into the village and the pot provided them with a meal as well. To Anansi's surprise, the pot actually produced more food this time due to its pleasure at Anansi's good deeds.

Because of his generosity and selflessness, the pot produced larger and larger meals each time it was asked. The village remained healthy and fed until the famine was over and they could start producing their own food again. While the pot resting now, the village will always think of Anansi fondly and will remember the time he came home with the golden pot that saved them all.

Author's Note:
The original story is Thunder and Anansi from the West African Folktales storybook. In the original story, Anansi does travel to the island in desperate hopes to find food. He does find nuts but accidentally drops them into the water and decides to throw himself in as well. However, when he meets Thunder and receives the pot, he decides to hide it for himself. As he gets plumper and his family grows thinner, his son, Kweku Tsin, became suspicious and transformed himself into a tiny fly and followed his father until he discovered the secret of the pot. Then, while his father was out, he took it from it's hiding place and provided the family with a good meal. Then, they decided to feed the village as well; however, the pot overheated and melted. When Anansi returned to the missing pot, he snuck out back to Thunder's cottage in hopes of another gift. This time, though, Thunder presented him with a stick. When Anansi asked a favor of the stick, it proceeded to beat him repeatedly which forced him to jump out of the boat and swim to shore. The story ended with a very bruised Anansi regretting his decision to not act more wisely from the start.

I decided to change the ending of the story because Anansi's selfishness really bothered me. In almost every story, he was actions proved that he only cared about himself. Selfish people really get under my skin, so I decided to change the ending to the opposite of the original. In my version, Anansi is tempted to act selfishly, but then remembers the lessons he had learned from the past and decided to share. In the end, instead of regretting his actions, he actually was proud of them because he was so blessed by his gifts.

Bibliography: 
Thunder and Anansi from West African Folktales by William H. Barker and Cecilia Sinclair (1917). 

Reading Diary Week 6, continued: West African Folktales

I am continuing to read the West African Folktales by William H. Barker and Cecilia Sinclair. 

The first story of the reading that I enjoyed is How the Tortoise Got It's Shell. I thought this story was interesting because it tells the story of a tortoise before it had a shell, which I thought was an interesting aspect of West African culture. I have mentioned this in my reading diaries before, but I really enjoy stories that give insight as to how different cultures explain the natural occurrences around us. This story is a prime example of that. While I was reading it, I was wondering what the tortoise's thought process was while he was stuck outside the gate. Why didn't he try another way to get inside? A storytelling idea would be to write this from the tortoise's perspective and add in his inner dialogue.

The Tortoise

The Hunter and the Tortoise was a story that really brought things full circle. From the beginning, the tune of the tortoise was that man forces himself on things rather than the other way around. This prophecy came true in that the man tried to force the tortoise to sing and she refused. Had he just let it be, he could have enjoyed the music. I wold like to use this method in my storytelling of a self-fulfilling prophecy. 

I have noticed that a lot of the stories in this storybook come full circle. Just as in The Hunter and the Tortoise, The Ungrateful Man also experienced what he deserved after he was killed as a traitor. Since this is included in so many of their tales, I have to wonder if honesty and loyalty are of high value in their culture. Also, many of the stories include they influence of animals. Was it believed that animals and humans used to be able to communicate in ancient times? I wonder only because this is included in so many different tales from different cultures. Or is it just a convenient method of storytelling?

An idea for story telling from this unit would be to replace some of the animal characters with humans and vice versa. Would humans be personified differently than the animals would?

I also loved the story Why Tigers Never Attack Unless Provoked. I thought it was so cool that the man and the tiger were such good friends. I would like to use this in my storytelling to bring two characters together. They had such a connection that the man was actually very upset at the thought of the tiger dying and watched over his cub. This kind of emotional appeal is something I would definitely like to include in my stories as well since it does a great job of grabbing the audience's attention and keeping them engaged. 

