Monday, May 1, 2017
End of Semester Improvements Blog
Change Review Weeks to Planning Weeks Idea:
I really like this idea and I hope that this does get implemented into future classes. We have a saying in the Marine Corps that goes like this, "Piss poor planning equals piss poor performance." Excuse my language! The saying just doesn't come across the way that it's supposed to without everything being explicit. If this change is implemented into the class and obviously the assignments would be graded, then students would be academically encouraged to develop good plans for both the class and their personal schedules. I wish more courses, online and physical, had this built into their schedules!
Expand the Story Planning Option Idea:
I used this option once or twice this semester and I really enjoyed this option. I think that my story turned out a lot better than when I read Monday and Tuesday and then wrote my story on Wednesday. I think this was because I did look up more details relating to my story and plus I spent the rest of the week thinking about how I was going to write my story. In the end, I believe that my story turned out more complete and thought out.
The resources that helped me personally were the side notes and suggestions provided by the professor. For instance, when I was at a loss in trying to decide how to go about researching more details of my story sources, the professor had already anticipated the questions that I had. Some helpful suggestions were to research the cultural background, rituals, ceremonies, etc. that my stories were based on. I also found this helpful when working on my storybook. Now, if the planning option was made available in future classes then that would be awesome! An idea that I had was to make an assignment in which the student has the option to research how their subject is portrayed in different cultures. For example, Hephaestus is the Greek form of the smith god, but Vulcan is the Roman form. I did not do an extensive amount of background research on Vulcan, but if I would have, then I might have developed a different storybook project.
Create Writing Tutorial Videos Idea:
I had a great time developing my writing skills in this class! I especially loved learning how to use quoted speech throughout my stories but that's also where I had the most friction. The online resources and personal feedback helped tremendously and I love the idea of having tutorial videos that I could watch and learn from. Shoot, half the stuff I learn nowadays is from YouTube, so learning through a tutorial video would be like second nature. One other thing that I noticed that other students did was to integrate music into their storybooks. Maybe a tutorial video on the best way to do this would be helpful?
Thursday, April 27, 2017
Week 14 Storytelling: Old Red
Herr Korbes, a detective of the Woodlands Internal Affairs agency, walked down the South Trail of the crime scene looking for clues that would help him solve his case. Korbes had a couple of suspects but he didn’t have enough evidence to figure out who the dirty cop was. Among his two suspects were Wolfy the over aggressive narcotics officer and Jack the big officer who constantly came close to breaking the rules to solve his crimes. Jack seemed harmless enough but it was Wolfy who he was willing to bet was the dirty cop. Korbes continued down the path but then stopped as he noticed a long piece of wolf hair caught between two branches. “Ah it doesn’t surprise me to find this here,” Korbes thought to himself. “It’s off to Wolfy’s house now,” he thought.
“Knock, knock, knock.” Korbes said, “Open up Wolfy. I know you’re home and I have a few questions for you.” Wolfy opened the door and invited Korbes inside. The two of them sat down at Wolfy’s coffee table opposite of each other.
“Ask your questions, Korbes, I’m an open book,” Wolfy said confidently.
Korbes dug into his pocket and pulled out the wolf hair and put it on the table. “Mind telling me why I found this on the South Trail earlier today?” Korbes asked.
Wolfy’s whiskers twitched ever so slightly. “Easy, that is my usual route that I go running on every morning.”
“If you say so. Last question, when’s the last time you saw Old Red? She disappeared yesterday and we believe a cop was involved in her kidnapping,” Korbes said.
Wolfy’s eyes narrowed. “Surely you don’t believe I had anything to do with her disappearance?? I was actually guarding her house with Jack last night and neither of us saw anything out of the ordinary during our shifts,” Wolfy stated.
“That’s my point, you two were the last to see her,” Korbes said as he stood up. “Anyway, I’m off to talk with Jack now. I’ll be in touch, don’t leave the Woods,” he said. “Knock, knock, knock.” “Jack, it’s Korbes, open up,” he said.
Jack opened the door and invited Korbes inside to sit down with him to talk. “What can I do you for?” Jack asked.
“It’s about Old Red. She went missing yesterday and I believe a dirty cop was involved in her disappearance,” Korbes said. Knowing full well that Jack was going to ask if he was involved, Korbes continued to speak and said, “My first question for you is what were you doing last night?”
“I was on guard duty at Old Red’s house with Wolfy, but neither of us saw anything out of the ordinary,” Jack said. Korbes began to scratch his head to think when Jack said, “However, Wolfy did tell me that I could take a nap while he kept watch and that it was no big deal.”
“That’s it!” Korbes exclaimed.
“What’s it?!” Jack asked surprisingly.
“While you were asleep, Wolfy must have snuck in and ate Old Red!” Korbes exclaimed again. The two of them then proceeded to Old Red’s house to investigate the crime scene. Once there, they noticed that the door had been opened so they proceeded into the house. They were astonished because there was Old Red on her bed, but something was different about her.
“What big hands you have Old Red!” Korbes exclaimed.
“What big feet you have!” Jack exclaimed.
“And what big teeth you have!” Korbes exclaimed right before Wolfy jumped up and swallowed him whole. Not missing a beat, Jack grabbed the axe conveniently lying against the wall and killed Wolfy, saving Korbes in the process.
“Knock, knock, knock.” Korbes said, “Open up Wolfy. I know you’re home and I have a few questions for you.” Wolfy opened the door and invited Korbes inside. The two of them sat down at Wolfy’s coffee table opposite of each other.
“Ask your questions, Korbes, I’m an open book,” Wolfy said confidently.
Korbes dug into his pocket and pulled out the wolf hair and put it on the table. “Mind telling me why I found this on the South Trail earlier today?” Korbes asked.
Wolfy’s whiskers twitched ever so slightly. “Easy, that is my usual route that I go running on every morning.”
“If you say so. Last question, when’s the last time you saw Old Red? She disappeared yesterday and we believe a cop was involved in her kidnapping,” Korbes said.
Wolfy’s eyes narrowed. “Surely you don’t believe I had anything to do with her disappearance?? I was actually guarding her house with Jack last night and neither of us saw anything out of the ordinary during our shifts,” Wolfy stated.
“That’s my point, you two were the last to see her,” Korbes said as he stood up. “Anyway, I’m off to talk with Jack now. I’ll be in touch, don’t leave the Woods,” he said. “Knock, knock, knock.” “Jack, it’s Korbes, open up,” he said.
Jack opened the door and invited Korbes inside to sit down with him to talk. “What can I do you for?” Jack asked.
“It’s about Old Red. She went missing yesterday and I believe a dirty cop was involved in her disappearance,” Korbes said. Knowing full well that Jack was going to ask if he was involved, Korbes continued to speak and said, “My first question for you is what were you doing last night?”
“I was on guard duty at Old Red’s house with Wolfy, but neither of us saw anything out of the ordinary,” Jack said. Korbes began to scratch his head to think when Jack said, “However, Wolfy did tell me that I could take a nap while he kept watch and that it was no big deal.”
“That’s it!” Korbes exclaimed.
“What’s it?!” Jack asked surprisingly.
“While you were asleep, Wolfy must have snuck in and ate Old Red!” Korbes exclaimed again. The two of them then proceeded to Old Red’s house to investigate the crime scene. Once there, they noticed that the door had been opened so they proceeded into the house. They were astonished because there was Old Red on her bed, but something was different about her.
“What big hands you have Old Red!” Korbes exclaimed.
“What big feet you have!” Jack exclaimed.
“And what big teeth you have!” Korbes exclaimed right before Wolfy jumped up and swallowed him whole. Not missing a beat, Jack grabbed the axe conveniently lying against the wall and killed Wolfy, saving Korbes in the process.
Author’s Note: As you can tell I adapted my story from the Little Red Riding Hood fairy tale, but made my characters detectives. I decided to do this because I wanted to write in a different style and experiment with it and see what I came up with. In the end, the Wolf still ended up being the bad guy, the “lumberjack” still ended up being the hero, and I just added Herr Korbes into the story to add another character. I got his name from another story called Herr Korbes from the Ashliman unit.
Bibliography: Little Red Cap translated by D.L. Ashliman (1998-2013).
Image: Wolfy
Tuesday, April 25, 2017
Week 14 Reading Notes: Ashliman, Part A
I read from the Ashliman section of the Brothers Grimm unit for this Tuesday. I chose it because it looked like it had a lot of good short standalone stories in it. I was not disappointed at all! Just like the reading unit that I did for Monday, this unit got right to the meat and potatoes of the story. Reading one continuous story is great, but I like being able to read a lot of short stories because it gives more a lot more writing ideas to work with.
I did notice that there were some parallels between some of the stories, such as "The Wolf and the Seven Young Kids" and "Little Red Cap." In both stories the wolf eats the main characters but gets caught and cut open and has his stomach replaced with stones and then eventually dies because of this. Some of the other stories didn't make much sense to me but they were still interesting regardless. One of these stories was Herr Korbes. It starts out with a rooster and a hen going on a journey to Herr Korbes house by taking a wagon drawn by mice. On the way they fill up their carriage with numerous other animals and objects and when Herr Korbes come into contact with them, he gets all beat up. Then the story ends with, "Herr Korbes must have been a bad man." I'm not sure that I get this seeing as how the story never shows the perspective of Herr Korbes.
With all this in mind I think that I can take a few elements away from these stories to use in my own storytelling. I like the way that the Wolf is portrayed in these stories so I will probably write him into my own story. Also, he kind of gets the crappy end of the deal when he helps out Old Sultan so I might incorporate some of that story and have the Wolf end up benefitting in the end. I could possibly combine the Old Sultan story with the Seven Kids story and go in that direction. We shall see!
Bibliography: The Grimm Brothers' Children's and Household Tales translated by D.L. Ashliman (1998-2013).
Image: Rooster, Hen, and Four Mice
I did notice that there were some parallels between some of the stories, such as "The Wolf and the Seven Young Kids" and "Little Red Cap." In both stories the wolf eats the main characters but gets caught and cut open and has his stomach replaced with stones and then eventually dies because of this. Some of the other stories didn't make much sense to me but they were still interesting regardless. One of these stories was Herr Korbes. It starts out with a rooster and a hen going on a journey to Herr Korbes house by taking a wagon drawn by mice. On the way they fill up their carriage with numerous other animals and objects and when Herr Korbes come into contact with them, he gets all beat up. Then the story ends with, "Herr Korbes must have been a bad man." I'm not sure that I get this seeing as how the story never shows the perspective of Herr Korbes.
With all this in mind I think that I can take a few elements away from these stories to use in my own storytelling. I like the way that the Wolf is portrayed in these stories so I will probably write him into my own story. Also, he kind of gets the crappy end of the deal when he helps out Old Sultan so I might incorporate some of that story and have the Wolf end up benefitting in the end. I could possibly combine the Old Sultan story with the Seven Kids story and go in that direction. We shall see!
Bibliography: The Grimm Brothers' Children's and Household Tales translated by D.L. Ashliman (1998-2013).
Image: Rooster, Hen, and Four Mice
Week 14 Reading Notes: Russian Folktales, Part A
For this Monday's reading, I decided to go with the Russian Folktales. This was my original choice for my first week 13-14 reading, that I changed to Dante's Inferno. I thoroughly enjoyed these readings and I got a lot of good storytelling thoughts from them! For instance, most of these stories get right to the point of the story itself whether that be being nice to the poor or doing what you're supposed to be doing in the first place (integrity).
