Myth/Folklore Topics Brainstorming

Topic: Ancient Egyptians Tales
Comments: Since I was a little kid, I have always been fascinated by the Egyptian pyramids and mummies. In a past post, I talked about how one of my favorite movies was the Mummy. Egyptian culture has been skewed in our media so I think it would be a fun project to really understand the ancient civilization and see how it compares to what we see in movies and on tv.
Possible Stories: There are some great stories in the Ancient Egyptians Myths  & Stories but I would like to focus on either on the Creation or The Secret Name of Ra .
Sample Story Comments: I read through Creation and I think it would be really fun to put a twist on the legend. Also, growing up in a Christian church, it would be really fun to do more research on how that culture thought everything came into existence.
Bibliography Information:
Sample Story: Creation
Book Title: Egyptian Myth & Legend
Book Author: Donald Mackenzie
Year: 1913

Depiction of the Nun deity. 

Topic: The Undead
Comments: Halloween is just around the corner and it it my favorite holiday! I love anything that is spooky and scary. I am a big fan of the show The Waling Dead on AMC. There has to be a lot of zombie folklore in different cultures around the world. It will be interesting to see how they all differ. Is there a way I can search different topics within the UnTextbook?
Possible Stories: I'm not sure if I want to take the zombie route or more of a vampire route when doing this topic. Either one would be really fun to do. I'll do some more research and see what I can find.
Sample Story Comments:  I stumbled upon Russia: The Dead Mother and I feel like it could have some major potential to be turned into something really great. Maybe put something like a Tim Burton's Corpse Bride twist on it.
Bibliography Information:
Sample Story: The Dead Mother
Book Title: Russian Fairy Tales: A Choice Collection of Muscovite Folk-lore
Book Author: W. R. S. Ralston
Year: 1887

Zombie Mom

Topic: The Creation in the Bible

Comments: I've grown up in church all my life so the bible is nothing new to me, but as a kid I would always imagine different story ideas when reading the Bible. I think it would really be fun to put a light-hearted twist to the Creation story of the bible.

Possible Stories: I would definitely use Adam and Eve: The Creation for this topic. Maybe I can find other culture's view on creation and mash them up.

Sample Story Comments: The Adam and Eve: The Creation is nothing to me but I want to write about what God is actually thinking when this whole process is happening. Some might think it's blasphemous but I think God has a good sense of humor.

Bibliography Information:

Sample Story: Adam and Eve: The Creation

Book: The Holy Bible - King James

Creation of Adam

Topic: Czech Witches

Comments: As I've said before, my dad's side of the family comes from the Czech republic so I really want to dive into the folklore of the culture. On the plus side there is a supernatural area in our UnTexbook that would be really fun to explore and build off of.

Possible Stories: There two stories that I found on the Czech: Three Supernatural Stories that would be fun to write from. I really like the Witches at the Cross story. I kept thinking about the Disney move Hocus Pocus.

Sample Story Comments: I really like the two witch stories in the section because it gives just enough of a story to understand what is going on, but you can use your imagination to really go wild on the backstory and the character development. 

 Bibliography Information:

Sample Story:

Book Title: The Key of Gold: Czech Folk Tales

Book Author: Josef Baudis

Year: 1922

The Incantation

Essay: Tragedy & Knowledge of Aseop for Children (Winter)

This week I chose to read Aseop for Children (Winter). I found it very interesting that these stories were on the verge of being morbid for children to read. Each story tried to teach a lesson about not being greedy, or too full of yourself, etc. I did like that the stories used mainly talking animals to get the point across. I feel like if they had used children instead of animals it would have been too much for younger readers.

The story I keep thinking of the most is The Tortoise and the Ducks. This poor little tortoise just wants to see the world without worrying about his house (i.e. shell) being carried with him. Then these birds decide to take him on a flight by having him bite a stick. All of a sudden this tortoise goes to speak and he falls to his death. I think I could label this as a “tragedy”. I felt bad for the little guy.

The one thing I did keep comparing these stories with was the cartoon series LittleBear. I grew up watching the show. It was a show that had talking animals that interacted with humans as well. The characters throughout the show would learn lessons about life the same way the characters in Aseop for Children did but the way the cartoon was made, it was less morbid. The setting for the cartoon was the same for these stories as well. It had a very 1800s feel to all the episodes.

Little Bear

The more I read these short stories the more I wondered what it was like growing up almost 200 years ago. I feel like the parents were very blunt with their kids. Both of my parents are elementary principals so I will have to ask them what they think about this book and how it could be used today without overbearing parents completely freaking out.

Reading Diary B: Aesop (Winter)

Aesop for Children (Winter)

The Peacock and the Crane:

I really like this story and the message it brings. The first thing I thought of when reading this was Wicked the broadway musical. I think it would be a fun take on the two stories by combing them together. I keep hearing the song Defying Gravity while thinking of different ways to rewrite the story. 

Crane "Defying Gravity"

The Mouse and the Weasel:

I thought this story was pretty funny. One could go into many directions to create an entirely new story with the same theme concept. I also like how blunt the Weasel was towards the Mouse. 

The Dog and the Oyster:

I like this story because it relates back to the Mouse and the Weasel story. I'm all about learning from mistakes and these stories do a great job about showing how one can learn from failure. There are endless possibilities to combine this story with the Mouse and the Weasel to create an epic narrative on how not to be greedy. 

Reading Diary A: Aesop (Winter)

Aesop for Children (Winter)

The Tortoise and the Ducks:

These stories seem a little morbid for children. 

Tortoise dies from fall. I think I can make this a very funny story that still has the same meaning.

Tortoise Falling

The Dog, the Cock, and the Fox:

Chicken and Dog pair up to fight an evil fox set on revenge.

I can turn this rather odd tale into a very funny romcom or an epic battle of sworn enemies.

The Travelers and the Sea:

I like the theme around this story. It would be very easy to create a new story with the same idea. It's always great to hope and dream big, but never let it distract you from the journey you are on right now to get to those goals.