Extra Reading Diary: Europa's Fairy Book

Extra Reading Diary: Europa's Fairy Book

I love fairy tales so I'm looking forward to reading half of this unit. It sounds like the author mix and matched different stories and made them his own. It sounds exactly like what we do in this class so I think it'll be cool to see the differences and his techniques.

Beauty and the Beast: I've seen Disney's Beauty and the Beast, but I had never read the story before. This story was a bit less dramatic than Disney's. The way that Belle ended up with the Beast was interesting, but not that great. I did like how Belle found Beast in his garden at the end. This story makes much more sense with the rose, because it's explained in the beginning.

Beauty and the Beast
Source: Europa's Fairy Book by Joseph Jacobs and illustrated by John Batten (1916)

The Language of Animals: I love reading stories about talking animals so I'm very excited to read this story. Ah, I loved this story. I think it's so cool that Jack could understand animals. It made for a very great power since it didn't seem that anyone else could tell what they were saying. I like how the beginning of the story tied perfectly into the end. I also liked that there was a happy ending for Jack and his family.

Reading Diary B: Dante's Inferno

Reading Diary B: Dante's Inferno

I've enjoyed this unit so far and I'm looking to see the rest of Dante's journey. His interpretations have been interesting and I'm expecting more of the same.

Jason and the Demons: I found it interesting how Dante incorporated mythology into what mainly seems to be a Christianized story.  I really liked the exchange that Virgil had with the demons. It was cool to see the demons have some actually dialogue because I feel they are often depicted as mindless evil doers. I hope the story goes into more detail about the hierarchy of demons in Hell.

Structure of Hell
Source: (illustration by di Fruosino)

Satan: I loved the author's description of seeing Lucifer. It was such a striking image. The imagery reminded me of the book of Revelation. There are so many different ways to interpret the symbols. I also liked the Judas was depicted in this story. I think he's an interesting character to explore. In this story it wasn't going too well for him in Hell with Satan.

Reading Diary A: Dante's Inferno

Reading Diary A: Dante's Inferno

I've heard a lot about this story, but I have never read it. I think it's such an interesting concept and I'm excited to explore it. I think that we all wonder what the other side of life will be like and it's cool to see one person's imagining of it. I like afterlife stories as much as I like origin stories. We're in the middle of our life, but I always wonder about the beginning and the end.

Dante and Virgil: I quite liked the beginning of this story. I think it's such an accurate depiction of life when you become self-aware. I think the image I selected is haunting because I think we've all felt lost in the woods with no way out. The story was a little hard to follow just because of the language, but I enjoyed it all the same. I'm interested to see where Virgil is taking Dante.

Lost Man
Source: (illustration by Gustave Doré)

The Gate of Hell and Charon: I think it's interesting how Dante mixes Christian and Greco-Roman ideas of Hell. I think the author was clever by using his characters to explain the situation, so reader could better understand the story's meaning. The depiction of the underworld was very haunting and I was struck up the imagery. I truly felt like I was along with Dante for his journey.

Extra Reading Diary: Russian Folktales

Extra Reading Diary: Russian Folktales

I've enjoyed every folktale unit that I've read so far. I think that I'll like this unit too. I'm interested to see what type of stories the Russians focus on. I'm expecting some pretty grim stories for some reason.

The Dead Mother: Well I guess I was right about the dark/grim stories. I'm impressed by how much story was crammed in into a very short text. I wonder why this is a story that was told often. I suppose that long ago there were more deaths during childbirth. This is quite a haunting story for mothers to hear.

Grave of Dead Mother
Source: Wikipedia Commons

The Treasure: I really liked this story. I thought it was interesting to see that the pope was actually the greedy one in the story. I also liked how the story ended. I think having justice served in the end is the best part. The setting felt distinctly Russian. I think it was mainly that it took place in winter. That really solidified the Russian aspect for me. I think the author did a great job of crafting the story. 

Reading Diary B: Beowulf

Reading Diary B: Beowulf

The really enjoyed the first half of this unit, so I'm expecting great things from the second half. I like Beowulf's character and I'm hoping that he doesn't meet a tragic end.

The Arrival of the Dragon: I liked how the author described the peaceful period for Beowulf and his people. It was crucial to paint a very happy picture, so this next adventure could come in and break that up. The way the story is going reminds me of The Hobbit. There is a big dragon with a lot of gold and now the king is going to try to take it from him. I'm interested to see how Beowulf approaches the situation.

My favorite character in this section was the stranger who brought the news to Beowulf. He was described perfectly and his character ushered in a new challenge for the King.

The Dragon
Source: illustration by A. R. Skelton

Battle with the Dragon: The detail in describing the dragon was incredible. I felt like I was really there watching the battle. I'm impressed with the description of the battle also. I wondered how Beowulf was going to fight and I got my answer. I think my hope that Beowulf would not have a tragic ending is not going to be fulfilled, but maybe he'll surprise me!

The End of Beowulf: Well he did have a tragic ending, but at least the dragon was defeated. I like that Beowulf stayed true to himself until the end, unlike the other barons. His legend lives on! I quite enjoyed this entire unit and I'm glad I finally got to read this full story.

