Week 12 Reading Diary: English Fairy Tales Unit

This week I chose to read the English Fairy Tales unit.

In the story of Tom Tit Tot, it made me wonder what would be a normal amount of skeins to spin in one day. Because spinning five skeins, really doesn't sound like that big of a feat.

I thought it was interesting how the girl gets to guess the imps name three times each night for the whole month. In the version I'm used to, I'm pretty sure she only gets three guesses.

Also, why is the king so obsessed with these skeins? What does he even need them for? In the version I'm used to, the girl says she can spin gold. That seems like it would be way more of an asset than just yarn.

The Rose Tree is an awfully gruesome story! The poor little girl loses her head for making a silly mistake! And then the step-mother tries to feed the family the little girl's organs! I can't imagine telling this story to my children.

It also seems funny to run outside to see the thunder. Maybe the author meant that they wanted to see the lightning, but you can't see thunder. I'm glad that the little girl got her revenge on the horrible step-mother.

The story of The Old Woman and Her Pig reminds me of The Old Woman Who Swallowed a Spider. While I understand that the woman wants the water to punish the fire for not burning the stick, if her end goal is to have a hot stick to hit the dog with, then pouring water on it doesn't seem like a very good idea.

I'm glad the cow finally cooperated or who knows how long the story would have been!

In Binnorie, my favorite line is both morbid and amusing: "'Sink on,' cried the cruel princess, 'no hand or glove of mine you'll touch. Sweet William will be all mine when you are sunk beneath the bonny millstream of Binnorie.'"

People do the strangest things in these stories. If you found a woman beautiful and were grieved at her death, why on earth would you make a harp from her bones and hair?! That seems very demented. 

I did like how the harp called the murderous sister out on her crimes in front of everyone. That was a good ending.

In The Mouse and the Mouser, the way the characters repeated "good body, good body" and "dear lady, dear lady" reminded me of "There's a Hole in My Bucket, dear Liza, Dear Liza."

They certainly have a lot of dances back to back in the Cap o' Rushes story.

I actually liked this version of Cinderella better than the original. The master's son and Cap o' Rushes actually get to know each other over a couple of days. The ring in the porridge makes way more sense than carrying a shoe around the kingdom to have every girl try it on because not everyone has a unique shoe size. And Cap o' Rushes is reunited with her father in the end instead of having him die. I also liked the way the idea of meat and salt was brought up again at the end.

In the story of The Three Little Pigs, I don't understand why the third little pig had the sense not to let the wolf in, but then he risked his safety by leaving his house to pick turnips and apples. It's funny how the pig becomes the predator at the end of the story by making the wolf his prey. That's an interesting twist.

I remember the Disney movie version of The Master and His Pupil. Mickey was making the water go all over the place in great waves.

In the Henny-Penny story, it's funny how the story is moving right along with the hen, the rooster, the duck, the goose, and the turkey, but none of those birds find the fox's interest strange. 

In the Molly Whuppie story, it seems like the king is getting the better bargain. He gets swords and riches and his sons get wives. But Molly has to risk her life every single time she goes to the giant's house. I felt bad for the giant in this story. He looses his possessions and he accidentally kills his wife.

I was glad that Lady Mary was smart enough to save herself from a murderous husband. I was worried for a little while that Mr. Fox was going to kill her.

In The Ass, The Table, and The Stick, I was really rooting for Jack until he beat up all those women and stole their money. That seemed really uncalled for because he already had as much money as he could spend.

Week 11 Storytelling: Alice and The Chessmen

Once upon a time, there was a very bored little girl. Her golden hair twisted in boring curls, and the petticoats of her blue dress wrinkled in boring ruffles.

It was a hot summer day, Alice had absolutely nothing to entertain herself in her stuffy old living room. She had nothing, except her imagination, which is the greatest tool, you know.

Alice stared at the boring old chess set on the coffee table, and she squinted her eyes and concentrated very hard.

Suddenly, the black king's head popped out of the stone piece and became fleshy. That was quickly followed by his body, arms, and legs. He glanced around in confusion and noticed Alice.

"You there!" the Black King exclaimed. "What business have you going around and making perfectly good stone chess pieces turn into flesh?" He waved his fist indignantly.

