Reading Diary Week 7, continued:

Continued reading from Filipino Popular Tales by Dean S. Fansler . 

Why Mosquitos Hum and Try to get into the Holes of our Ears really confused me. I understand that the story was an attempt to explain why mosquitos buzz around peoples ears. However, the story did not make it very clear which type of being each character was, which made it hard to follow. I was also confused how the rain, carrying the house, and the fire all tied in. It just seemed very random and hard to follow. In my storytelling, I want to make it very clear what is happening and who each character is so that people do not get frustrated and confused. 

The Hummingbird and the Carabao made me laugh. I liked how the relationship between the two animals was very relatable. Oftentimes, my friends will also joke with each other that they can do one thing better than the other and a competition ensues. I also liked the large amounts of diction in the story. It allowed the relationship to develop between the two characters and showed more emotion than a 3rd party re-telling of the event. In my storytelling, I would also like to incorporate more diction so that the personalities of the characters and their thoughts can be more developed.

Why the Sun Shines more Brightly than the Moon was a very interesting story to me because, as I've mentioned before, I like when folktales attempt to explain natural phenomenons. In this case, I thought it was interesting that the girls had knowledge of what their god was doing and could have enough contact with them to steal. This is such a contrast to the Christian beliefs that I grew up with where God is this mystical being who we cannot see or visit until after death. I'm curious if the Filipinos believe that they're god is living among them? This is something I would like to look more into. 

The sun versus the moon
Photo by: Remus Withe 

The Story of our Fingers definitely makes me look at my hand a little differently! It always makes me laugh the stories that humans can come up with when left to their imagination. I'm curious why the tale came about that a thumb was trying to steal? Then that would cause people to look negatively upon one part of their body. I think this story does a good job embodying the culture of the Filipino people. It was apparent after reading this that they do not approve of stealing and that, should one steal, it is possible that they would be shunned from society. I'm curious whether this is still a value that exists in their culture today?

I really enjoyed Why the Ocean is Salty because it makes sense to me. Something I have learned through this unit is that the Filipino people are very creative. They like to employ magic/mythical beings into their stories as well as give natural objects, such as the ocean, a personality. I really enjoyed reading this unit because it was a previously unknown culture to me and my first experience with it. 

Reading Diary Week 7: Filipino Popular Tales

This week, I am reading the Filipino Popular Tales by Dean S. Fansler. I've really enjoyed this unit because I am not familiar with Filipino culture.

In the story Three Brothers of Fortune, I liked how each had a magical object that could perform a different power. Throughout the story, I was curious how the charms would work. In the past folklore stories, the results of the charm did not turn out how the one who possesses it would have thought. However, in the case of this story, the charms worked as expected. Then, I was curious how the story would end. I liked the turn of events where the other two brothers received "useless" parts of the woman, but the brother with the stones could put her back together to have all of her. This was not something I expected in the story, and I was really happy to read that that's how it turned out. I do feel bad for the woman, though! I know I wouldn't want to be cut up into three pieces! I wish the story had elaborated more on what exactly this meant. Was her body actually split up into three?

I was really surprised by the ending of The Clever Husband and the Wife. I was guessing that the doctor would be extremely angry at the husband and his wife for lying. However, his response was one of joy because they were both alive. 

The story of Chonguita struck me as very absurd; however, I was also very drawn in to the story and wanted to know what happened. After each trial, I was curious to know who would win and was concerned about the well-being of Chonguita, especially when she was hurled against the wall. I also felt badly for the couple from the beginning since Don Juan had to marry a monkey and Chonguita had no say in the matter. In my storytelling, especially for my storybook, I would like to establish this kind of emotional connection so that my readers feel for the characters. I think it helps people stay engaged in the story and care about what is happening.

How I Imagine Chonguita
Photo source: Wikipedia (2007)

The story The Enchanted Prince made me really happy! I was so pleased that each of them found an answer to their needs and essentially saved each other. For my storytelling, I would really like to write a love story. An idea I have for this is to pick out one character I like from the stories and develop a love story with a match that I think they would get along well. I think this would be a really good way to expand my creativity and write a completely original piece.