In contrast to the obvious morals, some stories seem like they will end with a moral of the story but then they end with the person getting what they want in the first place. In one story, a rich man is supposed to give some money to a poor man, then he fakes his death to get out of his debt, then helps the poor man scare off some bandits, gets some money in the process, and never pays the poor man what he originally owed him. It's actually really funny to read some of these stories and see how they unfold. There was one story that kind of seemed like an origin story that was about three siblings. In the end of the story, the two sisters abandon their brother and become a stream, while the brother chases after them and ends up becoming a delta. It was actually kind of sad that this happened because the three of them had gone through a lot together and in the end, the sisters abandoned their brother.
Combining all these different ideas, I think that I will take the straightforward and to the point elements from the Russian folktales unit. For example, I will open with the main characters and the main antagonist and clearly lay out the issue at hand. Then I will advance the story while leading to a seemingly clear ending. Then, I will not write that ending, but write something absurd lol.
Bibliography: Russian Folktales by W.R.S. Ralston (1887).
Image: A rich man and a poor man
In contrast to the obvious morals, some stories seem like they will end with a moral of the story but then they end with the person getting what they want in the first place. In one story, a rich man is supposed to give some money to a poor man, then he fakes his death to get out of his debt, then helps the poor man scare off some bandits, gets some money in the process, and never pays the poor man what he originally owed him. It's actually really funny to read some of these stories and see how they unfold. There was one story that kind of seemed like an origin story that was about three siblings. In the end of the story, the two sisters abandon their brother and become a stream, while the brother chases after them and ends up becoming a delta. It was actually kind of sad that this happened because the three of them had gone through a lot together and in the end, the sisters abandoned their brother.
Combining all these different ideas, I think that I will take the straightforward and to the point elements from the Russian folktales unit. For example, I will open with the main characters and the main antagonist and clearly lay out the issue at hand. Then I will advance the story while leading to a seemingly clear ending. Then, I will not write that ending, but write something absurd lol.
Bibliography: Russian Folktales by W.R.S. Ralston (1887).
Image: A rich man and a poor man
Wednesday, April 19, 2017
Week 13 Storytelling: Merlin's Inferno
"Look, Vivien!" I exclaimed as we came upon the rock that housed many marvels.
"Oh gosh, what a sight it is, Merlin," Vivien mocked. "When will you cease to show me all these 'wonders?' You have already taught me everything that you know," she said.
"Just bear with me a little longer, my love," I replied in response. After responding I moved the rock that hid the entrance to an underground cave. I walked down into the cave before Vivien and when I looked up, she had used her magic powers to roll the rock back into place above me. Even though I knew that she would do this to me, I could not stop myself from showing her this magnificent place.
I attempted to move the massive boulder and I would have been able to if were not for my broken heart. The only woman that I ever truly loved had betrayed me and this caused me to lose my will to live. I laid down, closed my eyes, and allowed myself to enter the eternal darkness.
I woke up to someone or something screaming in the distance. I rose to my feet with surprising vigor that I had not had since the days of my youth. "Who's there?!" I shouted. As soon as I asked that question, I came to the realization that I must be dead, because I no longer had the foresight that I did in the living realm.
A voice came back. "Good Merlin! It is me, Arthur!" He said.
"Arthur? It can't be, I died before you...," I said in response.
"It seems time works differently down here. I actually just got here right before you did," Arthur said. "You look great by the way!" He said.
Reaching up to stroke my beard, I noticed that it was no longer there, and neither were my wrinkles from my old age. "Wow! It seems that I've come back in my prime in the afterlife!" I exclaimed.
Arthur said, "Either way, I'm glad to have you by my side again, Merlin! Do I have a lot of stories to tell you! Gosh, after Vivien trapped you-"
"Vivien!" I cried. "Where is Vivien? Is she here? I must find her!" I exclaimed frantically.
"I'm sorry I mentioned her," Arthur said. "For what she did to you, she got sent to the lower depths of Hell," he said.
I paused, then looked at Arthur and said, "We have to rescue her."
"I was afraid you'd say that," Arthur said.
"I hope you still have that sword, Excalibur. I imagine we'll need it," I stated. We proceeded to search out our surroundings and found that we were in a place called Limbo on the outer edges of Hell. After more searching we discovered that Vivien was in the eighth circle of Hell being kept there by the Giants. However, finding this information out did not deter us from our mission. We set out on our journey to the lower depths of Hell, sword and staff in hand.
As we reached the gate to the second circle of Hell, we heard a voice yell to us. "Merlin! Arthur! I come to join you on your quest! It is me, Hercules!" Hercules yelled.
Arthur replied excitedly, "Good Hercules! We're glad to have your company."
"It is not an easy quest that you two have set out on, but I would be amiss if I didn't offer my help. I have ventured through the underworld before and I know some shortcuts through the place," Hercules said.
"Let us proceed, then," I said. With Hercules as our guide, the three of us moved through the second circle of Hell without any problems until we came to the third circle of Hell.
"Cerberus, a three-headed devil dog, guards the entrance to the fourth circle of Hell. We must sneak past him or slay him to continue on," Hercules whispered to us. But as Hercules was talking, Cerberus raised his three heads in alert and began to charge our location.
"Looks like our decision has been made for us!" Arthur shouted as he drew Excalibur from its sheath. In perfect synchronization, Hercules charged Cerberus to stop him in his tracks with his godly strength while I cast a hasty spell to enlarge Arthur. While Arthur grew, he swung Excalibur above his head ready to bring his sword down on Cerberus. In a lightning fast strike, Arthur cut clean through all three heads of Cerberus. "Now that the dog is taken care of, make me normal size again, Merlin," Arthur said.
"No, wait," Hercules said. "We can use this to our advantage. Arthur, pick us up and then climb down to the eighth circle," he said. Arthur agreed, then picked the two of us up and climbed down the circles of Hell. As we neared the eighth circle, I saw Vivien surrounded by multiple Giants and they saw us too.
"I'll distract them while you two get Vivien!" Arthur shouted as he began to run away from us. Before we could argue the point, he already took off. Hercules and I quickly made our way to Vivien and I was horrified by what I saw.
She was disfigured beyond words can describe but even in her torture she managed to say, "Merlin, no! Even in the afterlife you plague me with you presence!" Hearing that, I realized the whole quest was a complete waste.
Then Hercules shouted, "We're out of time! We've got to leave now!" Gathering all my power to myself and taking some of Vivien's as well, I created a new spell that I hoped would work.
I shouted the last magic word of the incantation, "Alakazam!" And just like that, the three of us were back on the outer edges of Hell.
Author's Note: I took my inspiration for this story mash up from the King Arthur unit and the Dante's Inferno unit. I was originally going to my story over a young Merlin, but after reading the Dante's Inferno unit, I decided to do a story about Merlin in the afterlife, inspired by Dante's Inferno. In the King Arthur unit, Merlin dies because of his affection for Vivien, which I kept the same in the beginning of my story. From there, my story drew upon Dante's depiction of Hell. It would have taken too long to go through all the circles of Hell, so I hit my favorite parts in this story. I also added in Hercules, because he's had experiences in Hades before, so it made sense to use him as the guide. Finally, I was going to have Vivien be happy to see Merlin, but she never did enjoy Merlin's company, so I decided even Hell wouldn't change her mind.
Bibliography: Dante's Divine Comedy as translated by Tony Kline (2002) & King Arthur by Andrew Lang
Image 1: Cerberus by William Blake
Image 2: The Giants by Gustave Dore
"Oh gosh, what a sight it is, Merlin," Vivien mocked. "When will you cease to show me all these 'wonders?' You have already taught me everything that you know," she said.
"Just bear with me a little longer, my love," I replied in response. After responding I moved the rock that hid the entrance to an underground cave. I walked down into the cave before Vivien and when I looked up, she had used her magic powers to roll the rock back into place above me. Even though I knew that she would do this to me, I could not stop myself from showing her this magnificent place.
I attempted to move the massive boulder and I would have been able to if were not for my broken heart. The only woman that I ever truly loved had betrayed me and this caused me to lose my will to live. I laid down, closed my eyes, and allowed myself to enter the eternal darkness.
I woke up to someone or something screaming in the distance. I rose to my feet with surprising vigor that I had not had since the days of my youth. "Who's there?!" I shouted. As soon as I asked that question, I came to the realization that I must be dead, because I no longer had the foresight that I did in the living realm.
A voice came back. "Good Merlin! It is me, Arthur!" He said.
"Arthur? It can't be, I died before you...," I said in response.
"It seems time works differently down here. I actually just got here right before you did," Arthur said. "You look great by the way!" He said.
Reaching up to stroke my beard, I noticed that it was no longer there, and neither were my wrinkles from my old age. "Wow! It seems that I've come back in my prime in the afterlife!" I exclaimed.
Arthur said, "Either way, I'm glad to have you by my side again, Merlin! Do I have a lot of stories to tell you! Gosh, after Vivien trapped you-"
"Vivien!" I cried. "Where is Vivien? Is she here? I must find her!" I exclaimed frantically.
"I'm sorry I mentioned her," Arthur said. "For what she did to you, she got sent to the lower depths of Hell," he said.
I paused, then looked at Arthur and said, "We have to rescue her."
"I was afraid you'd say that," Arthur said.
"I hope you still have that sword, Excalibur. I imagine we'll need it," I stated. We proceeded to search out our surroundings and found that we were in a place called Limbo on the outer edges of Hell. After more searching we discovered that Vivien was in the eighth circle of Hell being kept there by the Giants. However, finding this information out did not deter us from our mission. We set out on our journey to the lower depths of Hell, sword and staff in hand.
As we reached the gate to the second circle of Hell, we heard a voice yell to us. "Merlin! Arthur! I come to join you on your quest! It is me, Hercules!" Hercules yelled.
Arthur replied excitedly, "Good Hercules! We're glad to have your company."
"It is not an easy quest that you two have set out on, but I would be amiss if I didn't offer my help. I have ventured through the underworld before and I know some shortcuts through the place," Hercules said.
"Let us proceed, then," I said. With Hercules as our guide, the three of us moved through the second circle of Hell without any problems until we came to the third circle of Hell.
"Cerberus, a three-headed devil dog, guards the entrance to the fourth circle of Hell. We must sneak past him or slay him to continue on," Hercules whispered to us. But as Hercules was talking, Cerberus raised his three heads in alert and began to charge our location.
"Looks like our decision has been made for us!" Arthur shouted as he drew Excalibur from its sheath. In perfect synchronization, Hercules charged Cerberus to stop him in his tracks with his godly strength while I cast a hasty spell to enlarge Arthur. While Arthur grew, he swung Excalibur above his head ready to bring his sword down on Cerberus. In a lightning fast strike, Arthur cut clean through all three heads of Cerberus. "Now that the dog is taken care of, make me normal size again, Merlin," Arthur said.
"No, wait," Hercules said. "We can use this to our advantage. Arthur, pick us up and then climb down to the eighth circle," he said. Arthur agreed, then picked the two of us up and climbed down the circles of Hell. As we neared the eighth circle, I saw Vivien surrounded by multiple Giants and they saw us too.
