Reading notes, A: Ovid's Metamorphosis

Deucalion and pyrrha- I like the line where it says "sea without a shore. I also like that Jupiter acted as though human life were of no consequence to him, as the Greek gods often did. I also liked that the stones spawned the re-birth of people. The earth represented the mother, where people come from, but also that people are strong, and more capable than we think.
Lo-Juno was vengeful as usual which I love about her, and Jupiter was ever so unfaithful as he usually is. I like that they use people as toys in their game, it is so unlike the gods that people worship today. it gives more freedom to the story.
Phaethon and the Sun- I liked how the hours, and seasons and so on were literally spaced, giving  a more visual representation of time and seasons.
Phaethon's ride- Stories like this make me angry. I am not a fan of people ignoring fair warnings.
The Death of Phaethon- I like that the planets take on more personification and seem to have feelings and thoughts. I really like that the earth is so motherly.
Callisto- I like that they use Jupiter and his wandering eye to start so many stories. He always uses a disguise to get the girls where he wants them.
Semele-I thought it was weird how the god Bacchus was born of his father's thigh, although I have read of another story I cant remember where something similar happened. I just really enjoy the freedom that these types of stories give the author.

Jupiter, and his lover

Wikipedia

Bibliography
Ovid's Metamorphoses, translated by Tony Kline (2000)

Learning Challenge, Empathy

I clicked on the I Wish My Teacher Knew article about empathy. This was really moving. With all the stuff going on in our everyday lives it is easy to forget that others have problems too. I feel like teaches also get lost in the hectic nature of it all, because they have to look after so many students and make sure everyone is on track. Some of the postcards were heart breaking. I personally don't have anything that crazy going on, but I have been in and am currently in classes where the teacher almost completely ignores that fact that students take other classes than their own, and might have jobs. The time commitment is intense, and the dates are stringent. Its infuriating.
Rant over
As far as empathy, I think I could stand to be more empathic. I really focus on myself and things that I need, and sometimes I forget about others. Especially my boyfriend. I need to be a little more empathetic.

Empathy

Flickr

Growth Mindset, EC, Cat Photos

Trust Cat

Growth Mindset

I liked this Cat because I really need to trust myself more and believe in myself. With graduation impending, I am terrified that I won't get a good enough job to support myself or maybe I'll go down a dead-end, unsatisfying career path. I have ALWAYS landed on my own two feet and been very independent, but not having the comfort of school is scary. So when I read The 7 Ways to Crush Self-Doubt, it didn't just apply to the creative class i'm in.  I think the biggest thing for me is not comparing myself to others. I always do that, and I am not where other people are, but they are not where I am either. We all have our own strengths and sometimes I forget to give credit to my own. 

Open-ended Cat

Growth Mindset

I liked this article because I really like the way the open ended project or questions lead to more substance in a project. Those type of questions definitely help me get more creative. While I tend to like the yes and no questions because they are short and sweet, but they don't really explain anything. open-ended-ness gives the opportunity to explain things and open a dialogue. So when I read Creativity in The Classroom, I agreed that it should extend to all areas of the class. not just english. 

Feedback Thoughts

I feel like feed back is really important because it gives you another person fresh point of view. It helps having new ideas given to you. I tend to think along the same track, and get into a groove. Now, I like my groove, and I think I do well there, but a different point of view is always appreciated. I have had other classes in which we had to critique the work of others, and I have to say I don't think my experiences have been terrible, but they usually aren't overly helpful either. I think feedback will be useful in here because a lot of people who are probably way more creative than me will have ideas that I never would have thought up on my own.
The Psychology of Comparison and How to Stop - I am big on comparing myself to others and their work. I read this one to try to get some tips on how to better keep my energy on my own work. This said that I should just focus on me, and not compare myself to others because I am not where they are, and that's true. I am not as creative as some of the people in here, I'm sure. I also haven't had that many opportunities to fabricate something, so its ok if my stories still need work, that's ok.
Overcoming the Fear of Feedback -  This was interesting because I never thought that GIVING feedback would be an issue. But, I guess it is hard to tell someone to their face that what they have put out into the world is lackluster. I feel like written criticism is the most honest way to tel someone how you feel about their work without hurting anyones feelings.

