Reading Diary B Week 4: The Language of Animals

            A really interesting excerpt from this reading section was Kaikeyi asking Dasaratha to teach her the language of animals.  I found this section to be really interesting because it just seems so unexpected.  It literally feels like it comes out of nowhere, but I have a guess as to why it is inserted into the Ramayana.  Now, I could be totally wrong, but I believe that this is put into the story to possibly show Kaikeyi as having a past of being selfish.  Kaikeyi has just used her two boons to banish Rama and make her son Bharata king.  This story follows up that event by showing Kaikeyi asking Dasaratha to teach her to speak to animals in exchange for his death.  To be honest, how the Ramayana describes their relationship is sickening.  It is honestly like a teenage romance.  My reaction to this section is just pure disgust.  I’m not necessarily getting worked up about it but I’m just over it. 

            Other than that reaction, I thought Kaikeyi’s behavior was odd.  I mean she wanted to know how to speak to animals at the cost of her husband’s life.  Within the excerpt, she is described as sitting nonchalant waiting for him to tell her then die.  It’s insane.  At least within her exiling Rama and demanding Bharata to be king, the reader may see that she is doing this in order to protect herself.  However, this shows her as completely selfish.  I kind of hate it because it puts Kaikeyi in a worse light.  

Kaikeyi and Dasaratha.  Source: Wikipedia

Reading Diary A Week 4: The Beginning

            Something that I really like about Buck’s version of the Ramayana is that he includes so much background information.  The beginning is what is so striking to me.  He sets up the story as happening thousands of years later from the events of the Ramayana through someone telling a story about someone else telling a story.  It’s a bit complicated at first, but eventually it all starts to make sense. 

            What most interested me in this reading section was Valmiki helping Sita.  Buck’s version explains that Valmiki has been chosen to care for Sita so that she does not commit suicide after Rama has abandoned her.  When I first read this, I was surprised.  I honestly thought Buck’s version would not have differed so much from Narayan’s but I was obviously wrong.  Something else that is interesting to me is that the text explains that Sita has done nothing wrong, but Rama must still banish her because the people within their kingdom do not like her.  Here, I really wish that we would have been given more details, but I suppose we are most likely not supposed to know what she is accused of because she didn’t do anything wrong.  However, the suspense and ambiguity is killing me.  Obviously, I understand that Sita’s banishment is nothing more than a useful plot device so that the Ramayana can be told to us, but it is annoying. 

             Overall, I am pleasantly surprised because I thought that Buck’s version of the Ramayana would have been so similar to Narayan’s version that I would have been bored and uninspired to write storytelling posts, but it appears that this version will be very different.  

Valmiki. Source: Wikipedia

Famous Last Words Week 3

            This past week has definitely brought some normalcy into my life.  I’m so glad that I was actually able to breathe and relax.  It was quite refreshing.  I’m glad that within this week we were able to finish reading Narayan’s Ramayana.  I can’t wait to start reading Buck’s version and see what the differences are between the two.  I know Buck’s is definitely longer just by looking at the size of the book.  While Narayan’s version was not bad, I wish that some parts of the story had been elaborated on or put more detail into because I felt like I needed to know more.  Hopefully, Buck’s version will give me more of that.

            As far as reading other stories this week, I enjoyed reading a lot of my classmates’ stories.  They all vary in creativity and writing styles, but I like that the ones that I have read always tell the story from someone else’s perspective.  Instead of telling the story the same way but only changing the setting to something more modern, everyone’s story that I have read this week wrote from a secondary characters perspective such as Vali, Sugreeva, or Vayu.  I also chose to write my storytelling post using this same technique because I believe that by not changing the story in some significant way, the reader will possibly find it boring and redundant.

           I’m looking forward to next week’s readings but I’m also a little nervous about the storytelling posts because we are going to be using the same story but just a different version.  I’m sure I’ll be fine because I know that I’ll get the assignment done either way.  However, I don’t know if things will catch my attention the same way as certain parts of the story within Narayan’s version.  I’ll guess we’ll see when I start reading for week four.  

The battle at Lanka, Source: Wikipedia

Week 3 Storytelling: Sita's Trial

            After months of existing in that place, feeling miserable, and living in fear, I was reunited with him.  From fourteen years of exile to months of abduction and war, we were together again.  I received a message to dress in my finest clothes.  I had never been so excited in my life.  It reminded me of the first day I met Rama.  My stomach dropped.  I felt weightless but so intense at the same time.  I couldn’t wait any longer to be in his embrace.  Just to be in his presence was enough to satisfy my ache at the moment.