"I'll distract them while you two get Vivien!" Arthur shouted as he began to run away from us. Before we could argue the point, he already took off. Hercules and I quickly made our way to Vivien and I was horrified by what I saw.
She was disfigured beyond words can describe but even in her torture she managed to say, "Merlin, no! Even in the afterlife you plague me with you presence!" Hearing that, I realized the whole quest was a complete waste.
Then Hercules shouted, "We're out of time! We've got to leave now!" Gathering all my power to myself and taking some of Vivien's as well, I created a new spell that I hoped would work.
I shouted the last magic word of the incantation, "Alakazam!" And just like that, the three of us were back on the outer edges of Hell.
Author's Note: I took my inspiration for this story mash up from the King Arthur unit and the Dante's Inferno unit. I was originally going to my story over a young Merlin, but after reading the Dante's Inferno unit, I decided to do a story about Merlin in the afterlife, inspired by Dante's Inferno. In the King Arthur unit, Merlin dies because of his affection for Vivien, which I kept the same in the beginning of my story. From there, my story drew upon Dante's depiction of Hell. It would have taken too long to go through all the circles of Hell, so I hit my favorite parts in this story. I also added in Hercules, because he's had experiences in Hades before, so it made sense to use him as the guide. Finally, I was going to have Vivien be happy to see Merlin, but she never did enjoy Merlin's company, so I decided even Hell wouldn't change her mind.
Bibliography: Dante's Divine Comedy as translated by Tony Kline (2002) & King Arthur by Andrew Lang
Image 1: Cerberus by William Blake
Image 2: The Giants by Gustave Dore
Week 13 Reading Notes: Dante's Inferno, Part B
For Tuesday's reading I kept on going with Dante's Inferno, Part B. This story was too intriguing to not continue and see what happened in the last few rings of Hell. It's crazy how visual Dante makes and describes his story about the nine rings of Hell and also about who is down there and for what they are down there for. This is definitely a story that I could take from and recreate or mix with another story to make it more original.
Since today is Wednesday and I did a story planning post last week over Merlin, I think that I will combine Dante's Inferno reading with the Merlin reading. In order to do this, I am going to alter my approach to Merlin's storyline in that I will take up from the time when Merlin dies. Specifically, I will take up from when Merlin gets himself trapped inside his own tomb. From there, I will have him try and escape by using all the magic at his disposal until that is utterly exhausted. At that point, I will begin the Dante's Inferno intermingling in which I will begin to add the elements from Dante's story.
I think this will be an interesting take on both stories, because Merlin himself purports to know everything, but does he also know about what happens in the afterlife? That's what I'm going to try and explore during my storytelling. It'll also be interesting to see how Merlin's magic works in the afterlife. Will he still be all-powerful or will he be just another soul? And which ring will Merlin end up descending to? Will he even go to Hell? All these questions will help me and writing a good story for this week's storytelling.
Bibliography: Dante's Divine Comedy as translated by Tony Kline (2002).
Image: Close up view of the nine rings of Hell
Since today is Wednesday and I did a story planning post last week over Merlin, I think that I will combine Dante's Inferno reading with the Merlin reading. In order to do this, I am going to alter my approach to Merlin's storyline in that I will take up from the time when Merlin dies. Specifically, I will take up from when Merlin gets himself trapped inside his own tomb. From there, I will have him try and escape by using all the magic at his disposal until that is utterly exhausted. At that point, I will begin the Dante's Inferno intermingling in which I will begin to add the elements from Dante's story.
I think this will be an interesting take on both stories, because Merlin himself purports to know everything, but does he also know about what happens in the afterlife? That's what I'm going to try and explore during my storytelling. It'll also be interesting to see how Merlin's magic works in the afterlife. Will he still be all-powerful or will he be just another soul? And which ring will Merlin end up descending to? Will he even go to Hell? All these questions will help me and writing a good story for this week's storytelling.
Bibliography: Dante's Divine Comedy as translated by Tony Kline (2002).
Image: Close up view of the nine rings of Hell
Monday, April 17, 2017
Week 13 Reading Note: Dante's Inferno, Part A
For this week's reading I was originally going to do my notes over the Russian tales, but after browsing through some more of the readings, I decided to go with Dante's Inferno unit. I chose this reading unit because my fiancé and I sometimes get to talking about christianity and the afterlife so this seemed like a great reading to do. Before I did this reading, the most I knew about Dante's Inferno was that his descriptions of his adventures to Hell was very graphic. Since I have no plan on going to this place, I figure that reading about one individual's descriptions of Hell would be enough for me lol.
What took my interest the most was the different circles of Hell and who the residents of those circles were. obviously, the most well-known figures resided in the outermost circles, such as Socrates, Aristotle, and Achilles. Additionally, before Jesus came and took a select few out of Purgatory, those individuals resided in Hell as well. The reason that I found this interesting was because of the unknowns that concern the afterlife. From the Christian faith we know that if you believe in Jesus and accept him as your one and only savior, you will ascend to Heaven and obtain everlasting life. However, there has been skepticism about what happened to those who died before Jesus died on the cross. In this reading unit we do get an answer to this question.
I would definitely agree that Dante's Inferno was an original work of literature and this is a story that I would be excited to use as inspiration for my Wednesday's storytelling. As for the elements that I would use for my story, they would be as follows: 1. Having a Master take my main character through some supernatural event as his/her guide, 2. Having my main character be very inquisitive so that answers are provided and, 3. Having my main character meet and talk with characters from other areas/regions/timelines.
Bibliography: Dante's Divine Comedy as translated by Tony Kline (2002).
Image: Map of Hell in Dante's Divine Comedy
What took my interest the most was the different circles of Hell and who the residents of those circles were. obviously, the most well-known figures resided in the outermost circles, such as Socrates, Aristotle, and Achilles. Additionally, before Jesus came and took a select few out of Purgatory, those individuals resided in Hell as well. The reason that I found this interesting was because of the unknowns that concern the afterlife. From the Christian faith we know that if you believe in Jesus and accept him as your one and only savior, you will ascend to Heaven and obtain everlasting life. However, there has been skepticism about what happened to those who died before Jesus died on the cross. In this reading unit we do get an answer to this question.
I would definitely agree that Dante's Inferno was an original work of literature and this is a story that I would be excited to use as inspiration for my Wednesday's storytelling. As for the elements that I would use for my story, they would be as follows: 1. Having a Master take my main character through some supernatural event as his/her guide, 2. Having my main character be very inquisitive so that answers are provided and, 3. Having my main character meet and talk with characters from other areas/regions/timelines.
Bibliography: Dante's Divine Comedy as translated by Tony Kline (2002).
Image: Map of Hell in Dante's Divine Comedy
Wednesday, April 12, 2017
Week 12 Story Planning: Merlin
Research: It is unclear as to whether or not there was a real King Arthur. According to multiple different sources, there might have been a Roman-affiliated "Arthur" who defended against incoming Saxon forces during the 5th to 6th centuries A.D. Additionally, some sources even report that the name "Arthur" was a honorary term given to those who fought valiantly. Either way you look at it, Arthur was a valiant warrior who had great leadership abilities.
In the History of the Britons, there are multiple accounts of Arthur fighting in multiple battles, which would have been impossible for him to physically do so. However, accounts like this add to Arthur's legend. Geoffrey of Monmouth added in the figure of Merlin which allowed for the birth story and background of King Arthur. It wasn't until some cultural intermingling in Europe that different writers' imaginations and political agendas got involved that King Arthur's legend became a complex story.
Merlin on the other hand is a less formed character with more limited background than Arthur. In Geoffrey's rendering of Merlin, Merlin is a Cambion: born of a mortal woman (Adhan) and sired by an incubus, who gives Merlin his supernatural powers. Also, Geoffrey writes that Merlin matures to an ascendant statehood and engineers the birth of Arthur through magic and intrigue. Later authors write that Merlin ends up serving as Arthur's advisor until he is bewitched and imprisoned by the Lady of the Lake. An interesting note to Merlin's name is that in the original writing by Geoffrey, Merlin's Anglo-Norman origin would by Merdinus, which resembled the word merde, meaning feces. I find this funny because in the version of King Arthur in the Untextbook, Merlin knows everything that will happen, but still walks right into his own grave. For a guy who knows what's going to happen, he sure did walk into a crappy situation. Haha..
As for Merlin's backstory, Geoffrey provides us with some history. Merlin's character is based off of a bard who is driven mad by the horrors of war and goes into the woods to become a wild man. Apparently, Merlin is connected to an Aurelius Ambrosius, who is discovered by the British king Vortigern when trying to erect a tower. Long story short, Ambrosius tells Vortigern that the tower will continue to fall unless Ambrosius is given dominion over the tower. In later episodes of Merlin, he goes on to bring the Stonehedge stones from Preseli hills in south-west Wales and Ireland. He also is portrayed as a man with seemingly long life as these different episodes span quite a long time period.
After doing this research, I feel like writing about Merlin. By nature it seems that the original writers wanted to keep his background somewhat mysterious to keep that magical allure to his character. My plan is to expand on Merlin's background by writing in the first person narrative. By writing in this style, I hope to provide the missing details of Merlin's childhood/teenage years. Since these years are my focus, I do not have any big plans to integrate King Arthur into my story. The main focus of my story will be that of Merlin. Also, since Merlin is based on a crazy man who lives in the woods, I think I will work on the events that led up to him becoming that crazy wild man. I imagine Merlin's personality pre-wild man would be bold and courageous seeing as how he knows what will happen. This could be his motivation for joining the military and going to war, because he knew he wouldn't die and would be a hero. However, since there is a difference between knowing something and actually experiencing it, this event will ultimately change Merlin into the crazy wild man that he is based off of.
In the History of the Britons, there are multiple accounts of Arthur fighting in multiple battles, which would have been impossible for him to physically do so. However, accounts like this add to Arthur's legend. Geoffrey of Monmouth added in the figure of Merlin which allowed for the birth story and background of King Arthur. It wasn't until some cultural intermingling in Europe that different writers' imaginations and political agendas got involved that King Arthur's legend became a complex story.
Merlin on the other hand is a less formed character with more limited background than Arthur. In Geoffrey's rendering of Merlin, Merlin is a Cambion: born of a mortal woman (Adhan) and sired by an incubus, who gives Merlin his supernatural powers. Also, Geoffrey writes that Merlin matures to an ascendant statehood and engineers the birth of Arthur through magic and intrigue. Later authors write that Merlin ends up serving as Arthur's advisor until he is bewitched and imprisoned by the Lady of the Lake. An interesting note to Merlin's name is that in the original writing by Geoffrey, Merlin's Anglo-Norman origin would by Merdinus, which resembled the word merde, meaning feces. I find this funny because in the version of King Arthur in the Untextbook, Merlin knows everything that will happen, but still walks right into his own grave. For a guy who knows what's going to happen, he sure did walk into a crappy situation. Haha..
As for Merlin's backstory, Geoffrey provides us with some history. Merlin's character is based off of a bard who is driven mad by the horrors of war and goes into the woods to become a wild man. Apparently, Merlin is connected to an Aurelius Ambrosius, who is discovered by the British king Vortigern when trying to erect a tower. Long story short, Ambrosius tells Vortigern that the tower will continue to fall unless Ambrosius is given dominion over the tower. In later episodes of Merlin, he goes on to bring the Stonehedge stones from Preseli hills in south-west Wales and Ireland. He also is portrayed as a man with seemingly long life as these different episodes span quite a long time period.
