MythFolklore Improvements

Expand the Story Planning Option:

I think this idea would be great for those who have a harder time thinking of stories and/or for students who want to write a longer story. After thinking about the semester, I realize I should have utilized some of the weeks as story planning weeks rather than just putting out a story I did not like or was proud of writing.

Create thematic reading units:

This seems like an awesome idea! I was looking through the blog to find extra reading options and I stumbled upon a book about werewolves and I am reading it for the extra credit option for this week. I think if you did thematic units a lot of students would appreciate it. I would! Units on how each culture views werewolves, witches, ghosts, even tragic love stories like you mentioned in your post would be a great idea.

I honestly can't think of anything to improve. This class was a lot of writing, but I enjoyed it. The only thing I did not enjoy was having to read some students' work who did not want to write the stories and it was a bit hard to read some that could not tell a story, but I give them credit for trying.

Wikipedia Trails: Wizards to Stonehenge

Magic (paranormal):
This article was initially Wizards, but it turned into Magic since that is the key to every paranormal article in Wikipedia. I picked wizard/magic because despite the lack of magic in some of the readings from Week 14, there was a lot of mentions in Week 13 which is the week I read Russian fairytales. I read through the article and I am surprised, yet not, that there is still a debate on the definition of what magic actually is: there is an intellectualist approach and a functionalist approach. I really was interested in the development of magic in the ancient and medieval world which is where the next link is headed.

Sympathetic magic:
I curious what entailed sympathetic magic and I am honestly surprised on what I found. "Effigies, fetishes or poppets to affect the environment of people, or the people." These can be found in examples like voodoo dolls, who have strands of hair of a person and the belief that whatever happens to the dolls will likely happen to the individual whose hair is on the doll. There are theories from the cave paintings that this could be tied to prehistory. 

Archaeology: 
The study of human prehistory and history, mainly prehistoric societies. The first excavations include Stonehenge and mainly in Southern England, Pompeii and Herculaneum. I have always been fascinated by archaeology, and learning about history. The film The Mummy is actually responsible for my interest in it and I love to watch documentaries on archaeology. 

Stonehenge: 
The purpose of Stonehenge is a mystery and origin is still disputed today. Theories and conspiracies are abundant around Stonehenge.  However, burial is a permanent topic concerning Stonehenge. Theories suggest Stonehenge was a pivotal place for the community who built Stonehenge because they lived there over a period of several millennia. Stonehenge has inspired culture and puzzled the scientific world; and I find that amazing. 

(Stonehenge Closeup from WikiMedia Commons.)

Famous Last Words: Dead Week

(Yoda Graduate Meme, personal source.)

• Your reading for this week: I did not do both portions, but I had every intention of reading both. This past week just picked me up and threw me across the room and did not even take me to the hospital. I remember that the reading was more in a gossip-storytelling tone than any of the other stories I have read this semester. I also remember the characters who committed adultery in the stories were always women; and I was shocked and a little bit angry. The narrators depicted these women as pretty, but cheated on their husbands, usually much older husbands. The husbands were depicted as average looking men, but strived for honor and/or were very devote, good men. Which we know for a fact that adultery goes both ways. 

• Your best writing for this week: I did my best writing in another class, I created a Media Plan which basically states the social media channels we are targeting, why we are targeting them and who we hope to reach with our selected targeting and what raised awareness will do for the company we are working with for this Capstone project. It was necessarily my best writing, but I think I improved on the type of writing I needed to finish for this semester project. 

• Other people's writing: I really like Taylor Thurston’s writing. I think they are well planned and nicely written. They are also entertaining and some of the other writings that I have read just are not fun to read. You can usually tell who likes to write and who just wrote something to get it down and turned in. So, other blogs are harder to read than others. 

• Your other classes: I completed all my content for my Capstone book, but the Book itself (I was not in charge of the book) is unorganized and inconsistent – I am honestly worried about the grade I will receive. We have dress rehearsal on Monday and we are watching my classmates’ presentations as well throughout the week. Our final presentation is on May 8, so I am ready for that course to be finished. I have a final project due on Tuesday which I am not worried about and then I have a one-page paper due on Wednesday for my fitness class. After May 8, I will be officially finished with college! I am so ready. 

• Next week: My hopes for next week are to go smoothly with every project, hopefully A’s and B’s. Next week is Finals Week – it’ll be my last Finals Week and I am ready! 

Tech Tip Cheezburger

Builder: Cheezburger

Portfolio of Witches

My first story I wrote was about a witch and the following stories contain strong females characters whether they are good, bad or in between. Through this portfolio, I will provide what I think are my best (favorite) stories over the course of the semester.

Sunflower
She created this forest: created the elk, deer, bears, wolves and rabbits who roamed the trees; the birds who sang for her; the streams that cut through the earth; the foliage of every shade of green; the flavors of fruits and herbs. This forest was her garden and there was no one to share it with.

Mother Earth
A mistress to the earth and night rather than to men.

Gaho:
He danced and sang every moon month.

The Cook:
He praised her for her cooking and in the same statement offered employment at his castle as his personal cook. He also said she would be paid handsomely. Well, she could not say no to the King.