            Once I arrived, I saw him.  The biggest smile flew across my face.  My eyes even started to sting with raw tears.  I just couldn’t wait any longer to be apart from Rama.  Before I approached him, I told myself that we would never be apart again.  I wanted to run and leap into his arms but I knew that would be inappropriate.  Instead, I walked slowly and hated every second of it.  When I finally stood before Rama, I couldn’t wait for him to hold me.  All I wanted was his touch.

            Instead of Rama holding or kissing me, or even him lightly touching my arm, Rama looked at me without emotion.  At that moment, my world collapsed.  I threw myself at his feet, begging for him to love me as he did before.  But he said nothing for several minutes.  Then the cruelest words came from his mouth.  He couldn’t trust me.  Rama accused me of doing the worst possible thing to any husband.  I had stood by his side through all these years and all these trials, but he needed me to prove myself again.  I didn’t understand why this was happening to me.  I did everything I could do to impress Rama.  Rama was the only reason why I wanted to live, but he threw me away without hesitation.  I didn’t want to live anymore.  My soul died in that very moment.  I had lived for Rama for so long that I didn’t know how to live for myself.  The only thing that I could do next was prove myself or die.  

          Once the fire was started, I was fully prepared to leave this life or prove to Rama that I was still virtuous.  After I came out of the fire, I thought everything would go back to normal for Rama and me, but it didn’t.  I didn’t feel the same.  I would have never questioned Rama if he had been the same situation, but he questioned me.  He immediately took me into his arms and declared me pure, but I never felt the same about him.  I thought I wanted to die without him, but now, I never wanted to live my life for him as I had done before.  Everything had changed.  He wasn’t the man I had fallen in love with, and I wasn’t the woman who had dedicated her entire life to him.

Sita enduring the trial by fire to prove her purity to Rama. Source: Wikipedia.

Author's Note

Sita is on trial because Rama must declare that her purity and virtue are not tarnished due to living with Ravana. Ultimately, the trial is done to stop the doubt that everyone must have about her living with another man. Within the original story, Narayan describes the trial from a third person perspective.  He also includes that it is the god Agni who stops her from being burned.  I left this out because I wanted to make the story realistic.  I wanted to focus on Sita’s perspective through the whole ordeal. I didn’t want to include dialogue within this story because I wanted the sole focus to be on Sita’s feelings of being betrayed by a man that she has devoted her life to. I felt that dialogue would take focus away from her thoughts. Of course, I understand that within the Ramayana this trial was done to appease the doubts of everyone else, but surely, Sita would have felt a bit sad. Aside from changing the point of view from this section, I also added Sita feeling hurt by this ordeal. Within the original, Sita and Rama’s relationship never changes due to this situation. However, within my story I wanted to show that she is so hurt by this that she is changed forever from being completely devoted to Rama. Other than these major changes, the rest of my story is true to the plot.

Bibliography

Narayan, R. K. (1972) The Ramayana.

Week 3 Reading Diary B: Sita's Mistreatment

            Within this section of the reading, I found the treatment of Sita to be very interesting.  At different points within the readings, she is blamed as the cause of all this or falsely accused.  Surprisingly, she is falsely accused by Rama, who is supposed to be wise and understanding beyond human capability.  I found it odd that Sita was put into this category as the cause when she had no choice in being kidnapped.  Furthermore, why is Rama suddenly judging Sita? He just helped Sugreeva rescue his wife who was taken by another man and he made no objection about Sugreeva taking her back without question. 

Quote:

“...Ravana shed bitter tears and swore, ‘This is the time to kill that woman Sita, the cause of all this misery,’” (Narayan 137).

           

I picked this quote because it shows how Ravana instantly blames Sita for being the reason why he has lost so many people at Rama’s hand and for his ultimate loss of power.  I can only wonder if this was a common thing within Valimiki’s life.  Furthermore, Rama even mistreats Sita, who he believes is the most virtuous woman in the world.  She must endure a trial by fire to ensure that she did not have a relationship with Ravana.  This ending seems a bit odd because Sita is put on a pedestal the entire epic and is shown as being completely devoted to Rama, but Rama still needs this assurance.  I suppose it was put into the epic to show beyond doubt that Sita was virtuous and perhaps to show Rama as less than perfect, but it still rubs me the wrong way. 

Sita enduring the trial by fire. Source: Wikipedia

Brainstorm Topics

Rakshasis:

Throughout the Ramayana, I found the female demons to be some of most interesting characters.  I was so interested in Thataka’s back-story that I wrote about it in my storytelling post.  Furthermore, I also found Soorpanaka’s unwavering affection for Rama to be odd but interesting.  I did do some research such as Wikipedia pages on the characters and I tried to search the Internet to see if female demons were viewed differently than male demons.  However, I could not anything about the views of female demons, but it is something that I would be interested to know.  I also looked through past storybook projects, and found “Misunderstood Women of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata” by Bethany Magley.  Within her story, she gives an accurate account of both rakshasis.