After doing this research, I feel like writing about Merlin. By nature it seems that the original writers wanted to keep his background somewhat mysterious to keep that magical allure to his character. My plan is to expand on Merlin's background by writing in the first person narrative. By writing in this style, I hope to provide the missing details of Merlin's childhood/teenage years. Since these years are my focus, I do not have any big plans to integrate King Arthur into my story. The main focus of my story will be that of Merlin. Also, since Merlin is based on a crazy man who lives in the woods, I think I will work on the events that led up to him becoming that crazy wild man. I imagine Merlin's personality pre-wild man would be bold and courageous seeing as how he knows what will happen. This could be his motivation for joining the military and going to war, because he knew he wouldn't die and would be a hero. However, since there is a difference between knowing something and actually experiencing it, this event will ultimately change Merlin into the crazy wild man that he is based off of.
Tuesday, April 11, 2017
Reading Notes: King Arthur, Part A
For Week 12's reading I decided to go with the King Arthur readings. I've always been a fan of King Arthur, Merlin, and the knights of the Round Table. After reading Part A i found out some stuff that I never knew actually happened in and during the life of King Arthur. For one I never knew that King Arthur was adopted and had to continue to prove over and over again that he could pull the sword out of the stone. Also, I always thought that the sword that Arthur pulled out of the stone was the sword Excalibur. I never had any idea that the two swords were not one in the same.
To me, Merlin was a very interesting character because his character knows everything that will happen. Having this omnipotence, however, does not stop him from getting himself locked underground for life. I found this ironic especially because he must have known that he was going to his death, but he did it anyway because he had so much love for a woman who didn't even love him back. Obviously, even the great Merlin was not exempt from his own fate, so to speak.
With all this in mind, I might write about a character who is similar to Merlin. A character who tries his best to lead others to greatness because he knows of his own shortcomings. A character who ultimately succeeds in some areas and fails his own self. The more and more that I think about it, the more a story like this seems to need a moral to it. If I was going to write a story with a moral to it then it might end up being something like, "with great power comes great responsibility." However, I'll probably end up changing it haha.
Bibliography: King Arthur by Andrew Lang
Image: Merlin the Enchanter
Wednesday, April 5, 2017
Week 11 Story: Beowulf and Grendel
Once upon a time in a place called Danesland, there was a certain creature whose name was Grendel. When Grendel was born and the other monsters saw him, they were taken aback by his looks. Grendel was not easy to look at, not even for other monsters. Despite his physical appearance he showed great promise among the monsters because his strength was abnormal, even among them. As a child, Grendel wrought havoc to small human villages with ease.
Grendel would've been content to live out his life among the other monsters, but those wretched humans caused so much noise. In addition to Grendel's superior physical strength, his senses were also extremely sensitive. The older he got, the more his strength and senses increased. Eventually, the humans learned of Grendel's existence and sought to kill him.
King Hrothgar of the Danes sent his best men to kill Grendel. As they clambered their way through the forest looking for Grendel's den, Grendel watched them from the dark. "They are loud even when they are trying to sneak around," Grendel thought, "I can't stand it anymore!" With that last thought Grendel charged the men and one by one tore them to pieces. The only one to survive was Unferth, who was King Hrothgar's best friend.
Unferth had played dead until Grendel had finished killing his companions and then got up and made his way back to Heoret, Hrothgar's fortress. Unferth ran up to Hrothgar and said, "This is a terrible monster unlike any we have faced before! He kills without any remorse! He cannot be stopped!" Troubled by Unferth's words, Hrothgar decided to send for aid from their neighbors in Geatsland. However, it just so happened that the messengers had to pass through Grendel's territory in order to make their way to Geatsland.
Year after year, all the messengers were killed until twelve long years had passed. Then, one messenger decided to take the long way around by crossing through the dragon's territory. After a long and arduous journey the messenger made it to Geatsland. The warriors of Geatsland loved fighting and were enticed by the messenger's stories from the lands outside of theirs. But, once the messenger told of Grendel and his terrorizing, only one warrior stood up and announced that he would go to Hrothgar's aid. "Beowulf! Beowulf!" The Lords of Geatsland cheered.
Beowulf returned to Danesland with the messenger and a company of men specially appointed by King Hygelac of Dane. With the messenger as their guide they made their way safely to Heoret. Once they arrived Hrothgar welcomed them with open arms and let them know where Grendel lived. After spending the night resting and restoring their strength they got up and headed out to find Grendel.
Grendel watched Beowulf and his company as they stomped through the forest. When they finally stopped to make camp for the night, Grendel decided to attack. Grendel ran right up behind two of Beowulf's men, grabbed their heads and then popped them in one fluid movement. The rest of the men, besides Beowulf, stood up and armed themselves with their swords and shields. Rushing Grendel, they were each slaughtered until only Beowulf himself was left.
The two circled each other, waiting for the other to make a fatal mistake. His impatience getting the best of him, Grendel charged Beowulf. Grendel swung his arms wildly trying to snatch Beowulf up. Beowulf ducked and slipped through each of Grendel's attempts to grab him and then managed to take Grendel's back. Beowulf began to choke Grendel as hard as he could, but Grendel reached up, took hold of Beowulf and threw him against a tree. Beowulf knew that if he didn't do something quick, he would be torn apart just like his companions. Just then he noticed a sword half-covered in dirt. He waited until Grendel was right on top of him before he swung the sword from its hiding place and chopped Grendel's right arm completely off.
"Arggghhhhh!" Grendel cried as he fell to his knees.
Beowulf walked right up to Grendel and said, "Your bloodletting days are over, demon! I am ripper, tearer, slasher, gouger. I am the teeth in the darkness, the talons in the night. Mine is strength and lust and power! I am Beowulf!" And with that Beowulf drew his sword above his head and brought it down on Grendel's neck.
Author's Note: I used the Beowulf unit by Strafford Riggs as my main source inspiration for this story. In the original, the story is told from the perspective of Geatsland and all I did was switch this to the perspective of the Danes. I kept all the characters names the same and kept their roles relatively the same as well. Some differences were that Unferth never confronted Grendel and the messenger was never sent by King Hrothgar. Also, Grendel's perspective isn't told in the original, so I wrote a little about that in the beginning. The biggest change is how I had Beowulf and his company actually go after Grendel and try to kill him in the forest. Lastly, I took Beowulf's last quote from the Beowulf animation that I found on YouTube.
Bibliography: Beowulf by Strafford Riggs
Image: Beowulf and his men by Henry Pitz (1933) from the Untextbook
Grendel would've been content to live out his life among the other monsters, but those wretched humans caused so much noise. In addition to Grendel's superior physical strength, his senses were also extremely sensitive. The older he got, the more his strength and senses increased. Eventually, the humans learned of Grendel's existence and sought to kill him.
King Hrothgar of the Danes sent his best men to kill Grendel. As they clambered their way through the forest looking for Grendel's den, Grendel watched them from the dark. "They are loud even when they are trying to sneak around," Grendel thought, "I can't stand it anymore!" With that last thought Grendel charged the men and one by one tore them to pieces. The only one to survive was Unferth, who was King Hrothgar's best friend.
Unferth had played dead until Grendel had finished killing his companions and then got up and made his way back to Heoret, Hrothgar's fortress. Unferth ran up to Hrothgar and said, "This is a terrible monster unlike any we have faced before! He kills without any remorse! He cannot be stopped!" Troubled by Unferth's words, Hrothgar decided to send for aid from their neighbors in Geatsland. However, it just so happened that the messengers had to pass through Grendel's territory in order to make their way to Geatsland.
Year after year, all the messengers were killed until twelve long years had passed. Then, one messenger decided to take the long way around by crossing through the dragon's territory. After a long and arduous journey the messenger made it to Geatsland. The warriors of Geatsland loved fighting and were enticed by the messenger's stories from the lands outside of theirs. But, once the messenger told of Grendel and his terrorizing, only one warrior stood up and announced that he would go to Hrothgar's aid. "Beowulf! Beowulf!" The Lords of Geatsland cheered.
Beowulf returned to Danesland with the messenger and a company of men specially appointed by King Hygelac of Dane. With the messenger as their guide they made their way safely to Heoret. Once they arrived Hrothgar welcomed them with open arms and let them know where Grendel lived. After spending the night resting and restoring their strength they got up and headed out to find Grendel.
Grendel watched Beowulf and his company as they stomped through the forest. When they finally stopped to make camp for the night, Grendel decided to attack. Grendel ran right up behind two of Beowulf's men, grabbed their heads and then popped them in one fluid movement. The rest of the men, besides Beowulf, stood up and armed themselves with their swords and shields. Rushing Grendel, they were each slaughtered until only Beowulf himself was left.
The two circled each other, waiting for the other to make a fatal mistake. His impatience getting the best of him, Grendel charged Beowulf. Grendel swung his arms wildly trying to snatch Beowulf up. Beowulf ducked and slipped through each of Grendel's attempts to grab him and then managed to take Grendel's back. Beowulf began to choke Grendel as hard as he could, but Grendel reached up, took hold of Beowulf and threw him against a tree. Beowulf knew that if he didn't do something quick, he would be torn apart just like his companions. Just then he noticed a sword half-covered in dirt. He waited until Grendel was right on top of him before he swung the sword from its hiding place and chopped Grendel's right arm completely off.
"Arggghhhhh!" Grendel cried as he fell to his knees.
Beowulf walked right up to Grendel and said, "Your bloodletting days are over, demon! I am ripper, tearer, slasher, gouger. I am the teeth in the darkness, the talons in the night. Mine is strength and lust and power! I am Beowulf!" And with that Beowulf drew his sword above his head and brought it down on Grendel's neck.
Author's Note: I used the Beowulf unit by Strafford Riggs as my main source inspiration for this story. In the original, the story is told from the perspective of Geatsland and all I did was switch this to the perspective of the Danes. I kept all the characters names the same and kept their roles relatively the same as well. Some differences were that Unferth never confronted Grendel and the messenger was never sent by King Hrothgar. Also, Grendel's perspective isn't told in the original, so I wrote a little about that in the beginning. The biggest change is how I had Beowulf and his company actually go after Grendel and try to kill him in the forest. Lastly, I took Beowulf's last quote from the Beowulf animation that I found on YouTube.
Bibliography: Beowulf by Strafford Riggs
Image: Beowulf and his men by Henry Pitz (1933) from the Untextbook
Reading Notes: Beowulf, Part A
For Tuesday's reading of week 11, I chose Beowulf. I've always wanted to read the story of Beowulf, but I have never had the opportunity to do so. After reading part A of the Beowulf unit, I feel greatly inspired. Everything about this story spells hero, so far. Also, Beowulf is a man among men as I understand it, because the men of Geatsland seem like giants themselves.
The first element that I'm planning on using from the Beowulf unit is the fact that Beowulf is so powerful even when compared to men who are much older than himself. It is pointed out in the Beowulf unit that even as a child, Beowulf displayed strength that was uncharacteristic of a kid his age. Applying this to my own storytelling, I would like to create a character who is born with great strength, but isn't taught how to use it. Perhaps, as he grows older, he will meet mentors who are able to teach and guide him how to use his profound strength. This could even take elements from Star Wars, because as I type this, it seems more and more similar to Luke and Yoda.