The Tiger

Reading Diary Week 6: West African Folktales

This week, I am reading the West African Folktales story by William H. Barker and Cecilia Sinclair. The first story of the unit is called How We Got the Name "Spider Tales". I really enjoyed this story because of how clever the spider is. He tricked such large, ferocious animals into submitting to him. Thinking about it logically, a lion and boa would probably either eat, squish, or not even notice the spider. However, through these stories he was cunning enough into tricking them into defeat. It reminds me of the stories with the fox from the previous unit, The Fables of Aesop by Joseph Jacobs. 

The second story that grabbed my attention was the story of Anansi and Nothing. I liked how in the end, the story concluded with the assertion that children are often said to be "crying for nothing" because of Nothing in the story. It also struck me as comical that someone would be named "Nothing". Lastly, I think there is a good lesson in this story that not everything is what it seems. It is imperative that one have the patience to wait different situations out so that they can be revealed for what they really are. In the case of Anansi and Nothing, it became clear that the real rich man was Nothing. However, this was not apparent to the wives at the beginning. I think this is valuable lesson that everyone should consider. A lot of times, a situation will evolved and result in something that you never would have thought.

A modern depiction of Anansi jealously staring after Nothing
Photo by: Gabriel S. Delgado C. (2010)

After reading Why the Lizard Moves His Head Up and Down and Thunder and Anansi, I have decided that I do not like Anansi one bit! He is so selfish and deceiving. It is very clear that he only cares about himself, especially in Thunder and Anansi since his entire family was starving and he still hid the pot from them. I would hate to have known him, much less have him in my family. Also, let's not forget that his poor starving wife didn't even know what she was getting herself into since she believed she was marrying a rich man at the time due to the fact that he was wearing Nothing's clothing. I really hope that something happens to him in the near future so that he is not a character in the stories anymore!

Finally, Anansi's evil ways were revealed in Tit for Tat! I also enjoyed how some of the West African beliefs were incorporated into the story. Since the image shaking meant that the Gods were angry, I am assuming that the West Africans believed that a shaking image meant the god was angry. I am curious how exactly these images manifested in real life for them to see. Maybe it was like a spirit standing before them?

Lastly, the story of Anansi turning into a spider made me laugh because he got what he deserved. I can't believe he was still up to his tricks and was so determined to steal food from his family. Especially since it sounded like they had plenty to go around. Also, this story really resonated with me because my boyfriend is terrified of spiders and always has me sweep the webs down from the corners to make sure that they do not have a place to take refuge in his room. I told him this story as a way to explain to him that the spiders in the corner are not harmful. In fact, they are actually trying to hide and avoid being noticed! 

Thoughts about Comments

I really enjoyed taking time to read all of the comments on my post today! Admittedly, I do not go back and read these as much as I should. While I was reading over them, there were two things that really stood out to me.

The first, was when people quoted back part of my story to give an example as to what they were referring to. To me, this proved that they actually read the story and could site the parts that interested them or made them think. I think it shows a certain level of attention when someone can do this.

Also, I liked when people asked good questions about something I had written. This also showed me that they were thinking while they read my post and were interested in the material enough to follow up. This made me feel like they actually enjoyed reading what I had written and wanted to know more! I think this is a good way to compliment someone subtly in a more meaningful way than saying "good story!". 

When writing my comments, I would like to start doing both of the things I mentioned above. I write people a lot of compliments about what they have posted. However, I think I could give more meaningful feedback by asking questions, siting what I was talking about when complimenting or critiquing, and just seeming more interested in general. Also, I would have liked more constructive criticism on my blog as well. While its not always fun to read, I do believe it helps me develop into a better writer and I am interested on what people like or don't like. Lastly, I would like it if some people posted some storytelling ideas that they might have used for the story. I struggle to think of creative ways to write sometimes when I am trying to do the assignment, so I think it might help me to read other people's interpretations of how they would have done it and have more styles in mind to use. I want to add both of these methods into my comment writing, but in a nice way so that people don't think I'm hating on their story! 