Kooni/Manthara and Kaikeyi:

First of all, I am very intrigued by Kaikeyi’s and Kooni’s relationship.  Even though Kaikeyi is a queen, she still allows Kooni to manipulate her.  Furthermore, within the Ramayana, there is one point in which Kausalya is described as having “several dwarfs and hunchbacks and other freaks” as her servants (Narayan 31).  I was wondering if there were specific reasons why people with physical deformities are the servants of the queens.  I tried to do some research about the issue, but only managed to find out details about each character—such as how Kooni never liked Rama due to a past event.   I had no luck in discovering the significance of deformities.  For this topic, I also read some past storybook projects—“Evil Women of the Ramayana”—which describes Kaikeyi’s and Kooni’s relationship. 

Mistreated Women of the Ramayana:

Throughout the Ramayana, I felt like many of the women—Sita, Tara, and Ahalya—were either mistreated or discredited because of their sex.  I was surprised while doing some research on Wikipedia that women in ancient India were actually treated quite equally to men, but their freedom declined due to the occurrence of various religions such as Islam and Christianity.  I know I will have to do more in depth research on this topic, but this contradictory find to my beliefs sparks my interest immensely.

Monkey Characters within the Ramayana:

One very important aspect of the text is the use of monkey characters such as Hanuman, Vali, Sugreeva, and Angada.  I know monkeys are one of the sacred animals within Indian culture.  However, monkeys are also described as fickle minded.  I am wondering if there is a connection to their fickle mindedness and Sugreeva’s lack of urgency in helping Rama.  I did research using Wikipedia and other Internet sources, but I was not able to find out why people dress like monkeys in Indian culture.  I know that it is a part of their culture to dress up like monkeys because I have seen it before and I believe they do it to enforce protection against evil, but I am not exactly sure.  After searching the Internet for a while, I could only find recent accounts of Parliament using men dressed up as monkeys to scare real monkeys away from government buildings.

A sculpture of Hanuman. Source: Wikipedia

Week 3 Reading Diary A: Vali Ignores Tara

Something that really stuck out to me within this reading section was the treatment of Tara by her husband Vali.  It reminded me of the story of Ahalya because of how both were treated unfairly.  Although the book never explicitly states that Ahalya was punished because she was a woman, I feel that it definitely made the difference in her having such a severe punishment.  Like Ahalya, Tara is also discredited because she is a woman.  She tries to warn Vali to not be too rash about fighting his brother Sugreeva, but he basically ignores her insight because she is a woman.  I decided to write about this because I feel that it is a common theme within the Ramayana. 

Some of my favorite lines include:

“‘Oh foolish creature, you are betraying a woman’s intelligence and a gossiping tongue...I know more about Rama—more than you do,’” (Narayan 98).

“He looked at it and brooded over his own recklessness in castigating his wife for mentioning Rama’s name.  That poor creature showed better judgment than he,’” (Narayan 100).

The first quote shows Vali’s complete disregard to Tara’s knowledge on the situation because she is a woman.  I’m almost certain that if she was a male character, her warning would have been taken seriously or at least more serious than it is currently.  Similarly, the second quote also discredits Tara.  Even though, both Vali and the narrator have realized that she was ultimately right, the narrator still refers to her as a “creature.”  By doing this, Tara is still referred to as something less than human.

Painting of Tara by Raja Ravi Varma, Source: Wikimedia

Famous Last Words Week 2

This week has been crazy.  I keep hoping that this semester slows down, but it hasn’t slowed down a bit.  Within this class, I feel that I’ve accomplished a lot.  I really enjoyed writing my story this week.  As soon as I read Thataka’s story within the Ramayana, this idea popped into my head.  I think I went out of the box on this writing project, but I’m glad I did.  I hope that I can get inspired like this for future storytelling projects.  I think one strategy that helped me out this week was to pick parts of the text that are not main focal points.  For me, I find it challenging to elaborate and be creative with main points within the story such as Rama meeting Sita and Rama being exiled.  I think that it is already put into great detail and I just can’t find the will to put my creativity into it.  I believe that it is predictable and a waste of an opportunity, but in the future, I may be inspired to write about a main plot section. 

