Week 10 Reading Notes: Eskimo Folk Tales Part B

Something that I really like with native american stories is how they personify certain animals and certain features, like the wind and the weather and what not. This is something I hope to keep in my story. I particularly loved this quote: "when any man killed his fellow without good cause, a monster would come and strike him dead with fear, and leave no part whole in all his body". I plan on using this somehow in my story. I think that perhaps I'll write about a world in which the justice system is based on this instead of the normal punishment we usually equate with crimes. I think it's really interesting. Ok yeah I really like this theme they have of punishment befalling people who harm others. Another quote I really liked: "Thus punishment falls upon the man who kills."Yeah, I definitely want to write a story about someone who harms someone and the punishment is more along the lines of the punishment in the Inuit stories. It seems a little crazy that all of their stories are relevant to people getting the punishment that they deserve, but I also admittedly like it a bit and plan on using it in my story as well.





Bibliography: Knud Rasmussen, Eskimo Folk-Tales, http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2014/03/myth-folklore-unit-eskimo-folk-tales.html .

Caption: An Inuit Woman. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inuit .

Week 9 Reading Notes B: California and Old Southwest

Caption: The Sierra Nevadas. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sierra_Nevada-terabass.jpg .

Reading Notes: California and Old Southwest

I particularly liked the story regarding the creation of the Sierra Nevadas by the animals and the personification of the animals. I like that the story is written with no humans and only with animals as the main characters. I also like the personification of things that are not usually personified, like the wind and the clouds. I think that it adds an interesting piece to the story because this is something that isn't normally seen in other stories from other peoples. I think it would be interesting to take this creation story but apply it to a different area, or a different people. I could apply this creation story to the whole world, or to a different region. I think I like applying the creation story to the whole world and personifying the different creatures and to the wind, earth, fire, and water. 

Bibliography: Katharine Barry Judson, Myths and Legends of California and the Old Southwest. http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2014/03/myth-folklore-california-and-old.html . 

Week 8 Growth Mindset

Caption: A motivational message written in scrabble pieces. https://pixabay.com/en/photos/motivation/ .

I think that I'm particularly good at finding motivation inside myself and applying that to the things that I do. I'm a very driven person and I have no problem finding the motivation to do things. I think I'm also very good at pushing myself, not just in my studies, but in life, too. I've always been a dreamer and tend to often come up with big things I want to do. However, because of my good motivations, I'm usually pretty good at achieving the things I strive for too. One thing I think I could definitely improve on is taking more risks, particularly in school and in this class. When it comes to my storytelling, I tend to stick with what I know I do best. I write in the same style every time and I never switch my storytelling perspective. One thing I am not very good at also is asking a lot of questions. I tend to take feedback well, but am bad about asking for it from people.

Week 8 Reflections

Caption: Chalkboard Writing. http://pernillemelsted.com/kurser/story/ .

Reflections: Looking over my reading notes from the course thus far, I still quite like the choices that I've made. I've learned more about stories that I'm already familiar with while also I've read new stories that I wasn't familiar with before. I've had a wide array of reading choices and that was really my goal for me this semester. As far as my stories go, I'm pretty proud as well. I tend to always write in third person omniscient though, and this is something I'd like to break. I really enjoy reading others' stories when they're written in first person, and it's something I admire, but don't feel entirely comfortable doing, so this is something I'd like to work on. I think I've done a good job in giving feedback on stories. I notice quite a few little mistakes in others' writing and this is something that I hope to be more careful about in the future. I think I'm pretty good about proofreading and double checking my work, but it's something that I should put more emphasis on. I really like my storybook idea. I love the german language, and will actually be spending my summer studying abroad in Leipzig, so this is something that is near and dear to my heart. I really like my premise for my storybook and am looking forward to including more from the german language into this course.