"How am I supposed to command my army if I can no longer speak with them? I demand that you turn me back this instant!" he continued.

Alice was taken-aback. If she were stone, she reasoned, she would enjoy being made human. She didn't understand why the Black King had become all hot and bothered over the issue. Besides, she was bored, and she wanted someone to play with.

"No, I'm sorry, dear king. I shan't turn you back," Alice said matter-of-factually.

"Well, if you won't restore me to my regular state of being, then I absolutely insist that you bring all the rest of my comrades along with me!" the Black King declared. He straightened himself up to his full height.

Alice thought for a minute. She had turned the Black King into flesh and blood relatively easily. And having more chess pieces to play with did sound appealing.

"Alright," Alice agreed. "I'll try my best."

For the next hour, Alice glared and squinted and glowered and scowled. She looked cross-eyed and cock-eyed. She concentrated and fixated and meditated and pondered. Alice ruminated and scrutinized and contemplated. Until finally, every last chess piece on the board was running around and calling out to its friends.

 

(Image information: "Chessmen" by  John Tenniel, 1871.)

Alice was quite delighted with herself, and now that all of the chess pieces were reunited together again, they were quite pleased as well. They whiled away the afternoon together in pleasurable companionship.

Alice and the chess pieces grew quite close throughout the afternoon, and Alice grew sad when darkness came and her little friends became stone again.

"Well, at least for once," Alice said, "my life wasn't quite so boring."


Author's Note: This story is inspired by the Chess Pieces part of Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There by Lewis Carrol, 1871. With this retelling, I really wanted to play around with Carrol's writing style because I think it's so enchanting. His word choice really makes for enjoyable stories. So I tried my best to emulate that.

Week 11 Reading Diary: Through the Looking-Glass

This week I chose to read the Through the Looking-Glass unit, which is taken from the Lewis Carrol novel Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There. I've already read Alice in Wonderland. So I'm excited to read the sequel.

I like how this story starts out in a real house with a little girl who is pretending and slowly reality mixes with imagination.

There's a wonderful contrast between Alice's curiosity about the chess pieces and they way the chess pieces rationalize the things that happen to them because of Alice.

 

(Image Information "Hold White King" by John Tenniel, from Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There by Lewis Carrol,  1871).

I wonder if something happened in the omitted chapters that allowed the Looking-Glass characters to begin seeing Alice.

I was homeschooled. And when I was in highschool, my mom and I read the Jaberwocky poem. I enjoyed it as much today as I had back then. It reminds me of Dr. Seuss in that there are a lot of made up words, but I can still understand the story. Writing like that takes a real talent.

When Alice meets Tweedledee and Tweedledum, I like how she thinks about needing to shake both of their hands at once as to not hurt their feelings. It shows how mature she is.

In the movie Harriet the Spy, Harriet and her nanny recite part of the Walrus and the Carpenter poem to each other, and I always loved that part of the movie. So this is my favorite part of the poem:

"The time has come," the Walrus said,
"To talk of many things:
Of shoes — and ships — and sealing-wax —
Of cabbages — and kings —
And why the sea is boiling hot —
And whether pigs have wings."

It's funny how despite Alice's maturity and thoughtfulness, Tweedledee and Tweedledum talk so much nonsense about her not being real that they make her cry. I think this is very illustrative of many people. We get ourselves so worked up over something that's not even a big deal that we forget that we're worried about something that might not even be worth worrying about.

This is such a funny visual: "All this time Tweedledee was trying his best to fold up the umbrella, with himself in it: which was such an extraordinary thing to do that it quite took off Alice's attention from the angry brother."

I find this part pretty funny because so many people do use words like this. "'When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, 'it means just what I choose it to mean — neither more nor less.'" But what is the point of having a common language, if the words mean different things to different people?

Something I've thought about a lot during this semester's reading units is whether or not the nonsense in the stories is justified. Usually, I don't like it when characters do things for no reason. But I don't find myself upset by it in Through the Looking Glass. I'm wondering if that's because I'm familiar with Lewis Carrol as an author, and so, I knew to expect the nonsense.

