Extra Reading Diary:Ovid's Metamorphoses Books 1-4

I chose the extra reading on the classical unit and the Ovid's Metamorphoses: Deucalion and Pyrrha. The first one I read The Flood reminded me of a mix between classical and biblical. Characters were used to signify Gods and they unleashed their power on the Earth. I thought it was a unique style, using Greek Gods names and referring to events that were like that in the bible, but it was a classical style. I also found it to be very unique that the unit had a story of Jupiter’s rape of lo.Link It was not something I expected to see in a classical fable unit. I was not fond of Jupiter and his games that he played on women. I have read only classical units and I found this one to be very different from the Aesop winter and Jacobs fables I read. They were based more for children and bed time stories that had moral lesson at the end. 

Story Link

This picture represents the great flood.

Source

Storytelling: week 3 How the Crane Found the Wolf

It was a cold winter night when the wolf met up with the Crane. The wolf had been walking around for days looking for food but the snow had made it difficult to find any prey. Finally the Wolf caught a whiff of a deer that a hunter must have lost because it smelt a few days old. Luckily the cold weather had preserved the deer and it was just right for eating to the wolf, so he began his feast. Being a few days without food made the wolf eat so fast he was practically inhaling the meat. He noticed that there was something caught deep down his throat. He tried to cough but it would not budge. He looked at the feast and realized he must have swallowed a deer rib. He decided he needed help getting the bone out so he started his journey up the cold mountain side seeking help. He came across a pack of coyotes. “Brothers!” the wolf cried. He made motions to the bone stuck in his throat. “Is there something we can do for you?” asked the leader of the pack. The wolf managed to say “Yes! Please help me with this bone,” as he opened his mouth. The coyote laughed and said “Remember that time you told us about the farmer’s calf and how he never checks on them at night? Well you were wrong. We lost one of our strongest pack members to the farmer’s buckshot. Why would we help you when you only want to help yourself?” The wolf hung his head and went on to look for more help. He soon came across a shepherd guarding his sheep. The shepherd ran towards the wolf with his staff and wacked him on the head. The wolf again pleaded for help. The shepherd responded with a laugh, “Why on earth would I help you, think of how many sheep you have stolen from me.” The wolf couldn’t help but understand why his enemies would not help him. He went away from the shepherd to lie down and prepare to die with the deer rib in his throat. Suddenly he heard a noise; it was a crane that had landed right beside him.  “Are you the wolf with the bone stuck in your throat?” asked the crane. He had heard all the animals telling of how the wolf was in desperate need of assistance. The wolf nodded. “Well I think I could be of some help to you, but you must make me a promise? You must never eat a single crane.” The wolf agreed on the terms of the crane and soon the crane had pulled the bone out with his large beak. “Thank you!” the wolf exclaimed. “Now as for that promise, I do not see any one else with you, therefore I did not eat a single crane,” with that the wolf turned and ran up the mountain side to find the deer he had left and finish his meal. 

Author's Note:
I chose the story The Wolf and the Crane because I thought it was entertaining the first time I read it. I thought it would be a good idea to take a different approach, which was that the wolf did not have any friends because he was so greedy. I wanted to show that he was not concerned about others well-being. I decided to show the wolf's journey to finding help from the crane to remove the bone in his throat. I tried to make my retelling of the story very descriptive to give the reader a good mental image. In the original story, the wolf tried to get anyone he met to take out the bone from his throat. The wolf came across a crane that said if the wolf would make a promise then he would take the bone out. He had the wolf lay on his side and he stuck his head inside the wolf’s mouth to get the bone. The wolf had said he would do anything to have the bone out and after it was out the crane asked for his reward. The wolf responded with how the crane was lucky he stuck his head into his mouth without the wolf ending his life.

Bibliography
"The Wolf and the Crane." by Joseph Jacobs from The Fables of Aesop (1894).
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picture source
I think this picture does a good job of indicating the Wolf's character.

Reading Diary A: Classical Aesop (Jacobs) Fables

I read the Aesop Fables (Jacobs) reading A. One of my favorite characters was the crane in the story about the Fox and the crane. I liked the plot in how the fox was outsmarted. I liked how the Aesop (Jacobs) Fables used the fox in fox’s part 1 to show many different sides of him. It made me realize I could use a character different in several stories but change from that character being a trickster to being caught. The story The Wolf and the Crane had an interesting plot. The Wolf portrayed his usual character in being greedy and threatening to someone that offered help. One of my favorites was The Dog and the Wolf because the Dog was still loyal to his master. The wolf again showed his true personality by being rebellious. I think the wolf can be relate to people who are always wanting something handed to them. For instance in the Nurse and the Wolf he waited for food to be given to him instead of seeking a meal on his own. In the Aesop fables (Jacobs) the fox is out smarted by a cat. I think the difference between the Jacobs fables and the winter fables is that the fox appears to be a master of trickery in the winter fables and not in the Jacobs. My favorite character throughout these fables was the fox and I plan to use a character like the fox in my own stories. 

Source
I chose this picture because I think it was a good representation of the Aesop (Jacobs) fables.