Storytelling Week 5: Calm down, Set.

Kor- The therapist

Set- brother of Osiris

Kor: Ok, Set, why don't you come in and sit down?

Set: Don't tell me what to do. I am the next ruler of the great land of Egypt.

Kor: Ok, we can talk about that, but not until you sit down. 

*Set sits down in a huff. Crosses his arms and leans back in the chair.*

How Set might look pouting about the therapy session
Photo by: Paul Cezanne (1839-1906)

Set: Ok, fine. Are you happy now?

Kor: Yes, now lets get started. I'm sensing a lot of anger. Do you want to talk about it?

Set: Um, yea I'm angry. Of course I am. I was supposed to be the next ruler of Egypt and my brother stole it out from under me. Now he rules and everyone worships him because he's sooo nice and such a good leader. He's not nice! He's just weak. 

Kor: That's interesting you say that. What do you think about the fact that he's led Egypt so well? Think about everything he's done. He's led Egypt in the right direction by directing them to be holy and righteous people. There are so many beautiful temples everywhere and the country has been without war for many years since he is so focused on peaceful negotiations. 

Set: Yes, but the country could be so much larger. So much stronger! I know that my way is the right way and he refuses to see it. 

Kor: Maybe you could try to bring it up to him? Have you calmly and clearly asked him if he would ever consider your ways and possibly handle a conflict according to the way you would? 

Set: NO! I'm not going to sit down with him! I can barely stand in the same room as him. I can't stand him!

Kor: Ok, you seem to be getting angry again. Let's try some deep breathing exercises.

*Set breathes in and out. The tone of his voice does relax some, but he continues.

Kor: Ok, would you like to continue? The first step to dealing with this conflict is for you to get it all off your chest. Then, I can help you try to move on.

Set: I doubt I'll ever just move on but we'll give it a try. I feel like you'll never let me go if I don't and I just want this to be over.

Kor: That is probably true. The officials are very nervous about your high level of anger. They don't want you to make any rash decisions. 

An illustration of Set
Created by Jeff Dahl

*Set rolls his eyes*

Set: Ok, well next I want to talk about his wife. She is stronger than me. That is weird.

Kor: Why do you think that bothers you?

Set: Because! She's a woman! She shouldn't be stronger than me. She's also way too smart. She must have spies everywhere or magical powers where she can see my every move. Every plan I have to try and usurp Osiris, she intercepts! I have strong number of followers, you know, and I could totally do it. But they're losing faith in me because none of my plans go through. Its just so annoying.

Kor: Yes, I could understand how that would be frustrating. I think a lot of time, men do have problems with women being stronger and outsmarting them. It threatens their sense of manliness. However, if you can overcome this, you will start to feel secure in yourself and will have more faith in yourself. This will help you lead your followers in a confident manner and not seem like you are flailing around for ideas. However, I must warn you that I cannot support you trying to recruit a rebellious army to overthrow Osiris. 

Set: Aren't you supposed to just listen to my problems? I don't care to hear your advice.

Kor: That may be the case and it's time for this session to be over anyways. For now, my advice to you would be to let go of your jealousy. I hope you can realize that its actually holding you back. You could be a great official, the right hand to your brother if you wanted, but you are so jealous that you are only focused on overthrowing him. Now, you're scrambling to lead a rebellious army when you could lead so much more. For now though, I think this is great progress. Same time next week?

Kor: I don't think I have a choice. 

Author's Note:

This week, I decided to write my story using the "therapy session" storytelling style. I chose this style because I thought it would be a good way to talk about the jealousy and anger that Set holds against his brother, Osiris. I wrote this story based off of Osiris in the Ancient Egypt unit. The story is focused on Osiris and how he led Egypt during the time he was the ruler. He ruled after Ra, and was known for leading Egypt using a very peaceful and calm style. He encouraged the people to be very faithful to the gods, build temples, and to deal very calmly with other nations. He was known of as "Osiris the Good." Isis, his wife, stood by him and was his faithful companion. While Osiris, was traveling, he trusted his wife to rule the empire in his place. His brother, however, was extremely jealous of him and angry that Osiris was the one to rule Egypt. He believed in war and his heart was full of evil. Later in the unit, it tells the story of how Osiris is killed and Set takes over his position to be the tyrannous ruler of Egypt. 