The second element is the fact that Beowulf's peers and seniors do not take him seriously. In the Beowulf unit, Beowulf performs a great swimming feat, but people tend to discredit him because they just don't think that he could do it. Also, everyone calls him the Sluggard, because he trips over his own sword and seems lazy. The truth is that his strength has not been fully tested and pushed to its limits. In short, he has had no real challenge, so he appears to be lazy because he simply can't try his hardest. I would like to apply this to my own story by having my main character easily complete whatever tasks are set before him. In completing these tasks, I will have the onlookers think that the main character is full of himself or something of this nature.
Bibliography: Beowulf by Strafford Riggs
Image: Young Beowulf when he was sixteen, in the Untextbook by Henry Pitz (1933).
The first element that I'm planning on using from the Beowulf unit is the fact that Beowulf is so powerful even when compared to men who are much older than himself. It is pointed out in the Beowulf unit that even as a child, Beowulf displayed strength that was uncharacteristic of a kid his age. Applying this to my own storytelling, I would like to create a character who is born with great strength, but isn't taught how to use it. Perhaps, as he grows older, he will meet mentors who are able to teach and guide him how to use his profound strength. This could even take elements from Star Wars, because as I type this, it seems more and more similar to Luke and Yoda.
The second element is the fact that Beowulf's peers and seniors do not take him seriously. In the Beowulf unit, Beowulf performs a great swimming feat, but people tend to discredit him because they just don't think that he could do it. Also, everyone calls him the Sluggard, because he trips over his own sword and seems lazy. The truth is that his strength has not been fully tested and pushed to its limits. In short, he has had no real challenge, so he appears to be lazy because he simply can't try his hardest. I would like to apply this to my own story by having my main character easily complete whatever tasks are set before him. In completing these tasks, I will have the onlookers think that the main character is full of himself or something of this nature.
Bibliography: Beowulf by Strafford Riggs
Image: Young Beowulf when he was sixteen, in the Untextbook by Henry Pitz (1933).
Thursday, March 30, 2017
Week 10 Storytelling: Different Approaches to War
When the United States was still in its infancy, there were two generals who had different philosophies when it came to war. The first general was in the army and his name was George. The second general was in the Marine Corps and his name was Samuel. George believed that the best way to defeat an enemy was through attrition. Samuel, on the other hand, believed the best way to defeat an enemy was through maneuver.
The two disagreed with each other often and this sometimes caused them to lose battles. One day, after suffering a terrible defeat, the two generals decided that they had to come together and figure out a solution to their problem. "Join your forces with me and we will defeat our enemies with overwhelming numbers!" George exclaimed.
"No! That would lead to a unacceptable loss of life! I will not agree to that misuse of my Marines," Samuel asserted. "Instead, we should strike the enemy at key points and locations in order to disable their war machine," Samuel offered. But neither side could agree with the other. Needless to say, the two were at an impasse. After a long stare down, Samuel finally broke the silence. He said, "We can settle this in our next enemy encounters."
George agreed. The two generals set up their base camps in an area with plenty of space for George's troops to assemble and get into battle formations on an open field. Samuel and his troops preferred to fight in the forest where they could outmaneuver their enemy. However, Samuel thought that his Marines could outperform George's troops when it came down to it.
The enemy attacked the following morning, but thanks to their tireless training, both George's and Samuel's troops were alerted and reacted quickly. George's soldiers rushed into their pre-assigned spots on the battlefield and formed up. Samuel's Marines took just a little longer, but this was enough for the enemy to spot a potential weakness. The enemy charged Samuel's ranks head-on causing some casualties. Without even having to think about what to do, George's soldiers swung their flank around and formed an L-shaped formation. The enemy was forced to fight Samuel on their front and George on their flank. George was able to pressure the enemy and cause disarray among their ranks. After this, George cut of the enemy's escape route and forced them to surrender.
"I told you that my way was better!" George shouted over to Samuel.
"Ridiculous! My Marines would outperform yours in a heartbeat if we were to fight in the forest!" Samuel shouted back.
"You're just jealous, BUT I have intel that an enemy force is moving toward us from the forest," George stated. "How about we put your Marines to the test," George said.
"So be it!" Samuel exclaimed. Samuel returned to his men and briefed them on the situation. The Marines broke up into small units so that they could easily move through the forest. Then, without any hesitation, the Marines squared away their gear and prepared to move into the forest. George also returned to his men and briefed them on the situation. In the same manner as the Marines, the soldiers gathered their gear and began to form up in their standard formations.
Samuel's Marines moved quickly to the designated ambush position, laid down, and began to wait for the enemy to approach. George's soldiers, however, were still trying to figure out how to efficiently move through the forest without breaking up their formation. Seeing George's soldiers in the distance, the enemy began their charge in order to seize the initiative. Unknown to them, though, Samuel's Marines were lying in wait.
Samuel gathered his breath and then shouted the command, "Attack!" Before the enemy even knew what happened, the Marines had them surrounded. Dropping their weapons and raising their arms above their heads, all the enemies surrendered. "Easy day," Samuel said as he walked up to George.
"You got lucky," George said, "But from now on I think I'll leave this type of fighting to you."
"Wise decision," Samuel said, "And I'll leave you to your own style of fighting as well." So, the two generals realized that both approaches to war had their advantages and disadvantages.
Author's Note: My story was based on the Blackfoot story "Two Fast Runners." In this original story, there was an antelope and a deer who challenged each other to see who was the fastest. In the end, it depended on the terrain that the two ran on/in. For my story, I thought it would be fun to substitute the antelope and the deer for the Army and the Marine Corps. Both branches have their own approach to war, and I wanted to show this through a story. Hope you liked it!
Bibliography: Two Fast Runners, by George Bird Grinnell
Image: Pickett's charge, Battle of Gettysburg
The two disagreed with each other often and this sometimes caused them to lose battles. One day, after suffering a terrible defeat, the two generals decided that they had to come together and figure out a solution to their problem. "Join your forces with me and we will defeat our enemies with overwhelming numbers!" George exclaimed.
"No! That would lead to a unacceptable loss of life! I will not agree to that misuse of my Marines," Samuel asserted. "Instead, we should strike the enemy at key points and locations in order to disable their war machine," Samuel offered. But neither side could agree with the other. Needless to say, the two were at an impasse. After a long stare down, Samuel finally broke the silence. He said, "We can settle this in our next enemy encounters."
George agreed. The two generals set up their base camps in an area with plenty of space for George's troops to assemble and get into battle formations on an open field. Samuel and his troops preferred to fight in the forest where they could outmaneuver their enemy. However, Samuel thought that his Marines could outperform George's troops when it came down to it.
The enemy attacked the following morning, but thanks to their tireless training, both George's and Samuel's troops were alerted and reacted quickly. George's soldiers rushed into their pre-assigned spots on the battlefield and formed up. Samuel's Marines took just a little longer, but this was enough for the enemy to spot a potential weakness. The enemy charged Samuel's ranks head-on causing some casualties. Without even having to think about what to do, George's soldiers swung their flank around and formed an L-shaped formation. The enemy was forced to fight Samuel on their front and George on their flank. George was able to pressure the enemy and cause disarray among their ranks. After this, George cut of the enemy's escape route and forced them to surrender.
"I told you that my way was better!" George shouted over to Samuel.
"Ridiculous! My Marines would outperform yours in a heartbeat if we were to fight in the forest!" Samuel shouted back.
"You're just jealous, BUT I have intel that an enemy force is moving toward us from the forest," George stated. "How about we put your Marines to the test," George said.
"So be it!" Samuel exclaimed. Samuel returned to his men and briefed them on the situation. The Marines broke up into small units so that they could easily move through the forest. Then, without any hesitation, the Marines squared away their gear and prepared to move into the forest. George also returned to his men and briefed them on the situation. In the same manner as the Marines, the soldiers gathered their gear and began to form up in their standard formations.
Samuel's Marines moved quickly to the designated ambush position, laid down, and began to wait for the enemy to approach. George's soldiers, however, were still trying to figure out how to efficiently move through the forest without breaking up their formation. Seeing George's soldiers in the distance, the enemy began their charge in order to seize the initiative. Unknown to them, though, Samuel's Marines were lying in wait.
Samuel gathered his breath and then shouted the command, "Attack!" Before the enemy even knew what happened, the Marines had them surrounded. Dropping their weapons and raising their arms above their heads, all the enemies surrendered. "Easy day," Samuel said as he walked up to George.
"You got lucky," George said, "But from now on I think I'll leave this type of fighting to you."
"Wise decision," Samuel said, "And I'll leave you to your own style of fighting as well." So, the two generals realized that both approaches to war had their advantages and disadvantages.
Author's Note: My story was based on the Blackfoot story "Two Fast Runners." In this original story, there was an antelope and a deer who challenged each other to see who was the fastest. In the end, it depended on the terrain that the two ran on/in. For my story, I thought it would be fun to substitute the antelope and the deer for the Army and the Marine Corps. Both branches have their own approach to war, and I wanted to show this through a story. Hope you liked it!
Bibliography: Two Fast Runners, by George Bird Grinnell
Image: Pickett's charge, Battle of Gettysburg
Monday, March 27, 2017
Reading Notes: Blackfoot Stories, Part A
For Monday's reading notes during week 10, I decided to go with the Blackfoot tribe's stories as translated by George Bird Grinnell in 1915. I chose this group of stories because I have never been told any Blackfoot stories, to my knowledge. From reading part A of these stories, I liked the character of the Old Man. The Old Man helps people as Napi and gets himself into a lot of trouble as the Old Man. Because of this, I plan on using the character of the Old Man for my storytelling on Wednesday.
To me, it seems as if the Old Man should be wise and all-knowing, but he still gets himself into trouble by doing juvenile things. Some of the characteristics that lead me to believe this are: 1. He can talk to animals, 2. He seems to have some power over the plants and animals and, 3. He is sometimes generous with his possessions. It is also the way that he talks that makes me believe this too. When he talks to the animals, plants, or inanimate objects, he talks to them as if he has the power to change them.
Other characters who interested me were Thunder and Sun. In the story, "How the Thunder Pipe Came," Thunder seemed similar to that of a god. Thunder took what he wanted and was only afraid of the Ravens. Sun could see everything and as far as I could tell was not afraid of anything. I'm definitely thinking of using these two characters, but I'm not sure as to how I will use them yet. Of the two, Sun seems the wiser and I suppose I could make him Thunder's father? Or I could possibly make them brothers, with Thunder being the younger brother who is still immature. Either way, I'm sure Tuesday's reading will help me in my dilemma.
To me, it seems as if the Old Man should be wise and all-knowing, but he still gets himself into trouble by doing juvenile things. Some of the characteristics that lead me to believe this are: 1. He can talk to animals, 2. He seems to have some power over the plants and animals and, 3. He is sometimes generous with his possessions. It is also the way that he talks that makes me believe this too. When he talks to the animals, plants, or inanimate objects, he talks to them as if he has the power to change them.
