Famous Last Words: Week 3

My week has been pretty hectic. I really wish I would have taken the time to get a head in this class. It would have saved me so much trouble. But, I can't go back and take my own advice so I will have to try to get a head sometimes soon. My classes have become so busy. This is the first semester in a while that I am actually taking a full course load and it is already wearing me out. It is the third week of school so at least everything is becoming more comfortable when it comes to school. The first couple of weeks are always so stressful in trying to get used to the setup of all the classes.

This class is getting easier for me now. I finally feel like I understand what we are doing and that makes it so much less stressful. These extra credit things are making me feel more at ease also. The reading unit that I chose for this week was about Saints and Animals. I found it was really interesting. The story that I wrote my storytelling for was a good one. It was about a boy who was raised by a wolf. There were other really good ones in that unit too. I like that the reading for this class are good ones. Most of the time the readings for classes are so boring. These ones have actually been really good.

I started narrowing down my topic for my storybook this week. I feel really good about what I am going to be writing on. My topic is the wicked stepmothers in fairy tales. I had always noticed that was a theme in fairy tales and I have never really understood why. Growing up I never had a step parent so I guess I don't really know why they are given such a bad reputation. This is what I have been pondering all week.

On a positive note, I ended the week with my son's 5th birthday party which consisted of me and my husband, and about 12 kids for my son's sleepover. I don't think that my house has ever been as loud as it was on Friday night. My son had a blast though, so of course it was worth it. Now on to week 4!

My son at his 5th birthday party. Personal photo taken January 2015

Sample Styles

Topic: My story will be about the different wicked stepmothers in fairy tales. I plan to tell the story of four different fairy tales where the stepmother is the evil one. One of the stories that I will probably use is The Rose Tree. This is the story that first caught my attention on the subject of stepmothers. Another story that I might use would be Rushen Coatie. Both stories tell of the horrible things that the stepmothers would do to their stepchildren.

Bibliography: 
1. The Rose-Tree-  from the English Fairy Tales (1) unit.
Story source: English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs with illustrations by John D. Batten (1890).
2. Rushen Coatie- form the English Fairy Tales (2) unit.
Story source: More English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs with illustrations by John D. Batten (1894).

Possible Styles:

1. First-Person Style: I think this would be a good one to use for my story. I would want to change them to where they came from the point of view of the stepmothers. It would be interesting to tell the stories from their point of view to where they would have to defend what they have done. .

2. Courtroom style: I was thinking about maybe making these stories as if the stepmothers had to defend themselves in court. I think it would be fun to have them set up as if they were on trial for their horrible deeds. They would have to convince a jury and judge that their actions were justified. They would have to answer questions and try to show that they did nothing wrong.

3. Diary Style: This would be a fun one because the characters would only have to tell what their true thoughts are. The only audience that this would be meant for would be the stepmothers and therefore it could give a more accurate account of how they really feel about their stepchildren and how they really feel about how they treat everyone else. This would give you their innermost thoughts that weren't meant for anyone else.

4. News reporting style: This topic would also be a fun one to do because I could write it in a third-person style. It would also be a good way to connect all the stories together. One person would be telling the four different stories as if they were reporting the current crimes in the news. I could tell it like it was a special crime type of newspaper and it could tell all about the worst crimes in the Fairytale kingdom and maybe even give an account as to where the stepmothers are now.

Newspaper. Wikimedia Commons

Essay: Bad Guys in Saints and Animals

The bad guys that caught my attention the most was the boys from the story of Kentigern. The boys in this story were so jealous of Kentigern that they tried numerous things to cause him to get in trouble. They all felt the need to get revenge on Kentigern even though he did not actually do anything to them. Kentigern studied hard and was a good student. He was also a good person and because of this, he gained the attention of the teacher. The boys were jealous that Kentigern was so loved.

Jealous alone did not make the boys "bad guys". It is how they acted with their jealous. They first try and make the fire go out so that Kentigern would get in trouble. They did this even though it might cause them trouble too. If the fire went out, then they would also have to suffer the consequences of not having that warmth. When that didn't work, they went as far as to kill an innocent animals just to get revenge on Kentigern. They did not care that the bird did nothing to them. All they wanted to do was get Kentigern in trouble.

I don't feel sympathetic to the bad guys. I could feel sympathetic if they didn't do such horrible things. It is one thing to be jealous of someone, but another to use that jealous as a reason to hurt people. That is never okay and so they do not deserve sympathy.

In the end, after Kentigern is able to pray the bird back alive, the boys develop a different attitude towards Kentigern. I think that the majority of this was because they were now mesmerized by what he was able to do. I like that the way Kentigern was able to defeat them was just by doing exactly what he had always done. He showed them what a good person acts like and they eventually began to follow his lead. I think that they learned their lesson in the end because they realized that trying to hurt him did not benefit them whatsoever. The story ended without Kentigern ever retaliating and I think that is what made this story so good.

A Robin

From the Saints and Animals Unit.

Storytelling for Week 3: Ailbe Finds His Mother

There once was a boy named Ailbe and although he was just a little child, his parent despised him. They treated him horribly. Growing up he was forced to do all the housework and treated like a slave. They never showed him any love but he still tried so hard to make them want him. Always doing everything they demanded of him, he still kept a smile on his face. He was an optimistic child, even though his upbringing gave him every reason not to be.