Bibliography: 

Osiris from Egyptian Myth and Legend by Donald Mackenzie (1907). 

Week 5 Reading Diary: Egyptian Myth and Legend

This week, I am reading from the Ancient Egypt unit which pulls stories from Egyptian Myth and Legend by Donald Mackenzie. 

The first story was really intriguing to me because it tells the story of Creation as told by the Ancient Egyptians. Due to my Christian upbringing, I had never explored other creation stories. I really enjoyed the Egyptian's take though. I thought it was interesting how each being created was a ruler of one specific element of the Earth. I also liked how the Earth came from a "waste of water" because it really felt like a rebirth story. The water was waste and the Earth came up out of it. 

I was very intrigued by Ra in the story called The Secret Name of Ra. I am very curious why the Egyptians chose to describe him as an older being that had moisture dripping from his mouth as he spake. This is very different from the Christian ideas of God in that God in the Bible does not age. I like how Isis overpowered Ra and stopped at nothing to get the power she wanted. To me, this aligns with how women in today's society will stop at nothing to get the power or position they desire. In my storytelling, I would like to create a strong female character that is more cunning than her male counterpart. 

Ra, the ancient Egyptian sun god.
Photo by: Jeff Dahl (2007)

I really enjoyed the story of Osiris because of the peaceful way he chose to rule Egypt. I also liked how Isis and Osiris put on a very united front and ruled Egypt together. They seemed to be an ancient power couple. In my future writings, I would like to include a relationship like theirs. 

The Journey of Isis made me sad because of the intensity of Isis's grief. I can't imagine how it would feel to lose my husband and search for his body only for it to be thrown out again once I found it. I liked how the story gave the powerful goddess a very human side that was very relatable. I always think of goddesses as these powerful beings that are not affected by emotions the same way that humans are. However, this story showed me differently. 

The goddess Isis. Photo by: Jeff Dahl (2007)

I'm confused why the youth was taken into the water, never to be seen again by the crocodile in The Wax Crocodile. I guess it was just the fact that the youth was supposed to be following the Pharaoh rather than sneaking off to visit his lover? If I were the woman, I would be extremely upset that I was having to suffer for my lover's mistakes. Maybe a storytelling idea could be to rewrite this story with a different ending to characterize the woman as more triumphant. 

Storytelling for Week 4: The Tiger is Dead

BREAKING NEWS

Tiger Killed in the Village

It was just reported that the tiger that has been haunting the village with his savage killing spree has died. Referring back to our earlier post, the shikari cut off the end of the tigers ears, claws and tongue yesterday morning to present to the Raja. After an afternoon of confusion and worry, we received word early last night that the tongue of the tiger was festering after the wound. The infection seemed deadly. Now, today, officials are saying that the tiger is in fact dead.

The tiger growling as villagers attempt to travel the highroad.
Photo by: Claudio Gennerari

As a recap, this is the same tiger that was preying on men as they traveled along the highroad. After multiple deaths, people ceased to travel along this road, which affected trade and communications. Finally, after a long silence, the Raja and his council responded to the attacks and gathered their soldiers. Even though the Raja promised half of his kingdom to the one who could kill the tiger, none of his soldiers were brave enough to take on the challenge. It was after word traveled around the village that the brave shikari offered to hunt the dangerous animal. After much deliberation, the Raja agreed. 

After the shikari received permission, he promptly left his home and traveled into the jungle to find the tiger. His tactic was a to hide in a tree until the tiger appeared. This way, he was protected from other attacks and had a wide view of the path the tiger generally took.