Other characters who interested me were Thunder and Sun. In the story, "How the Thunder Pipe Came," Thunder seemed similar to that of a god. Thunder took what he wanted and was only afraid of the Ravens. Sun could see everything and as far as I could tell was not afraid of anything. I'm definitely thinking of using these two characters, but I'm not sure as to how I will use them yet. Of the two, Sun seems the wiser and I suppose I could make him Thunder's father? Or I could possibly make them brothers, with Thunder being the younger brother who is still immature. Either way, I'm sure Tuesday's reading will help me in my dilemma.
Thursday, March 23, 2017
Week 9 Storytelling: Man's Best Friend
As a young dog, I spent a lot of time around the First People, who came from the skies. They were curious of their surroundings and explored everywhere that they could. In those early days I did not go with the elder First People to explore, but instead I stayed back with the little ones because I was still a young dog, or "pup," as they call it. We spent all day together, running around the village and playing a game they call "fetch." It's actually a great game! And it never got old, even when I did.
As I grew older, the First People started to take me along with them on their exploration trips. We saw many different lands, but we never saw any other people. I didn't care to meet any other people anyway, because the First People treated me good and kept me fed. Of course I did my part for them and helped them haul heavy loads, along with some of the other dogs in my pack. As a matter of fact, we dogs loved to haul around heavy loads, because it made us bigger and stronger.
After more time had passed I was a fully grown dog who had earned my own eagle feather. This was a great honor among the First People because it symbolized one's experience and wisdom. However, my true test came when the Water People came into contact with us. The Water People suddenly appeared one day and for the most part they seemed like honorable people with good intentions.
As I grew older, the First People started to take me along with them on their exploration trips. We saw many different lands, but we never saw any other people. I didn't care to meet any other people anyway, because the First People treated me good and kept me fed. Of course I did my part for them and helped them haul heavy loads, along with some of the other dogs in my pack. As a matter of fact, we dogs loved to haul around heavy loads, because it made us bigger and stronger.
After more time had passed I was a fully grown dog who had earned my own eagle feather. This was a great honor among the First People because it symbolized one's experience and wisdom. However, my true test came when the Water People came into contact with us. The Water People suddenly appeared one day and for the most part they seemed like honorable people with good intentions.
We established hunting grounds for the First People and hunting grounds for the Water People, but anyone was allowed to hunt as long as there was plenty of game. For a while we both lived in peace, but one night I noticed something off. As I was laying down enjoying the night breeze, I smelt one of the Water People off in the distance. Naturally, I picked up and followed the scent until I was close enough to see the person I was tracking.
When I got close enough, I was shocked from what I saw, the Water Person was putting a boy inside of a log and closing it up. I had no idea what his intentions were, I just knew that I didn't like it. The Water Person was fully covered from head to toe in a thick hide and carried both a bow and knife made from the shoulder blade of a deer. Needless to say, I knew that I couldn't take him by myself, so I circled the Water Person in hopes of finding a weakness, but there was none.
I waited in the bushes, silently, until the Water Person left, then I went over to the log and barked softly to the boy inside. There was no response. In a panic, I began to scratch and claw at the bark of the log until I made a hole big enough to get the boy out of. I managed to pull the boy out of the log by my teeth, but he still did not wake up. Thinking that the Water Person was far away by now, I began to bark to let the pack know I needed help.
To my surprise, a spear flew right past my ear, barely missing me. Without looking back, I hurriedly dug myself under the boy and stood up, having the boy on top of my back. I ran faster than I thought my four paws could take me. However, it wasn't fast enough. The Water Person tackled me from the side and knocked the boy off my back, but he woke he boy up in the process. Startled, the boy took off running back toward the village. I stayed back to give the boy any time that I could.
I took a wide stance on my four paws and gave a low growl to the Water Person, hoping that I could intimidate him to leave. He didn't take the hint, but rather he drew his deer knife and stood ready for an attack. Growing impatient, he made the first move, lunging toward me for a kill strike, but I managed to side step and bite down hard on his wrist. He dropped the knife and I made my move. Jumping at his face, I began to claw and bite any skin that was exposed from the thick hide that he wore.
I wasn't very successful and the Water Person managed to throw me off of himself. I landed on my side, but I quickly got back on all fours, only to realize that I couldn't breathe properly. Looking to my side, the Water Person's spear was sticking out of me and I collapsed. The Water Person approached me with his deer knife and was just about to stab me when my pack appeared and overwhelmed him. After that, I lost consciousness.
I woke up back in the village with my wounds bound up by the First People and with the boy sitting beside me. I looked around some more and I noticed my pack was there too. As a matter of fact, the entire village was there. I guess they thought I wasn't going to make it through my injuries and came to pay their last respects. Then, the village chief walked up to me and said, "that was my boy you saved, you really are man's best friend."
Author's Note: I based my story on the Jealous Uncle story from the Native American Hero Tales unit. In the original story, the uncle attempts to kill his nephew, but each time the nephew escapes using toys from the previous nephews that the uncle had killed. In my story, I wanted to take the perspective of an animal who would end up saving the nephew and thus demonstrate that dogs are loyal to the end.
Bibliography: Native American Hero Tales by Stith Thompson
Image: Hunting dog
Wednesday, March 22, 2017
Reading Notes: Great Plains, Part A
For Tuesday's reading during week nine I went with the Great Plains unit. I chose this unit because I live in Oklahoma and I thought it'd be interesting to read about some of the creation stories that the Great Plains Indians had. I enjoyed this unit's reading because it did have such an emphasis on various creation stories and how thing came to be about. I also found some similarities to that of the Japanese creation stories, such as the Elk calling the winds and uncovering land. Obviously they weren't exactly the same, but it was an interesting point to take note of.
The points of interest that I'll take away for my own story are the ways in which the various tribal people interacted with their surroundings. For instance, the Indians mostly knew where they came from (i.e., Moon (mother), Sun (father)) and tended to work alongside the animals in order to find a habitable place to live. Also, they had a relationship with their creators, and consulted them throughout their adventures. I found this interesting because their communication between their creators and their surroundings seems to be much more fluid than that of other cultures' creation stories.
Going on, I saw hints of all the Great Plains people finding this bluish stone, which I imagine was obsidian or some stone similar to that, which they used as a tool/weapon. In addition to using this bluish stone, they also used the bones of different animals for different uses and modified those uses as they came into contact with other tribal people. Although the interactions weren't always friendly between the different tribes, they usually came to some sort of peace agreement throughout the story. Finally, I like the inclusion of the different pipes and how each one symbolized something different, from peace to settling disputes. I would like to incorporate this into my own story in some way, shape, or form.
Bibliography: Great Plains by Katharine Berry Judson
Image: A Native American peace pipe
The points of interest that I'll take away for my own story are the ways in which the various tribal people interacted with their surroundings. For instance, the Indians mostly knew where they came from (i.e., Moon (mother), Sun (father)) and tended to work alongside the animals in order to find a habitable place to live. Also, they had a relationship with their creators, and consulted them throughout their adventures. I found this interesting because their communication between their creators and their surroundings seems to be much more fluid than that of other cultures' creation stories.
Going on, I saw hints of all the Great Plains people finding this bluish stone, which I imagine was obsidian or some stone similar to that, which they used as a tool/weapon. In addition to using this bluish stone, they also used the bones of different animals for different uses and modified those uses as they came into contact with other tribal people. Although the interactions weren't always friendly between the different tribes, they usually came to some sort of peace agreement throughout the story. Finally, I like the inclusion of the different pipes and how each one symbolized something different, from peace to settling disputes. I would like to incorporate this into my own story in some way, shape, or form.
Bibliography: Great Plains by Katharine Berry Judson
Image: A Native American peace pipe
Monday, March 20, 2017
Reading Notes: Native American Hero Tales, Part A
For week nine, I decided to read about Native American Hero Tales by Stith Thompson. First off, I noticed that throughout all the stories, there was usually a single main character who was followed throughout the entire story. The one exception to this was the story of Bluejay and his Companions. It is because of the notification of this detail that I plan on writing Wednesday’s story with one protagonist.
Another interesting detail that I noticed was that humans are not always the dominant species on the planet and some of these stories tell how things came to be as they are now. With this in mind, I might tell my story in the form of a child’s tale in which the parent is the narrator and the children are the ones who are to learn from what is being told to them. In this way, the story could serve as a learning point about why to respect the world around them, since it may not have always been as it is now. Also, if the story is told in this format, it could serve as a warning/reasoning as to why the grown-ups do the particular things that they do.
Additionally, I plan on taking some elements from the Bluejay story because I liked how the Grouse silently took the treatment from the Bluejay and his companions and then acted accordingly in his own clever way. In doing this, the Bluejay and his companions had to go on a journey in which they faced multiple trials in order to get back home. Once they finally made it back home, they respected the Grouse and gave him his fair share of the seal spoils. The main element that I plan on taking from this story is the adventure that Bluejay and his companions went on.
Bibliography: Native American Hero Tales by Stith Thompson
Image: a blue jay
Monday, March 6, 2017
Week 8 Growth Mindset
To start off, I love the growth mindset! When I watched the video with Carol Dweck and how she went over the studies involving the children, I was impressed to say the least. I found this especially interesting because I am a Communication major and this reminded me of linguistic determinism. Linguistic determinism is basically the idea that our ways of talking/speaking shape our reality or how we perceive reality. So, the way that the growth mindset works makes perfect sense to me and I have no problem getting on board with this idea!
Now, as it relates to myself personally, I am not perfect and after careful self-reflection I have realized that there are a lot of areas that I need to work on in my life. In my different classes, I work harder in my Communication classes and I'm more willing to go the extra mile in order to produce better work. I'm sure that this stems from the fact that it's my major, but when I consciously thought about this, it kind of bothered me, because I like to perform my best in everything that I do. So, that's definitely an area that I'm going to work on now that it's salient to me.
In school vs. work, I don't like things to change at work, but I do like change at school. I also realized that I do the minimum or close to the minimum unless I'm told otherwise. This is in part because it's a part time job that requires minimal cognitive load, but it is an area that I can work on as well. I think that working on this area in my life will be beneficial because I think that if I continue to improve in every of my life, I will be overall better as a person.
In my personal life, I strive to be the best that I possibly can be! With that in mind, I know that this can be a double-edged sword as well because if you're constantly trying to be the best, you risk the chance of enjoying the little things. Sometimes I get so caught up in work and trying to improve my efficiency that I forget to have fun. My fiancé will tell you that I'm always working and we have had a couple of arguments that happened because I spend a lot of time working. She thinks that we need to spend more time together and with our families, especially since we'll be moving this year to go to Virginia for my officer training.
With all this in mind, I think I can build on my strengths by putting forth my best effort during the daylight hours so to speak, and spending time with my fiancé during the rest of the time. In school, I could allot more time to my other classes so that I'm performing my best all around. Finally, at work I can expand myself and learn more about the place I work for so as to give myself more of a motivation to work since I will know their history and will be able to possibly share some values.
Image: Bruce Lee goal quote
Week 8 Reflections
1. My Readings
I have thoroughly enjoyed all the readings that I have chosen up to this point because they have all been about something that I have found intriguing. If given the option to go back and re-choose some of my stories, I might, but not because I regret the stories that I chose to read, but because of the interesting stories that I have read from my peers. My peers have written some pretty bomb stories that were based on stories that I didn't read. For that, I commend them!