Consume Criticism

Flickr

Topic Brainstorm

Greek gods/goddesses - I have always been interested in the greek god and goddess stories. I have taken an ancient epic poetry class here at OU, and I have learned about this topic in elementary class, so I have some prior knowledge on this subject. I like this topic because the stories tend to be pretty versatile, and controlled by the defining traits of each god or goddess. I think for this option, a re-telling, or adding on to a story would be best.
Pirates- Every child grows up hearing of pirates. I also used to live in the North East, and have been to several pirate museums. Generally, pirates are pretty devious and tend to be described at tricksters. I think those character traits would give me a bit of freedom when writing. I feel like I could write my own story, or add on to or change someone else's.
 Nursery rhymes- My grandma always read my nursery rhymes. I had several books by mother goose, and I have heard all of the ones in between. so, I would say I have a fair knowledge of them. I also like that the stories are short. I feel like a shorter story would put less pressure on me, and the subject matter is really flexible. I feel as though I could create my own story, or change the subject of an existing one.
Brothers Grimm- As far as my prior knowledge of this goes, I don't have very much. I have heard some stories and seen some movies based off of this, and I know that they tend to be a little darker in theme than the traditional, run of the mill, fairytales.  I think it would be really interesting to take a story and put a Grimm twist on it. I am not sure if I could fabricate my own story or not.

Another thing I was interested in when I read over some old projects was the one about Meredith Grey and Grey's Anatomy. I know it isn't exactly folklore, but I have always wanted Joey and Rachel of Friends to end up together instead of Ross and Rachel, Or Teds wife from How I Met Your Mother to not have died. I don't know if those are options or too out of bounds?

Friends Logo

Wikimedia Commons

Week 2 story: The precious daughter

Once upon a time, there was a family of three who lived in a small village at the edge of the sea. The family of three was made of a hardworking father, a protective mother, and a beautiful but naive daughter. The Father and the mother had tried for many years to have a child until their daughter was born. They had prayed, sacrificed, and done all the noble things the pair could have done until they were blessed with a daughter of their very own. She grew up quite like the other kids in the village, with slight variations. She was taught lessons, but instead of going to the village school, she was kept home and taught for fear that she would get hurt on her way to or from the school. She played with children, but was always dressed in thicker clothing, so as not to be injured. She went for walks on the beach, but was kept under constant watch. Her parents treated her like more of a priceless vase, than a living, breathing, growing child. The daughter did not seem to mind. She saw how much her parents loved her, and if this made them happy, she was all too keen to please. On the daughter’s 16^th birthday celebration, the whole town came to rejoice with the family. Everyone took note at what a beautiful young woman the daughter had become. This made the father and the mother very afraid that someone would come to take their precious girl. After the party, they instructed the girl to cut off her beautiful hair and only go outdoors at dawn and dusk, when the rest of the village was in their houses. The daughter happily did as she was told. One day, while walking on the shore line at dusk, she spotted someone, a man dressed all in furs. He made his way over to her, and as he did, she noticed that he was carrying multiple weapons. At first, this made the daughter nervous. Her whole life had been aimed to keep her away from such items. But, then she saw the man’s face. His face was kind, and handsome, like the face of an old friend. The man asked her about the animals around the village, but she had nothing to tell him as she was generally kept inside. The next day at dusk, she ran into the same man again, only this time he had a telescope with him. The man asked about the clarity of the stars at night, but again she had nothing to tell. That very morning at dawn the girl ran into the man again. The man asked her about the local markets in town, and for the third time, the daughter could not give him any information. A few days later the daughter came back from one of her shore line walks at dusk to find the man she’d met in the days before at her home. The man had asked her parents for her hand in marriage so that he could show her the world she had so far missed out on. The parents were afraid of losing the thing they loved and wanted most in the world that they declined the man’s offer. The daughter was devastated. She craved this man and the world he had to offer. The next night on her shore line walk at dusk, she spotted something in the distance. The man was rowing in a small boat. The man offered to take her away, and show her the world. The daughter chose him in an instant.

Years later, and elderly couple showed up on the married couple’s doorstep. They were surrounded by children and pets. The daughter recognized them at once as her parents. They had realized the error of their ways, and saw the daughter and the world she lived in for what it was, a beautiful, wild thing

**Author's note- I modified this from the story The Lion in Love. It was about a lion who was in love with a girl, but her parents would not let the lion marry her because he had claws and fangs. The lion had them removed, the parents still said no, and the lion was devastated. I wanted to give the daughter a chance to choose for herself without humiliating the other party involved. I also wanted to change the lion to a man, as well as make the parents less cruel hearted. 

Bibliography: The Lion in Love, from The Fables of Aesop by Joseph Jacobs (1894). Source

Lion Statue

Maxpixel

Reading notes, extra credit, week 2

The Turtle and the King I like stories like this where the main character gets what he wants by outsmarting his opponent. I could probably write something like this, but I don't think I would be able to add on to it so much.
The Crocodile and the Monkeys Heart- I liked that the monkey out-witted the crocodile, but the end where the crocodile just left sad felt a little open ended to me. I feel like it could be added on to. The monkey could have gotten revenge I think. I did like the little poem that the monkey told to the crocodile at the end.
Goblin City- This one felt closest to a fairytale. The language used and the mythical creatures. I could not really find a moral to the story though. I guess that "there is no such thing as a free lunch", or "don't believe everything you see" would be close, but those are not as profound I suppose as I am used to. I'm trying to figure out what I would write or add onto, and while I liked this story, I don't think it is so much my style.

