Week 2 Reading Overview

I was so excited to see how many different reading topics and options are available on the UnTextbook. I was also suprised that while browsing through each week, there were always a few that I was familiar with or had heard of. I'm most looking forward to week 14, as one of the stories is titled Hans the Hedgehog. One of the readings I did last week was loosely based on Beowulf, and it was so interested that I choose to read the whole thing for week 12. I have done a lot of previous reading about Hindu and Buddhist tales, so I choose to focus more on different topics for weeks 5 and 6. I noticed that while choosing my readings, I was always drawn to those that contained fantasy elements like dragons, magic, goblins, etc., perhaps because I find it so much more interesting when a human hero has to face powers outside his or her own capabilities.

Choose from CLASSICAL and/or BIBLICAL units for Weeks 3 and 4.

Week 3: Ovid's Metamorphoses

Week 4: Saints and Animals

Choose from MIDDLE EASTERN and/or INDIAN units for Weeks 5 and 6.

Week 5: Tales of a Parrot

Week 6: Twenty-Two Goblins

Choose from ASIAN and/or AFRICAN units for Weeks 7 and 9.

Week 7: Japanese Mythology

Week 9: Lang

Choose from NATIVE AMERICAN units for Weeks 10 and 11.

Week 10: Great Plains

Week 11: Inuit (Eskimo)

Choose from BRITISH and/or CELTIC units for Weeks 12 and 13.

Week 12: Beowulf

Week 13: Faerie Queene

Choose from EUROPEAN units for Weeks 14 and 15.

Week 14: Hunt

Week 15: Hans Christian Andersen or Czech

Image Details: Beowulf fighting a dragon; source: A.R. Skelton

I chose this image becuase it provides it contains a realistic Man vs. Evil conflict that is easy to understand, as opposed to more ambiguous or open-ended stories. I am looking forward to learning more about Beowulf, his character, skills, weaknesses, and quest.

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Reading Notes : Hans Christian Andersen, Part B

ANOTHER FAVORITE. The Little Mermaid is such a classic, and the original slaps. I guess I am old and beaten down now, but this version is my new favorite. The Disney version will always have a special place in my heart and be a part of my childhood, but his original version is so poetic. It is definitely more my style; it leaves an impression when the heroine doesn't get to live happily ever after, which is okay too! The world Hans Christian Andersen weaves is glorious . I could feel the mermaid's pain, urgency, and suffocating need to love and be loved. This is a story that will never get old, part of it due to how beautifully it is written. One of my favorite parts is when he describes the five older sisters and the things they experienced going to the surface for the first time. The scenes he paints makes me feel like I am experiencing those beautiful landscapes for the first time, too. Often time mermaids are fantasized, and it was interesting seeing it from the other per...

Reading Notes : Heroes, Part A

One thing I really enjoyed so far about this reading is how long the stories are. Instead of individual stories per chapter, each of these takes up about three chapter for one story. I felt like this really helped with character and plot development. Also, unlike the Alaskan stories I read last week, these stories were a bit more realistic, in the sense that they took place (mainly) on earth with real animals and real events in nature. Everyone loves a good hero story, and all of these were untraditional in their own way which made them interesting. One that I particularly liked centered around a bluejay, whose selfish actions were the reason he got sent on a journey to begin with. But upon his return, despite overcoming many obstacles, his life is pretty much the same before. It was interesting how their definition of hero is quite different from those we typically think of. For humans, it means dominating as the top species. For animals, it usually means just surviving. At ti...

Reading Notes : Hans Christian Andersen, Part A

I was able to revisit some of my favorite stories from my childhood with this reading. The work of Hans Christian Andersen is so iconic and touching even now. It is really different reading these stories as an adult than as a child; what I took literally before is now so symbolic. I hadn't read the story of the little tin soldier in so long, and with it came a flood of memories. One thing I really love about his writings is how visual they are. For kids, it helps immerse them in the world he is trying to make and really experience the story with the character. For adults, there is something kind of sad and wistful about it. His creativity brings the situations to life in a very enjoyable way. One way he does this is through the flow of the story; it read extremely well and is easy to follow. The narrative is super smooth and beautiful to read, which is a big plus. There is nothing 'hard' or difficult to read about it, and it isn't tedious or repetitive either. Every s...

Mythology and Folklore

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