As for the notes that I have taken on my readings, I think I've been doing a solid job! I'm not trying to say that I don't have room for improvement, but what I am saying is that the notes that I took helped me to make that nice and smooth transition from my notes to my storytelling. In the assignment instructions, it said to pay attention to important and intriguing details and that's what I have been doing. So far that method has worked out splendid for me and I don't see any great need to change now!
Lastly, for the next half of the semester, I'm looking at Native American Hero Tales, Beowulf, and Russian fairy tales for weeks 9-14. I chose Native American Hero Tales because it has a mix of different Native American cultures and I didn't want to settle for just one region if I'm going to read about some of my own people! For the Beowulf reading, that's a given. Beowulf is a bad mamma jamma who supposedly takes on a dragon in this reading?! And for the Russian fairy tales reading, I have no idea what to expect because, to my knowledge, I have not been exposed to any Russian fairy tales before.
2. Writing
When I looked back over my stories, I had a good laugh. I laughed because of the stories that I came up with and how ridiculous they were. If I were not in this class, I would never had started blogging like this, but I'm glad that I am in this class. Likewise, I am happy with the stories that I have written thus far.
I've learned a lot about writing since the first story that I wrote for this class. For example, I knew that there were multiple different methods of writing stories, but I never really considered which POV would be the best for any given story. This is something that I've struggled with when writing my stories because I want my stories to come out in the best manner possible. With that in mind, however, I love reading about stories with great detail and imagery and this is what I think I need to work on in my own stories. I also continuously try and improve on making connections throughout my story so that it is coherent and makes sense when it is read by others.
3. Connecting
When thinking about other people's stories, a couple things come to mind. First, there are a lot of good writers out there! At least that's what I've noticed when reading other people's stories. Some good habits that they have is their use of detail and imagery, both things that I am trying to improve upon. Second, is their grammatical errors in their stories. For the most part this doesn't really bother me, but if I'm reading along and there's a trip up in the writing, it throws off my groove and that can be a little annoying. I think that people just get excited when writing their stories and they forget to go back and edit their stories afterwards.
I guess that's where feedback comes in. My favorite method to employ when critiquing stories other than my own is the WWW method that we learned of a while back. This method is great because it gives you an easy to use template when offering feedback and it starts on a positive note, which I think is usually appreciated, as opposed to starting off with constructive criticism. Other than that I think I can improve my feedback by giving more detailed feedback so that those who are receiving it know where to go next with their stories.
Image: Bruce Lee quote
Thursday, March 2, 2017
Week 7 Storytelling:
In the early 1900's, there were two brothers, one named Leo and the other named Jack.
Leo was the big brother and was the strong and handsome one of the two. Jack, on the other hand, was the younger brother who was lacking in the looks department, but was smart and could think his way out of most situations.
When Leo became of age, his parents allowed him to take over the family construction business. Leo had a hard time learning the ins and outs of the business, but he made up for it in his ability to impress his clients with his charming personality.
A couple years later, Jack became of age and joined in the family business as well.
However, Leo felt that Jack was inferior to him and thought that it was only right that Jack work his way up like everyone else.
But being the smart man that he was, Jack assumed that his brother would act this way. So, Jack set up a meeting between a wealthy Japanese client and Leo.
As soon as the meeting was set up, Jack went to Leo and told him about the potential deal. Surprised and excited, Leo jumped at the chance to go international with the family company.
In his excitement, Leo overlooked the facts that he couldn't speak Japanese and didn't know anything about Japanese buildings either.
In a panic, Leo went to his little brother and asked for help and promised the position of manager if he did help. Anticipating this, Jack set his big brother up with a Japanese interpreter who knew very little about Japanese construction.
Needless to say, the meeting went terrible, but Jack convinced the Japanese client to stay with their company and give Jack another chance to win him over.
Again, Leo went to Jack and plead to him for his help to secure the Japanese client. This time he promised the position of supervisor for his help.
Jack set his brother up with an interpreter who knew Japanese construction well, but lacked the knowledge of Japanese business customs. And just like last time, the meeting went terrible.
Feeling devastated that he was about to lose the Japanese client for good, Leo went to Jack one final time and begged for his help. Only this time Leo promised to give Jack whatever he wanted in exchange for his help, including half the business.
Jack agreed and accompanied Leo to the business meeting.
When they arrived, Jack did all the talking, since he knew the Japanese language and customs. Leo simply sat beside his brother and smiled the whole time, not knowing what was going on.
Every once in a while Jack would inform Leo about what their potential client wanted and Leo would nod in agreement. Knowing full well that Leo had no idea what was going on, Jack convinced their client to give them the deal of a lifetime.
However, when it came to signing the papers, Jack couldn't bring himself to double cross his big brother. In the end, Jack had compassion and let Leo have all the glory.
Author's Note: I got my inspiration from the two stories, African Folk-Tales and Japanese Mythology. In the African Folk-Tales reading, the two main characters are usually Lion and Jackal and they're uncle and nephew, respectively. Jackal always ends up double crossing Lion and getting away with all the spoils and sometimes fatally wounds Lion. As you can probably tell, I used these two characters for the inspiration of my main story and the names of the characters as well. A small bit of my inspiration came from the Japanese Mythology reading. In that reading, the Japanese gods have children who are deities who, as the generations go on, become more and more human-like. I didn't integrate as much as I wanted to into this story from that reading, but as you can see, I had Leo and Jack come into contact with a Japanese client. That's kind of the extent of where I went with that.
Bibliography: South African Folktales by James Honey &a Japanese Mythology by E. W. Champney and F. Champney.
Image 1: Leo
Image 2: Jack
Wednesday, March 1, 2017
Reading Notes: Japanese Mythology, Part A
For Tuesday's reading, I read about Japanese mythology! Now, these readings were very interesting because I watch Naruto and some of the skills/abilities are the gods/goddesses in these stories. For example, Izanagi and Izanami are Mangekyo Sharingan abilities in Naruto Shippuden. I know this is all very nerdy, but I found it interesting and that made the stories easy to read!
As with most mythology and origin stories, these Japanese mythological stories followed somewhat the same pattern. By this, I mean that there were the high gods (Izanagi and Izanami), so to speak, and the lesser gods or deities (Amaterasu and Susano). The reason that I say lesser is because the gods have children and those children are endowed with powers/abilities, but usually to a lesser extent than their parents before them. Also, in these stories, each generation goes through some event that influences where they are today and what their role is as a god/goddess.
Since I did Tuesday's reading on Japanese Mythology and Monday's reading on African Folk-Tales, I am going to attempt to use elements from both of these readings in my story-telling for Wednesday. The elements I am thinking about using are the generations from this reading and the idea of gods as well. Additionally, since I planned on placing my story-telling in the present day and age, I might transfer these elements over as two brothers (Lion and Jackal) who have inherited a business from their parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, etc. (Izanagi and Izanami), who end up coming into conflict because of their dealing business dealings/empire.
Bibliography: Japanese Mythology by E. W. Champney and F. Champney.
Image: Izanagi and Izanami from the Untextbook
Monday, February 27, 2017
Reading Notes: South African Folktales, Part A
For this week's reading, I did the South African folktales by James Honey. Nearly all of the short stories in this reading had the character Jackal. In all the stories that Jackal is in, he is very cunning and seems to outwit all the other characters that he comes into contact with. He does this in all of his stories and even when he is caught and condemned, he still finds a way out of his sentencing.
Additionally, I want to build on Lion's and Jackal's relationship to each other. In the short stories, they are usually presented as uncle and nephew, but there's not any real depth to their relationship besides this. In my story, I want to develop their bond so the deception and/or trickery is that much more heart-wrenching to the audience. I also want to build up the relationship of Jackal to his family.
Obviously, Jackal cares considerably about his family in order to betray his uncle (Lion). It seemed to me that Lion and Jackal had a pretty good relationship; they hunt together and share the spoils. Although Jackal does get the crappy end of the stick, it's still a decent long-term investment. With that being said, I want to make Jackal's reason(s) more believable for him to betray a decent deal that he had with Lion. It might make sense to make this into story that is set in the present day...
Bibliography: South African Folk-tales by James Honey
Image: Jackal, Wikipedia
Thursday, February 23, 2017
Week 6 Storytelling: Sapphire Boy
The Discerner was a wise man who knew a great many things about a great many things. He was never stingy with his knowledge, but he only shared his knowledge with those who he deemed worthy.
Because of this, he was able to make the most disciplined disciples in all the land. Everyone from villages near and far flocked to go have a chance to learn from him.
After many years of teaching countless disciples how to attain enlightenment, the Discerner found himself feeling sad. Although he had many accomplished disciples, he did not have a son to call his own.
The Discerner, being so wise, chose to make a pilgrimage to the Mountain of Birth in order to have his son. After performing an intricate ceremony, the Discerner was able to use the Mountan of Life to draw forth a precious strain of sapphire.
Immediately, the strain of sapphire began to move and take the form of a boy. Overjoyed, the Discerner began to teach the Sapphire Boy his ways and knowledge.
Within a short amount of time, Sapphire Boy grew and learned all that the Discerner had to teach. But because of his quick learning, Sapphire Boy never learned the value of having patience.
Because of his lack of patience, Sapphire Boy had trouble whenever he attempted to meditate. The Discerner eventually noticed Sapphire Boy's hard time and taught him all kinds of techniques that would aid in his meditation, but nothing helped.
Frustrated with himself, Sapphire Boy stormed off and found a place among the humans who regarded Sapphire Boy as a deity. Sapphire Boy quickly fell into the role of the humans' deity and began to think of how he could conquer the rest of the world.
The Discerner, upon seeing this, became distressed because his own son had failed at being his disciple. Despite this, however, the Discerner could not bring himself to take action against his own son.
While the Discerner contemplated on what to do, Sapphire Boy set out with his human followers to conquer the neighboring cities. Utilizing his vast knowledge of everything, Sapphire Boy first taught his humans how to organize their armies in order to outflank and outmaneuver their enemies in the most efficient manner possible.
Then, Sapphire Boy's army came to a completely walled city that seemed impenetrable. The humans decided to give up and just go home with their spoils from the first cities they conquered. But Sapphire Boy proceeded to teach the humans about siegecraft and how to use the equipment. After this, the humans made quick work of their enemies and attained more spoils than they could carry.
Dismayed, the humans wondered how they were going to carry all their treasure back home. Noticing their dismay, Sapphire Boy showed the humans how to make load-bearing devices that would allow them to carry much more than was natural.
One by one, the rest of the human cities fell to Sapphire Boy and his conquering armies. Realizing that Sapphire Boy was not going to stop until the Heavens themselves were conquered, the Discerner devised a plan to stop Sapphire Boy.
Gathering all of his disciples, the Discerner informed them that they would have to wage a single last defensive at the gates of Heaven itself in order to stop Sapphire Boy's advance. Agreeing with their master, they mustered at the gates of Heaven and waited for Sapphire Boy to approach.
Without wasting time, Sapphire Boy quickly advanced on Heaven's gates. However, the humans were no match for the Discerner's disciples, and they were quickly disposed of, except for a few.