The next morning, upon facing the tiger, the shikari was brave enough to confront him. Photos have been submitted that show the man standing with the tiger, showing him photos of other tigers that the shikari had supposedly killed. The photos show the tiger visibly changing his stance and shifting to a position of fear. The community was stunned as the man continued to stand with him and reason with him that he would save his life as long as he allowed him to cut off the tips of his ears, tongue, and claws. The tiger agreed and the tips were presented to the Raja. Upon learning of these happenings, the village was outraged. They did not believe that the tiger would cease to prey upon the people. However, the shikari knew the the truth and that the infection would eventually overcome the tiger, thus ending his life. 

The people from the village are rejoicing tonight as their safety has returned. Trade and communications are expected to continue tomorrow. 

Author's Note:

The original story is called The Killing of the Tiger from Folklore of the Santal Parganas by C.H. Bompas. In the story, a tiger was preying upon the people of a village as they traveled the highroad. The Raja promised half of his kingdom to whoever could kill it; however, none of his soldiers were brave enough. So, a poor shikari offered to hunt the tiger and after speaking with the Raja, he agreed to let him. So the man left in the morning and hid in a tree until the tiger appeared and asked him to come down. Once the shikari did, he showed the tiger pictures of other tigers that he supposedly killed. The tiger then was extremely fearful and begged for his life. The shikari offered to let him life as long as the tiger allowed him to cut off the tips of his claws, ears, and tongue. The tiger agreed and them man left with these things and showed the Raja. Eventually, the tiger ended up dying because his tongue festered. 

I decided to make a 'breaking news' story since this would be big news to the villagers. I did not change much in the story, but did try to add in some more dramatic diction and summarize what happened the way a news story would. 

Bibliography:

The Killing of the Tiger from Folklore of the Santal Parganas. Folklore of the Santal Parganas is the English version of the Santal folklore stories, which were translated by C.H. Bompas in 1909.

Week 4 Reading Diary, continued: Santal Folklore

The first story of the second reading is called The Jackal and the Chickens. To be honest, I did not really enjoy this story. The whole premise seemed to be killing. I wonder why this is so prevalent in the Santal folklore stories? This is something I would like to look up and investigate further. For my writing, I would not like to include anything like this. It could, however, be a challenge to myself to write a story that I do not particularly write to try and build these skills?

The second story, The Jackal Punished, seemed even worse! The basic storyline was almost the same as the previous; however, the deaths stood out even more because the story was shorter. This made it seem like the entire story was about death. I am not a fan of this type of content.

The Jackal by Artemy Voikhansky

The Tigers and the Cats seemed random to be because I feel like some of the events do not relate. In my writing, I would like to have some flow that keeps the reader easily clued in to what is happening.

One issue with Indian folklore that I have is that it really does confuse me. For example, in The Elephant and the Ants, the moral of the story "not to despise the poor man, because one day he may have the opportunity to put us to shame." I do not really understand how the elephant running with ants relates to a poor man. Something I would aim to do in my writing is to communicate messages that my audience can fully understand so that they do not feel the confusion that I do now. 

After reading these stories, I'm getting the sense that revenge is a large part of Indian culture. Either that, or at least being punished for not treating people right. Each of the stories seems to have some aspect of punishing for wrongdoing, most likely death. 

Source: Folklore of the Santal Parganas, by C.H. Bompas (1909)

Week 4 Reading Diary: Santal Folklore

The beginning of Ledha and the Leopard reminded me of the story of Adam and Eve. The boy came home after promising not to do something and was convinced by a woman to do so. Also, I like how clever the animals are in the story. They are personified as people with plans and schemes. Maybe this is something I would like to include in my storytelling.

This story of The Oilman's Bullock made me sad because the bullock only lived a short while after he was free. The message of this story to me was to always enjoy whats happening in your life now instead of constantly looking forward because you never know what the future holds.