Goblin on a Frog

Wikimedia Commons

Reading notes B on week 2

The Man in the Moon- I like the ending to this story. It seems familiar in a way, like I've read stories where the main character doesn't get what he wants right away or is taught a lesson and left to live with the consequences.
The Hare that was not Afraid to Die- This story I did not like as much. I felt like the language was a little too old in style. If i were to write something, I would definitely update the language. I am also not a fan of following multiple story lines in a shorter story.
The Eight-Forked Serpent of Koshi- This story really did remind me of a Greek tale, which I liked. While the language was older in style, it wasn't a distraction and I felt it added more to the story. I find the stories interesting where other worldly beings get to participate in mortal lives.
The Indian Who Wrestled with a Ghost - I liked the ghostly element of this story. I did notice that it was not a traditional spooky ghost story, but more of a teaching riddle. And the values were clearly Native American.
Pygmalion- I was a little confused by the line "art hides his art".  This story was honestly a touch creepy because it's a man who is in love and worships a statue, but the Greeks were a little creepy. I like the style in which Greek stories were told. This story has a clear beginning, middle and end which I liked.
The Tiger, The Brahman, and the Jackal- I liked that the tiger got what was coming to him in this story. The jackal was cleaver. and this story did a great job of making me feel sorry for the good hearted Brahman.
The Lions Share- I liked that this was short and sweet, and you still got the point that the lion was greedy.
Androcles and the Lion- The lion reminds me of a loyal dog, and I love that. This was an all around feel good story, and I feel like that's rear in these types of stories. I like the loyalty element in the story.
The Lion and the Statue- I like that the lion was clever in this story. He seemed wise, and the man seemed boastful and willing to believe what he wanted to in his superiority. I don't think I am capable of writing a story so short, and straight to the point, but I like that someone else wrote it.
 The Lion in Love- This story made me so sad! That poor lion. I do not like stories that make me feel this way. I would never write something like this. I could however add on to this to make it a happier story.
The Three Roses- This was definitely a less romantic version of beauty and the beast, and I happen to really love love. But, I enjoyed the fairytale aspect of this story. It didn't have a lot of back story, but the ending made it clear that the Basilisk was supposed to be a real boy all along.

Story Book

Flickr

Reading options, Part A

First of all, wow! That UN-textbook is awesome! I love the freedom and choices it gives us. Really really cool!
I just scrolled down the list until I found the Sioux stories. I am about 1/8 Sioux, although with my naturally blond hair and inability to get a tan you'd never know. I read a story about how a war began with the Chippewas, called The Wonderful Turtle. Being a huge animal lover, I went straight for the title with the animal. This was a sort of odd story as it was told more in the rhythm of a song, which was explained at the beginning, but still it was different to read. I actually kind of liked the way it flowed once I got used to it. Being a Native American tale, it did not end in the happy sort of finite way that people in the U.S. are used to having their stories end. It was open-ended which I never really thought of as an option before.
The second unit I clicked on was English Fairy Tales I. I decided to check out the Three Little Pigs. I was curious to see if it was in fact the story that I remember, being told in the way that I remember. Obviously the books that I has as a child made the language a bit easier to understand for a child. This was written in more of an old English type diction. i perfectly understood, but for a child I can see why they decided to update the language. The standard "not by the hair of my chiny chin chin" was still in there which I was pleased to see. The ending was A LOT different than the one I recalled as a kid. The pigs end up boiling the wolf, and eating him! I dig it. They were clearly not afraid to be brutal back then.
The last unit I clicked on was Welsh (Thomas), which caught my eye because my last name is Thomas. The name "Thomas" comes from my grandfather, who just so happens to be Welsh. I chose the story Arthur in the Cave, which seems to be a continuation of the story of King Arthur. I really liked the way that it was written, in modern literary prose. It was easy to read, but it still kept sort of a song like rhythm to it. It sort of reminded me of reading the Harry Potter books. This story was essentially saying that King Arthur did not die, as in previous stories, but that he and his knights were just asleep for thousands of years, awaiting the proper time to continue their quest to defend their crown. I liked that this story was kind of hitched to another already well known story. I feel like I would be more comfortable doing something like this because I am not so creative.

Fairy Tales

Flickr