Feeling the surge of confidence, the Discerner ordered a hasty assault against Sapphire Boy and his remaining humans. Without a proper strategy, the Discerner and his disciples rushed in for the kill and fell prey to Sapphire Boy's trap. They were caught in a pitfall that had no bottom and that could only be created in the Heavens. However, as the Discerner fell for the rest of eternity, he only felt pride for his son's accomplishments.
Author's Note: In the original story (The Monkey King), the Monkey King is born as a stone egg from the Mountain of Flowers and Fruits and eventually seeks out a saint in order to learn the secret to eternal life so that both he and his family of apes will not have to fear Death. The Monkey King finds his teacher and learns extremely fast, but he has a "monkey mind" that deters his focus from his spirit. He ends up getting banished and goes back to his ape family and proceeds to do many incredible feats. He even goes so far as to march up to the gates of the Underworld and take the book of life from the ten princes of the Underworld. He then strikes out all the names of his ape family and thus defeats death. I did not do part B of this reading so I don't know how the Monkey King ends up being stopped on his crazy adventures. Because of this I improvised on the ending and wrote it how I saw fit.
Bibliography: The Monkey King translated by Frederick H. Martens
Image: Bottomless Pit of Heaven
Tuesday, February 21, 2017
Reading Notes: Monkey King, Part A
For this week's reading, I read part A of the Monkey King Sun Wu Kung. This was one of my favorite reads so far because of the adventures and knowledge that Sun goes on and learns. I also found it intriguing how Sun is able to cause as much commotion as he does without any repercussions. From taking weapons by the use of magic to intimidating Death in order to keep his ape family from dying, it's just insane.
One interesting detail that I kept thinking about though, was how Sun was not already a saint or god due to his being born of divinity, so to speak. I also found myself wondering why Sun was the only one who was hatched via the Mountain of Flowers and Fruits. I guess it could be that there's a time delay in between births...? However, I'm thinking of giving Sun an antagonist who is possibly a younger brother who is born out of necessity in order to stop Sun's antics.
More details that I was thinking of changing was what Sun was made out of. Instead of being made out of stone, he could be made out of metal, which is more durable than stone. How this relates to anything, though, I have yet to contemplate. Additionally, Sun and his apes are not subject to the rule of man. This is something that I could play with in some way, shape, or form.
Another important detail is the Discerner, Sun's teacher/mentor. From the stories, it seems as if the Discerner is/will be the only one who will be able to take on Sun and beat him. Obviously this would go against a possible little brother of Sun's rising up to defeat him. So, I could have the Discerner teach/mentor the possible little brother as well.
Finally, an intriguing detail that I'd like to play around with is Sun's "monkey mind." This lack of focus in Sun gets him into trouble with the Discerner and ultimately leads to his expulsion. Too often do brilliant people get ahead of themselves and end up causing their own demise. This is something that I want to build upon in my story.
Bibliography: The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung translated Frederick H. Martens
Image: Sun, the Monkey King from the Monkey King Unit
Wednesday, February 15, 2017
Week 5 Story: The Great Father
Before time began, there was the Great Father. Now, the Great Father existed only by himself and did not need anybody else to keep him company. However, one day the Great Father got the idea to create something just to see what would happen. So, he took a piece of his own chest and molded it into a figure that was similar to his own likeness. He thought long and hard and decided to name this figure, Prota, because he was the first creation ever.
Unlike the Great Father, Prota instantly began to feel lonely even with his father there to keep him company. Because Prota was made from a piece of the Great Father himself, Prota could do everything that the Great Father could do, and more. Prota began by making a dwelling place for himself and his father, then he made the Earth and the stars, and finally he created the lesser gods and organic beings. Prota was extremely pleased with himself and proclaimed himself the king of all the Earth. The Great Father however was starting to question his initial creation.
"You must destroy your creations," the Great Father said, because he could not understand why Prota had created all he had. Taken aback, Prota protested, "No, father! They keep me company so that I will not be lonely." But unlike Prota, the Great Father did not experience loneliness, so he began to cause massive tsunamis and devastating earthquakes in order to destroy Prota's Earth. Seeing this, Prota immediately began to fight back against his father in order to stop his acts of destruction.
Prota hurled massive fireballs at the Great Father, which threw the Great Father off-balance. After quickly regaining his balance, the Great Father immediately closed the distance between himself and Prota. Grabbing Prota by the throat, the Great Father shouted, "this is your last chance! Come with me or be destroyed forever!" But Prota broke his father's grip and threw him down to the Earth.
With a crash that shook the entire Earth, the Great Father slammed down into Egypt. All the humans and creatures who were within a thousand miles were instantly killed by the impact. The rest of the Earth's population were roused by the godly battle and took up their arms and manned their chariots. Prota arrived shortly after the Great Father crashed down on Earth and ordered the humans to stop and let him handle the fight because they would only get in the way. Reluctantly, but obediently, the humans watched in awe as the two gods fought each other to decide the fate of creation.
Being in the presence of his own creations, Prota gathered all his strength and dealt a crippling blow to his father. Staggering, the Great Father fell back and gave in to defeat by the hands of his son, Prota. Standing ready to deal a death blow to the Great Father, Prota thought of his own creations and had mercy for his father. Surprised by this merciful act, the Great Father apologized for his attempted destruction of Prota's creations and requested to be Prota's mentor and advisor in the ages to come.
Author's Note: I got my idea for this story from the Ancient Egypt, part A reading. In the reading it describes how Nu, the Great Father, created/born Ra who ended up being even stronger than Nu himself. Nu went on to create all sorts of things, from the heavens to the humans. What I was trying to explore with this story was to write about how Nu (Great Father in this story) felt and might have acted to his son doing/performing greater things than even he could do. As always, please feel free to write comments that will help me to write better and more interesting stories in the future!
Bibliography: Ancient Egypt by Donald Mackenzie
Image 1: Ra
Image 2: Nu
Unlike the Great Father, Prota instantly began to feel lonely even with his father there to keep him company. Because Prota was made from a piece of the Great Father himself, Prota could do everything that the Great Father could do, and more. Prota began by making a dwelling place for himself and his father, then he made the Earth and the stars, and finally he created the lesser gods and organic beings. Prota was extremely pleased with himself and proclaimed himself the king of all the Earth. The Great Father however was starting to question his initial creation.
"You must destroy your creations," the Great Father said, because he could not understand why Prota had created all he had. Taken aback, Prota protested, "No, father! They keep me company so that I will not be lonely." But unlike Prota, the Great Father did not experience loneliness, so he began to cause massive tsunamis and devastating earthquakes in order to destroy Prota's Earth. Seeing this, Prota immediately began to fight back against his father in order to stop his acts of destruction.
Prota hurled massive fireballs at the Great Father, which threw the Great Father off-balance. After quickly regaining his balance, the Great Father immediately closed the distance between himself and Prota. Grabbing Prota by the throat, the Great Father shouted, "this is your last chance! Come with me or be destroyed forever!" But Prota broke his father's grip and threw him down to the Earth.
With a crash that shook the entire Earth, the Great Father slammed down into Egypt. All the humans and creatures who were within a thousand miles were instantly killed by the impact. The rest of the Earth's population were roused by the godly battle and took up their arms and manned their chariots. Prota arrived shortly after the Great Father crashed down on Earth and ordered the humans to stop and let him handle the fight because they would only get in the way. Reluctantly, but obediently, the humans watched in awe as the two gods fought each other to decide the fate of creation.
Being in the presence of his own creations, Prota gathered all his strength and dealt a crippling blow to his father. Staggering, the Great Father fell back and gave in to defeat by the hands of his son, Prota. Standing ready to deal a death blow to the Great Father, Prota thought of his own creations and had mercy for his father. Surprised by this merciful act, the Great Father apologized for his attempted destruction of Prota's creations and requested to be Prota's mentor and advisor in the ages to come.
Author's Note: I got my idea for this story from the Ancient Egypt, part A reading. In the reading it describes how Nu, the Great Father, created/born Ra who ended up being even stronger than Nu himself. Nu went on to create all sorts of things, from the heavens to the humans. What I was trying to explore with this story was to write about how Nu (Great Father in this story) felt and might have acted to his son doing/performing greater things than even he could do. As always, please feel free to write comments that will help me to write better and more interesting stories in the future!
Bibliography: Ancient Egypt by Donald Mackenzie
Image 1: Ra
Image 2: Nu
Monday, February 13, 2017
Reading Notes: Ancient Egypt, Part A
For week 5, I decided to go with the Ancient Egypt readings, because who doesn't love a good story from the times of the ancient Egyptians?!
Much like most other stories about mythology, the Ancient Egypt readings begin with stories about the creation and go on from there, detailing how everything came about. A detail that I found interesting was how Ra, the sun god, was more powerful than Nu, the Great Father. If I were to tell a story from Nu's viewpoint on how he felt about this particular detail, I feel as if this would be an interesting story to tell. Also, I could even write more in detail about how Nu got his beginning, which would be interesting, seeing as how he was the beginning. Additionally, I could expound upon how Nu felt about Ra creating other gods besides Nu and Ra.
I also think it's interesting that although time flows differently for the gods, they still do get old and theoretically die? This could explain some of the reasoning for why the other gods keep trying to usurp each other. Just like humans can't stand to wait for their turn on the throne, how much longer do the gods have to wait in order for them to rule. If the Egyptian gods feel the same emotions as humans do, then war and rebellion between them is inevitable, despite their godhood.
If anything, a war among them would be devastating to the humans who wouldn't be able to stop and/or intervene in the war without getting themselves absolutely decimated. With that being said, some gods do seem to be much more powerful than other gods, take for example Ra, who can create basically anything by speaking or thinking it into existence. Which leads me to another thought, how was Isis continually beaten back by Set, when she knows Ra's Secret Name of power? Telling a story from her point of view and how she decides to use that power could also be an interesting starting off point.
Bibliography: Ancient Egypt by Donald Mackenzie
Image 1: Ra, Wikipedia
Image 2: Isis, Wikipedia
Much like most other stories about mythology, the Ancient Egypt readings begin with stories about the creation and go on from there, detailing how everything came about. A detail that I found interesting was how Ra, the sun god, was more powerful than Nu, the Great Father. If I were to tell a story from Nu's viewpoint on how he felt about this particular detail, I feel as if this would be an interesting story to tell. Also, I could even write more in detail about how Nu got his beginning, which would be interesting, seeing as how he was the beginning. Additionally, I could expound upon how Nu felt about Ra creating other gods besides Nu and Ra.
I also think it's interesting that although time flows differently for the gods, they still do get old and theoretically die? This could explain some of the reasoning for why the other gods keep trying to usurp each other. Just like humans can't stand to wait for their turn on the throne, how much longer do the gods have to wait in order for them to rule. If the Egyptian gods feel the same emotions as humans do, then war and rebellion between them is inevitable, despite their godhood.
If anything, a war among them would be devastating to the humans who wouldn't be able to stop and/or intervene in the war without getting themselves absolutely decimated. With that being said, some gods do seem to be much more powerful than other gods, take for example Ra, who can create basically anything by speaking or thinking it into existence. Which leads me to another thought, how was Isis continually beaten back by Set, when she knows Ra's Secret Name of power? Telling a story from her point of view and how she decides to use that power could also be an interesting starting off point.
Bibliography: Ancient Egypt by Donald Mackenzie
Image 1: Ra, Wikipedia
Image 2: Isis, Wikipedia
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