I really like how clever all of the stories from the Santal folklore are. This is something I will strive for in my writing. I would really like for someone to read my story and be as impressed with mine as I am with these. One thing that is so far for me to comprehend, though, is the meaning behind each story. This is probably due to the fact that Indian culture and values are very different than European. I have made a note to research more into these folklore stories to see what they could be trying to communicate. 

I really enjoyed the story of Ramai and the Animals because I liked to see the kind spirit of Ramai. He was protecting the snake, otter, cat, and dog out of the goodness of his heart rather than for the prosperity they would bring. In turn, they rewarded him. Kindness is an extremely important virtue to me and one that I try to practice everyday. Therefore, I liked to see it in Indian culture and know that they value it as well.

The otter that Ramai saved. Photo by: Ken Thomas

The Ghormuhas sounded like they should be in the show Game of Thrones or something! They were so intense. While I did not like that they ate people, including their own fathers and mothers, I liked the idea of coming up with a completely new creature. This  type of creation could be cool to practice in my own writing. Someday, in a story where it fit, I would like to think up a completely new being and insert it in to the story.

I thought the ending to The Jackal and the Crow was very funny because basically, the jackal could not jump over a post because he was so full. He transfixed and died.  This was such an unexpected ending and struck me as very funny in a fable. In my writing, it would be cool to include an ending that struck people as funny as this story did to me. 

The story of The Tiger Cub and the Calf started out sweet but ended the opposite. It is interesting to me how death is such a prevalent part of Indian folklore. In addition, I think it is interesting how, throughout all of the stories, the different species of animals and humans all could communicate and get along. Do people from India believe that there was a time that this was possible?

Bibliography:
Folklore of the Santal Parganas, translated by C.H. Bompas (1909)

Learning Challenges: the caffeine causality loop

Today I had some free time so I decided to visit the Learning by H.E.A.R.T. blog to see if there were any tips on how I could be using my time. I'm really focused on using every moment to my advantage this semester. However, I got interrupted because the top post on the blog was a cartoon about the caffeine causality loop. I had to laugh to myself because the exact thing is happening to me today. Since I had my first exam of the semester this morning, I drank a soda last night at dinner to fuel me through the night hours of my studying. However, then I could not fall asleep and had planned on getting up early this morning to review. Therefore, when I woke up at 8 am this morning, I was very tired and needed more coffee. I'm hoping I can get through the day without feeling like I need another dose. 

Caffeine causality cartoon. Cartoon created by John Atkinson

Cutting down on my caffeine intake is also a New Year's resolution of mine because I was starting to get so addicted that I would either get a caffeine headache in the day if I did not have some, or would just feel really foggy and unable to focus. It was freaking me out! So, over the break I made sure to get on a regular sleep schedule to start training myself out of drinking it. Now that I'm back in school and my assignments are picking up, its getting harder to stick to my goal. But, I am determined to cut down and am hopeful for success. 

Source: http://oulbh.blogspot.com/2015/12/caffeine-causality-loop.html

Tech Tip: Twitter Follow

I decided to do some tech tips this week for my extra credit. Since I have a Twitter account, but hardly ever use it, I decided to revive it some by following some new accounts. The account I followed this week is Glamour magazine. I followed Glamour because I really like the magazine and the content that they publish. It's beneficial advice thats targeted towards women like me and my friends! I also am very interested in working in the magazine industry in the future and Glamour is one of the publications I would love to work at! 

Glamour Magazine's logo

This past November, I was lucky enough to go to New York City with the magazine interest group in Gaylord. We visited multiple magazine headquarters to get connections to people in the industry and start networking. Glamour was one of the magazines we visited, and I loved the atmosphere and the people that I met who worked there! I don't know why I didn't follow them earlier! 

Learning Challenges- Schedule Review

On Week 1, I set my schedule to be Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. My plan was to start the week on Sunday and then finish up by Thursday so that I could get ahead on the week. It was a great plan, until it never happened. 