I like what the White Knight says here, "My mind goes on working all the same. In fact, the more head downwards I am, the more I keep inventing new things." It's very true. I always have the best ideas when I'm driving or in the shower and can't write them down. Sometimes I think minds work best when they're occupied with something simple.

I like how the riddles in this books almost seem to make sense, but they don't quite. It's very entertaining to try to figure them out and then realize that they can't be understood.

Alice goes through the same thing I think. "Alice sighed and gave it up. 'It's exactly like a riddle with no answer!' she thought."

Even though Alice wakes up from this story and believes it to be a dream, I wonder if that is simply her way of dealing with such strange events. I wonder if it could have really happened to her.

Week 10 Essay: The Oral Storytelling Style of Inuit Folktales

Because the originally oral stories in the Eskimo Folk Tales unit were recorded by Rasmussen, the explorer, they had a very distincitive style of speech. Some of the stories, like "The Coming of Men, A Long, Long While Ago," have a very clear perspective. The oral style of storytelling was important to the folk tales because it made them sound more realistic and truthful. As part of this, the characters' names are quite different

The storyteller's perspective in "The Coming of Men, A Long, Long While Ago" makes it obvious that the storyteller is explaining the details he/she knows, and then he/she is upfront with the listener about not knowing some parts. "When did they find each other, and when had they grown up?" the storyteller asks. "I do not know," he/she finishes.

This oral storytelling style brings the readers into the lives of the Inuits and helps them to understand the culture. In the story of "Isigâligârssik," the storyteller explains one of the wizard's customs, saying, "When the wizard was about to call upon his spirits, it was his custom to call in through the window: 'Only the married men may come and hear.'" Also in this story, Rasmussen explains that the Inuits believed that the first dress worn by a small child would heal that child from physical harm when he/she grows up. The style is inclusive and it draws the readers in. In the story of "Nukúnguasik, who Escaped from the Tupilak,"Rasmussen teaches us that a Tupilak is a monster made from the bones of animals. The Tupilak is magical and is used to punish one's enemies. In a manner similar to a daughter telling her mother about her day, this style makes the stories easy to relate to.

 (Image information: "Tupilak" from Eskimo Folk-Tales by Knud Rasmussen, with illustrations by native Eskimo artists, 1921).

The unusual names in this unit are ones like Nukúnguasik, Qalagánguasê, and Isigâligârssik. Upholding the true names of the people that these stories are about, shows the integrity of the storyteller and further emphasizes the fact that the events in the folktales really happened.

Week 10 Storytelling: Minerva and her Polar Bear Son

Once upon a time, there was an old woman named Minerva, who had never married. She had no family left to support her, and so often, she went hungry.

But sometimes, the young hunters in the community would bring her meat to eat, and they would tell her about their great adventures.

One day, when the hunters brought the regular meat and stories, they brought something new along with them.

When the short woman with completely gray hair opened her front door, three young men stood on the snow-covered steps holding a polar bear cub!

 

(Image information: "Polar Bear" by Alan D. Wilson, 2007.)

"Awwe, what a dear little thing," Minerva said. "Where is his mother?"

The hunters brought the cub into Minerva's house, and she brewed tea for everyone. She found some old blankets to wrap around the cub and the little bear quickly fell asleep.

"Unfortunately, Ms. Minerva, we shot and killed the cub's mother. We didn't know it was a mother bear when she shot it, and we've very sorry. We thought that maybe you would want some company. So we brought the bear here," one of the hunters said.

"Well, that's a very strange form of company, but I'll give it a try," she said.

The hunters left the cub with Minerva, and over the years, the cub grew up. It spent so much time playing with Minerva and the village children that the cub developed the brain of a human.

Neither Minerva nor the cub wanted for anything because the village folk were so taken with the cub that they often brought food and clothes and toys for him.

The bear grew stronger and stronger, and Minerva would have to remind her bear cub to be gentle with the village children.

Once Minerva and the hunters thought the bear was ready, the hunters took the cub out to hunt with them one day. It took a little practice, but once the bear got the hang of sniffing out the prey, he was a very useful helper.

But a scary thing happened that day. Another group of hunters who didn't know about the pet polar bear tried to shoot at the cub with their bows and arrows. All of the village hunters were very upset, and they yelled at the other group of hunters. Thankfully, the cub wasn't hurt.