One day when Ailbe was fetching water from the well, he ran across a wolf. He was scared of the wolf and ran home without the water. This angered his parents and they started to yell at him.

"What is wrong with you, stupid child! You are not to step foot into this house until you have fetched the water!" screamed his mother

Ailbe turned away, looking defeated. He knew that he had to get the water or else he would be in trouble. He did not want to disappoint his parents. So Ailbe turned right around and headed down the path to fetch the water but when he got to the well, he saw the wolf again. Startled, he turned and started running back to the house. He stopped half-way there, knowing that if he was to dare to go back to the house without the water he would be punished severely.

Ailbe fought the urge to run away again and began heading towards the well but this time he noticed something different. For some reason, all his fear disappeared when he saw the wolf. He noticed that she was taking care of her baby wolves. He didn't know that mothers could be so kind.

"Hello boy," he heard the wolf say. "Don't be afraid. I won't hurt you."

At first he was shocked that he could understand this wolf. He felt somewhat connected to her.

"Sit down and have some water," the wolf said.

So Ailbe sat down. He had never experienced someone being so nice to him. He did not want to leave her side. So he sat, talking with her the rest of the night until he finally curled up next to her and fell asleep. When Ailbe woke up the next morning he knew that he would be in trouble.

"I have to get home," Ailbe cried, "Mother and father will be so angry!"

Tears filled his eyes. He was scared of what would happen when he went home. He got up and started to walk back to his house but before he could take a step, he saw his parents. They were angry.

"How dare you not return home!" His father screamed, while raising his hand to prepare to hit Ailbe. Ailbe closed his eyes, preparing for what was sure to happen, but the wolf saw all of this and was not going to let her new friend be hurt. She jumped in front of him and started to growl at the boys parents.

Frightened, his parents screamed, "Fine then! You can have the boy! We didn't want the pathetic child anyways!" They turned and ran away from the wolf and Ailbe.

"That's fine with me," replied the wolf, "I am quite fond of the boy anyways."

From that day on, Ailbe lived with the wolf and finally became a part of a loving family. The end.

Ailbe and his wolf-mother.

Authors note: I based my story off of the story The Wolf-Mother of Saint Ailbe. This story was about a boy who was abandoned by his real parents and the wolf took him in and raised him. When he was older, a prince found him and took him away from the wolf and raised him to be a great man. Ailbe had never forgotten about his wolf-mother and ended up saving her from hunters. He took care of her the rest of his life for the rest of their lives.
I changed my story to be that his horrible parents kept him. I thought that it would be interesting from that perspective because then it would be that the wolf had to save him later on. I left out the part of the prince altogether because I did not feel that it fit in with the version of the story that I wanted to tell. I wanted to show how things would have been different if he had to deal with his parents until he was a little older and then he was able to consciously choose who he wanted to be with, his horrible parents or the nice wolf that helped him.
Story source: The Book of Saints and Friendly Beasts by Abbie Farwell Brown (1900).

Reading Diary B: Saints and Animals

Here are some of the stories from Saints and Animals.

The Wolf-Mother of Saint Ailbe: Ailbe was abandoned by his parents and raised by a wolf. He was then taken by a prince and the prince raised him. Ailbe then had to save his wolf-mother from the hunters and made a promise to her that nobody would hurt her or her children. I liked this story because it shows a love between mother and child. Even if the mother is a wolf, she still took care of the little boy and I like how he was able to return the favor in the end. He kept his promise that nobody would harm his wolf family.

Saint Francis of Assisi: I liked this story because of how they described Saint Francis. He had a smile that made everyone feel better even though most people in similar circumstances were not able to remain smiling. He wanted to be poor so he could be like Christ. I found that interesting that somebody would want to be poor. Saint Francis could also calm the animals down. He was able to turn a wild wolf into a neighborhood pet. He was feared but then the people grew to love him. It shows that even the scariest of things could possibly have some good in them. Saint Francis was kind to everyone and found himself at home among the beasts in the wild. He was able to bring animals and people together in harmony.

St. Francis of Assisi by Guercino (1591–1666). Wikimedia Commons

Reading Diary A: Saints and Animals

Here are some of my favorite stories from Saints and Animals

Saint Kentigern and the Robin: This story has two parts to it but I feel like the second part is the most significant. Kentigern is hated by all the other boys. They try numerous things to try and get him in trouble. He is smart and tries hard so they do not like him. They killed the robin in order to get Kentigern in trouble. Kentigern is able to pray and have the bird brought back to life. This story was interesting to me because of all the trouble that the boys went to in order to have Kentigern disciplined even though he did nothing wrong. Kentigern showed an extraordinary amount of patience in dealing with the others.


Saint Comgall and the Mice: I liked this story because of the irony at the end. The prince said that only the mouse can have his grains and, even though he was referring to his mother, all the mice got the grains and stole them away from him. I like that the prince would now have to beg everyone for grains because he no longer has control over them. It shows that he should have been a better person and helped out others when they were in need. Now that he is going to be in need of food, I highly doubt that anyone would be willing to help such a cruel and selfish person. He is going to experience what he made the others feel.

A group of mice. Wikimedia Commons