A meme about procrastination. Created by: Laura Gibbs

I usually find myself starting on Tuesday and ending on Sunday. This works, because I do get everything done on time. However, I'm usually stressed to get stuff in that night. My problem is that I'm not good at working long periods of time. I like to do one assignment and then take a break and come back to it. This means I am typically doing some of the assignment each day of the week. Therefore, my week usually goes Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and finishing up the week Sunday.

That being said, I am not ready to give up. This week, it will be my goal to have all of my weekend assignments due by Thursday or Friday so that Sunday can be spent working ahead on the future week. I think my problem is that I got behind early, which made it difficult to stay on schedule. Once I am back on schedule and get into the routine, I will like it a lot better and it will relieve a lot of my stress. I am willing to make a big push one week to have easier future weeks. 

Source: http://oulbh.blogspot.com/p/time-management.html

Disney Remixes: story book styles brainstorm

Topic: For my topic, I will be focusing on the original versions of some of my favorite Disney movies. I will find four different fairy tales that have original folk backgrounds that have been made into Disney movies. Two of the stories I want to include are The Little Glass Slipper and The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood . Both of these stories were written in French by Charles Perrault and then were translated into English. I chose Perrault's versions of the stories because I like how much detail he includes. Even though it makes the stories longer, it creates a much more vivid scene and this is something I enjoy while I'm reading. I do not think I will have any trouble finding stories since Professor D.L. Ashliman, a retired professor from the University of Pittsburgh has created such an extensive database of folktales that I can reference. My criteria for picking stories is to pick stories that have been turned into Disney movies that the U.S. population is familiar with.

Bibliography: 
1. The Little Glass Slipper, from The Blue Fairy Book, by Andrew Lang (1891) 
2. The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood, from The Blue Fairy Book, by Andrew Lang (1891)

A modern take on Cinderella
Photo created by: Krystn Palmer (2009)

Possible Styles:
1. Immortals Among Us- I think for the stories that had an important character die, it would be cool to keep them around. For example, in The Little Glass Slipper, Cinderella's mother has died. I think it would be cool to incorporate the mother and add her in. I read a German version of the story where the mother was still incorporated through a tree that was planted in the garden; however, I would like to incorporate the mother as an actual character in the story. Like maybe the mother is with her at the ball in spirit and helping her in that social situation? Maybe, I could show Cinderella nervous, about to walk in and her mother is with her to give her advice and reassurance?  

2. Public Relations Consultant- This story telling style is so interesting to me. I am an advertising major but as part of my classes, I have had to take some PR classes and have learned how to write press releases, etc. I think this could be a really cool story telling idea because it puts a fun spin on the classic fairy tales, but would also help me in my public relations writing. For The Little Glass Slipper, I could write a plan about how the kingdom is embarrassed that they have lost the princess, but they are doing everything they can to find her in a safe and swift manner. For The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood, I could take one of two approaches. The first idea I had was to write about how the old fairy cursed the princess but the kingdom does not need to worry because she will only sleep and the steps the kingdom is taking to protect the new princess, etc. Another idea I had was to write a plan for once the princess is actually asleep. 

3. Characters Grown Old- I think its a cute idea to tell these stories like the two parents are looking back, telling their children how they met. Since most of the stories are about a prince coming to save the princess in some way, I think this story telling style would be very easy to apply to each of these. I could also then develop the children as characters since they would be older.

A family reminiscing
Photo by: Rhonda Baer and acquired from The National Cancer Institute

4. OU Campus- and more specifically Greek life. I think it would be cool to tell the story in a way that relates to my experiences at OU. I am a part of a sorority so I think it could be cool to write as if Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty were too. In addition, my boyfriend and I actually met at a fraternity party, so I think it would be cool to make Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty meet their future husbands at a party and tell the stories like they are a part of the modern day dating scene and nightlife at OU. For example, rather than the prince hosting a ball in The Little Glass Slipper, it could be a formal. As for The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood, the entire sorority house would fall asleep with her instead of the kingdom. 