The hunters asked Minerva to fashion a special collar for the polar bear so that everyone near and far would know that he was special. She wove together several sinews and placed the collar around his neck.

From then on, when ever he went hunting, the bear received many compliments from the people he encountered, and he was very happy with his life as a hunting helper and as a companion to Minerva.

Author's Note: This story was inspired by "The Woman Who Had A Bear As A Foster-Son," from the Eskimo Folk-Tales book by Knud Rasmussen, 1921. I kept this story very close to the original, except that I gave the old woman a name, and I changed the ending. In the ending of the original story, the old woman tells the polar bear that she is worried that if he stays with her, he will be killed. So she urges him to find somewhere else. The bear leaves, and Minerva never sees him again. I thought this was a very sad ending, and I also found it kind of pointless because the old woman made him a special collar to protect him.

Week 10 Reading Diary: Eskimo Folk Tales

I chose to read half of the Eskimo Folk Tales unit this week.

In The Coming of Men a Long, Long While Ago, I enjoyed the imagery of the Earth falling from the sky. But the thought of a woman finding children in the woods, dressing them, and bringing them home is sort of creepy.

I think it's interesting how many parallels are present between this creation story and the Christian creation stories. The creation of man and woman from the Earth and the flood.

It's cool that the Inuits believe that people become stars when they die.

I really didn't understand the story of Nukúnguasik, who Escaped from the Tupilak.

I love the idea of adopting a bear cub! That sounds like so much fun. I think it's really cool how the bear develops the mind of a human in the story of The Woman Who Had A Bear As A Foster-Son. I think this one would be fun to retell for my storytelling assignment.

In the story of Qalagánguasê, Who Passed to the Land of Ghosts, it's cool to think of the ghosts being able to give the boy back his strength. This story reminds of Pinocchio in the way that the boy's lies have physical ramifications.

In the story of Isigâligârssik, I didn't understand why the wizard took away the man's wife. So the rest of the story was very confusing.

Similarly, I didn't understand The Insects that Wooed a Wifeless Man. Why did insects offering to marry him change anything?

I was totally following the story of Makíte until he threatened to kill the lone-dweller over not knowing what the things that looked like candles were. That escalated quickly.

I understand that anything is possible in folk tales and myths, but I still think that the characters need to have believable motivations, and I just don't see those in this unit.

Week 9 Essay: Believable Atmospheres

Because the stories in the American Indian Fairy Tales unit were about early Native Americans, all of them were set in the great outdoors. I loved the different atmospheres that Iagoo created through is storytelling. These natural environments were so believable that they made the story events seem more realistic even when they had to do with magic. The seasons were also a key factor in the stories. The storyteller used the undesirable elements of the current season to bolster his story about the season everyone was wishing for.

In the first story, an unknown narrator introduces Iagoo as the future narrator for the other stories. Iagoo's stories are often motivated by the weather. So when it is a cold and blustery winter, he tells stories about balmy summers. In Iagoo, the Storyteller, the author does a wonderful job of incorporating the body's senses into the mix. "The snow lay deep on the ground" brings in imagery for the audience, and "the North Wind came howling from its home in the Land of Ice," gives the environment sound. "Iagoo sat by the fire of blazing logs" helps the reader feel the heat of the fire.

 

(Image information: "The North Wind" from American Indian Fairy Tales by W.T. Larned, with illustrations by John Rae 1921.)

The scene that is set in the story of how Shin-ge-bis Fooled the North Wind is also very encompassing. "When he breathed upon the land, violets appeared in the woods, the wild rose bloomed on the yellow prairie, and the cooing dove called musically to his mate." This description gives enough details for the reader's imagination to take off without bogging down the plot with over-description.

I liked the atmosphere in The Fairy Bride the best. So much of this story depended on the reader coming to understand Neen-i-zu's fascination with the fairies. The description of the environment was important here, but I think the imagery of the fairies was even more key. "It was just the place for leap-frog and all-hands-'round; in the twilight of summer days they were said to gather here in little bands, playing all manner of pranks." This characterization of the fairies made me want to meet them as much as Neen-i-zu did.