False:
Venus scowled at the girl from under thick brows; watched with no remorse when the girl hiccuped through her sobs as she fretted over her ruined silks, the shreds of her hair and hesitantly touched her shorn head.

Reading Notes: Heptameron, Part A

Heptameron

The Boatwoman and the Monks:

- It's a story within a story.

- "A boatwoman who did nothing day and night but convey people from point to point." So she takes people from port to port for wage

- SO they decided to rape her.. Okay and a woman is telling this story, so I hope she punishes them well.

- Oh and they're friars and monks.... great.

- Oh, the boatwoman has something up her sleeve!

- When they begged not to be isolated on the island that made my blood boil.

- I am so glad this woman does not take the men with her - I was honestly excepting her to take them because a majority if these stories have the people take the individuals who wronged them and they end up in a worse situation

- A husband!

- The biblical illusion was so ironic, I love it.

- I like how they bring up hypocrisy, especially with the bad people with good situations and examples while its usually good people with bad situations and examples who show better virtue than the first.

The Lady from Milan and Her Lover: Part I and II

- I can already tell I am not going to like this story.

- How the story begins with telling the reader how great this mysterious man is is probably to make us like him.

- She was admired by not taking another husband? Usually, widows are cast out but this woman is admired maybe because she is wealthy and has lots of brothers?

- I like how she is aware of his actions and how she tries to thwart them, but I am calling it now that she will find his advances charming and fall in love with him.

- He's stalking her!!!! NO, this is not healthy.

- I hate how his stalking is perceived as devotion.

- She is stubborn and prideful, I love it despite how she will most likely give in to his advances.

- And he is determined as well... three years, wow.

- I called it!

- I am not surprised he did not listen to her and tell her to sit in the bed quietly while he confronted her brothers - what a man thing to do.

- Oh, it was a test of his adoration of her.

- How gross.

A Villager, His Wife, and the Priest:

- I was confused on what was going on - but I realized rather quickly she was sleeping with the priest.

- I laughed so hard, but they played it off rather nicely. I am kinda glad they can talk about adultery with a priest and a woman and make a laugh out of it. Or I took it that way.

- Nevermind.

- "In a word, they lack what we have, and have abundance of what we have not." I like this phrase.

(Winnowing basket from WikiMedia Commons.)

The Virgin with Child:

- I have a feeling that they are not going to believe the woman who is pregnant.

- Very scandalous.

- I know many church goers who are well mannered and save face while in public, but its a different story when they are away from the church and anyone they know from church. 

- Man, this girl is confident.

- "She told you that never man touched her any more than her brother." I honestly thought it was her brother as well.

- Because torture always brings out the truth... not.

- The truth is revealed!

- Both burned, well alrighty then.

The Monks and the Butcher:

- You should never listen in to someone else's conversation, never a good thing.

- Oh well, I guess this could be a different scenario. 

- Nevermind!

- Physics is never kind to heavier people.

- He went into the pigsty!

- "The first idea that came into their heads was that St. Francis was angry with them because they had called pigs Cordeliers (friars)." I laughed so hard, oh my goodness. 

-

The President of Grenoble's Revenge:

- "I will spare neither man nor woman." I am curious.

- If they lived happily, why would the woman cheat with a clerk?

- The husband did not believe the old servant.

- Oh, no he's planning his revenge.

- This is probably going to take a lot of patience...

- He poisoned his wife.

- I don't know if I am awed by his patience or just put out by it.

- Murder should not be the answer for finding your spouse cheating.

- Also, so far, the woman are the only spouse that has committed adultery AND I KNOW FOR A FACT THAT MEN ARE MORE LIKELY TO CHEAT THAN WOMEN.  I might have a story idea!

The Heptameron of Margaret, Queen of Navarre, translated by Walter K. Kelly (1855).

 

Reading Notes: Russian Folktales, Part B

Russian Folktales

(The Witch2 from Salon.)

The Witch Girl:

- "Come in, if you don't fear death!" Well this is an interesting way to keep people out of the house, but apparently not this man. 
- He probably plans to find the person who is missing the arm and then condemn them. 
- The folktales refer to the midnight hour as the most unholiest time of day and is conveniently when the ghouls and evil souls come out to play with the normal people.
- Why was she lying on a stove? Don't they have beds?

The Headless Princess:

- I am a little shocked that peasants were allowed so close to the palace without being spotted by guards or anyone.
- "The boy was lost in wonder." So he gossips to everyone, I wonder if this is gong to come back and get him!
- You know this would make doing hair so much easier! I would never miss a strand of hair if I straightened or curl it!
- She died?
- But she asked for the little boy!
- So I guess its common knowledge that witches come back from the dead for three nights? What happens after the third night?
- "trace a circle around you; then read away from your psalter and don't look behind you." So circles are naturally formed in nature and are holy protective shields - very cool!
- A hammer and four nails... What do they represent? Christ being nailed to the cross, does the irony kill her?
- A stake driven into their breast, like a vampire!

The number three has been repeated multiple times within the tales as well as the midnight hour and stakes through the heart.

I think I'll make a story about a woman vampire!


Russian Fairy Tales by W.R.S. Ralston (1887)