5. Fake Twitter- I could make a fake Twitter account for the characters and live tweet their experiences. An example would be to live tweet The Little Glass Slipper and have Cinderella tweet the ball and then once she got home. I think this could be another really fun way to add a modern spin to these classic fairy tales. I could also tweet from the perspective of the princes, the step-sisters, or other characters in the story. 

6. And the moral of the story is...- Since most of the fairy tales have morals connected to them, it could be fun to do the Tech Tip idea of creating a poster for the image of the fairy tales to illustrate the message. This could be a cool way to add some visual creativity. 

Storytelling Week 3: The Boy and the Snake

One day, a boy came home to his father.

“Father, I have finally met the one I want to marry!” he exclaimed to him. “Who may it be? One of the girls from down the way” the father excitedly questioned. “No! But her beauty has eclipsed the beauty of all else and her laugh has enchanted me,” the son replied.

The father was very intrigued now. He was proud of his son for finding a suitable wife so early and without the help of his parents. Where could he have met her?

“Well, when shall I meet her father?,” the patriarch asked, “you know we have to have his blessing before you can be granted her hand in marriage.” “I know, father. But, don’t worry. I feel like that will not be an issue,” the son replied, “would you like to meet her now?” “Well, of course!” the father exclaimed. He had not expected her to be waiting outside of their door.

The mother joined the two and stepped outside with the father and his son. However, once they saw her, the two parents gasped and raised their hands to cover their faces. For, their son’s new lover was actually a large, green serpent.

A green serpent. Photo by Frank Wouters 

“Isn’t she beautiful? And her hiss is a tinkle in my ears,” the son said, beaming down at the snake.

The father and mother didn’t know what to say. They didn’t want to offend her, for her powerful venom could kill them in an instant. However, they did not want their son marrying her.

After a long pause, the father said, “Son, we understand your feelings and are eager to grant your wishes. However, we worry that her venom and fangs might injure you. Could you ask her to remove her teeth and have her poison extracted? Then, we can reconsider your request.”

The son felt quite dejected then. However, he bent down to his lover, stroked her head, and quietly asked her his parent’s request. Her eyes saddened, however she loved the boy so that she nodded her head in agreement. Then, in one swift movement, the serpent coiled her tail around the boy and swept him away. She knew her strength and was not one to bow to the demands of some meager humans. The boy held on to her, but did not seem afraid for he was being carried away by his love.

The mother and father did not see the boy again. However, it is said that he lives happily in the forest with the serpent and lives a lavish life among their loyal companions. As the story goes, neither the boy nor the serpent regret their decision to deny his parents and live their life as they knew fit.  

Lesson: Life your life as you know you should.

The man and the snake together. Photo by: Alexander Ess

Author's Note:

The original story was called The Lion in Love from The Fables of Aesop by Joseph Jacobs. The fable told the story of a lion who fell in love with a girl. However, the parents were nervous to let their daughter marry the lion due to the fact that he may accidentally injure her. So, they asked him to remove his claws and teeth before they would allow them to marry. The lion loved her so much, that he did both of these things. However, when he came back to the parents, they just laughed in his face since he could no longer harm them. I made several changes to the story. The first was that I switched the characters so that the boy was the one who fell in love with an animal rather than the other way around. Also, I wanted the girl to remain a powerful figure, so I made her a large serpent instead of a smaller, meeker animal. In addition, I changed the ending so that the serpent did not obey the family's request. Instead, she stayed strong and took the boy with her to live on her terms. Since the story was so absurd to me in the original version, I decided to maintain the same level of silliness, if not more. In addition, I added in my own little life lesson that I choose to live by, just as the fables do. 

Bibliography:

The Lion in Love from The Fables of Aesop by Joseph Jacobs from the nineteenth century. 

Web Link: http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2014/04/aesops-fables-lions-part-2.html