Reading Diary A: Beowulf

Reading Diary A: Beowulf

I don't know much about the story of Beowulf. I didn't get a chance to read it in high school so I'm excited that I'm finally getting the chance to do so. I know that there was a movie made about it maybe five or so year ago, so I'd be interested in watching that this week while I read the unit! I'm hoping that the "wulf" means that there are going to be some werewolves, but I won't hold my breath.

King Hygelac of Geatsland: I'm already in love with the setting the storyteller has described. There are so many places that this story could go. The kingdom that they described reminded me a little bit of the Eragon series. Although this is a short story, it sets the rest of the unit up perfectly. I know exactly what type of characters I'm dealing with. And I know the types of problems that they are likely to run into. I'm excited to continue.

Ship At Sea
Source: The Story of Beowulf by Strafford Riggs with illustrations by Henry Pitz (1933)

The Young Beowulf: The thing that strikes me about the stories in this unit is the beautiful descriptions. I'm a fan of Beowulf at the moment, because he seems so misunderstood. Even though he is really strong, he is king of the underdog because so many people are against him. I look forward to seeing where Beowulf goes in this story. There are only a few lines that let the reader into Beowulf's mind, but they give a perfect description of his thoughts and I feel like I'm on his side and I know how he operates. That just shows the skill of the storyteller for being able to get readers to like his characters so quickly.

Extra Reading Diary: Czech Folktales

Extra Reading Diary: Czech Folktales

I like all types of folktales and since I don't know much about Czech culture I think it would be interesting to explore their stories. I'm hoping for/expecting witches or vampires to make at least one appearance!

The Bear, the Eagle, and the Fish: My favorite line of this story was: "All of them were young and as pretty as peacocks..." I loved this story! There weren't witches, but their was a magician so I was partially right. I like stories that happen in threes. There were three daughters. There were three animals who wed them. I thought the story was going to be over when the count gave away all of his daughters, but I was excited to see that was not the case. My favorite character in the story was the brother. He could have disregard what happened to sisters he did not even know, but he went after them and brought peace to the kingdom. This may be the best folktale I've read all semester.

Czech castle,
photo by B. Henak

Kojata: The first paragraph of this story had me laughing. The line, "he forgot that his wife was about to have a child," is hilarious. I like how the author incorporated numbers into the story. I really enjoyed this story. I'm going to have to read more Czech folktales. I like that there was a happy ending and I think the way the prince and his love escaped her father was perfectly told.

Reading Diary B: King Arthur

Reading Diary B: King Arthur

I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the King Arthur unit. I've read some of these stories before, but there are a couple that I'm not familiar with. This second part of the unit looks interesting because it focuses more on the adventures or Arthur's knights.

Sir Galahad and the White Knight: I like the story of Sir Galahad, because he is such a worthy knight.   I feel like he is one of those people that so many prophecies are written about. He is a central character that is able to do many things that others cannot. I also like that the shield in the story can only be worn by the worthiest knight in the land, not the strongest or the smartest. Arthurian Legends, especially when it comes to the Grail Quest, are more focused on being worthy than being powerful. I think these concepts give the stories a very appealing nature.

Sir Galahad Opens Tomb
Source: King Arthur: Tales of the Round Table by Andrew Lang and illustrated by H. J. Ford (1902)

The End of Arthur: I really enjoyed this part of the Arthurian story. I think this story about Arthur is so interesting because it allows the legend to live on. Arthur goes off to some mystical land (Avalon) to be healed and now we're all waiting for his return. I think it's a perfect non-conclusion to such an epic story. Even Lancelot and Guinevere are given satisfying endings. But ARTHUR LIVES ON!

Reading Diary A: King Arthur

Reading Diary A: King Arthur

The Drawing of the Sword: I've read this story before in my Arthurian Legend class and I liked it just as much the second time. I think my favorite part is that Arthur did not even strive to become king, but rather fell into it on accident while trying to help his "brother." I really like that when Arthur found out that he was king, he was more upset that Sir Ector wasn't his father than happy to be crowned. I also like the character Merlin. He popped up for a bit in this story, but I'm hoping there are some more stories involving him in his unit.

The Drawing of the Sword
Source:  King Arthur: Tales of the Round Table by Andrew Lang and illustrated by H. J. Ford (1902)

The Passing of Merlin: I like that even though Merlin knows the fate that will befall him he does nothing to stop it. He accepts his fate. I'm not sure if that shows how much he loved this woman or how foolish he is. I would have liked to see what Merlin's reaction was to the betrayal, but I suppose we'll never know. I like that Vivien, even though she was Merlin's apprentice was able to overpower the most powerful wizard. I have a thing for underdogs. I think that this would be an interesting story to use for my storytelling post this week. I think a woman using a man to get what she wants is a storyline that I'd like to explore.

Week 10 Review

I liked today's Words of Wisdom. It was, "As you make your bed, so you must lie on it." As with most things, it sounds better in French - "Comme on fait son lit, on se couche."

For me, it's really about dealing with the consequences of your decisions. Once you've acted, you have to accept and navigate the outcome.

Sleepy Cat
Source: Flickr girlonaglide