The best writing that I read this week was Marielle’s storytelling post.  She wrote about Kaikeyi and her inner thoughts on being abandoned.  She did a really great job at explaining her insecurities and fears.  I even sympathized with Kaikeyi after reading it because Marielle showed Kaikeyi as someone who has had a difficult life as a woman because she was only seen as a dumb, sex object.  I think most women could relate to her struggle as being underestimated because of their sex.  By writing this section of the story from Kaikeyi’s point of view, it greatly helps the reader identify with her.  I hope Marielle realizes how great of a writer she is.

Overall, this week has been hectic with homework, school, and work, but next weekend should be better.

Kaikeyi asking Dasaratha for Rama's exile. Source: Wikimedia

Storytelling Week 2: The Case of Thataka

“Let’s go,” Viswamithra shouted to Rama and Lakshmana, waking them up.

It was hard to believe that Rama and Lakshmana had managed to fall asleep in the crowded police car before they were expected to leave on their next assignment at dawn.  Viswamithra jumped into the driver’s seat and began to drive to Wasteland. 

Rama and Lakshmana had only been on the force for a few months, but Viswamithra had demanded that the two come on this assignment.  Without question, Rama and Lakshmana took the case but still questioned why they were chosen to go to Wasteland.  The Wasteland was a notorious trailer park that was avoided by cops because of the heavy drug use.  For this reason, the two rookies couldn’t believe that there was an assignment in this part of their district.

After a few minutes of riding in silence, Rama asked, “Viswamithra, what are we doing in Wasteland?”

            “We’re going to arrest a major dealer.”

“What!” Rama and Lakshmana both exclaimed.

“Are you sure that we should be on this assignment?” asked Lakshmana.

            “Yes,” Viswamithra answered plainly. 

After a long pause Rama asked, “Well, how are we taking him in?”

“He is a she, and her name is Thataka.  She’s sixty-five years old and a mother of two.”

“Really? Rare for a woman to be on the dealing side,” Rama said puzzled. 

“I know but don’t be deceived by her gender.  She’s been in this game for many years.”

“Years? How does a woman get into the drug business?” asked Lakshmana shocked.

            “To be honest,” Viswamithra started, “I don’t know the entire story but I do know enough.  She was from a pretty nice family but at about sixteen, she got pregnant by this regular hood rat named Sunda.  Thataka's parents disowned her, one kid turns into two.  How can a teenage mom and deadbeat dad support themselves and two kids? Sell cheap drugs.  Sunda was the main dealer, and she did whatever he asked.  I guess that’s how it all started.”

            "Well, how did she become a big dealer?" Rama asked annoyed.

“I suppose,” Viswamithra continued, “everything went okay until her sons Mareecha and Subahu were reported selling drugs around their high school.  The police followed the drugs back to their father and a few weeks later, the police set up a sting.  During the sting, things went bad, and there was a shootout.  Sunda was shot and killed, but then his sons joined in and killed three cops.  At the end of the day, four people were dead, Mareecha and Subahu were arrested on multiple felony counts, and Thataka was left alone in that trailer house.  She never graduated from high school.  All she knew was how to make easy money through dealing.  So, that’s what she did and she became the number one dealer in Wasteland, and Wasteland became the number one place to rot.  All these drugs and the people they create, no wonder this place can’t sustain any life.”

After a couple minutes of silence, Rama asked, “There’s one thing I still don’t get.  Why didn’t they arrest Thataka along with her sons?  They would’ve had to know she was a part of it.”

 “Simple, she was a woman,” Viswamithra said just as he put the car in park.  “Let’s go.”

An older cop car model from the Gorillaz music video "Stylo." Source:Wikipedia.

Author’s Note

For this post, I wanted to update “Thataka’s Story” with a contemporary setting and focus on crime, which is something that we can all relate to.  I only wanted to focus on Viswamithra telling Rama and Lakshmana her story and their reaction to it.  Within the original, I found Thataka’s back-story more interesting than the scene where she is killed.  She is described as someone who falls from a goddess to a demon.  Through this story, I wanted to explain why she fell and what really happened to her and her family.  Furthermore, her story allowed for so much creativity, and I felt like I could do the most with her back-story.  I wanted to show her suffering and how these choices led to her being alone, which is why I chose to have her sons leave.  Within the original story, she seems like a bitter and lonely woman.  For these reasons, I chose to not include Rama killing Thataka.  I chose the crime of drug dealing because the type of destruction it does to communities paralleled nicely to the type of destruction Thataka does to the land.  Within the original story, Mareecha and Subahu are a bad influence over their father, and Thataka and Sunda get married and then have children.  Other than these two changes, the rest of my story is true to plot.   

Bibliography

Narayan, R. K. (1972).  The Ramayana

Reading Diary B Week 2: Soorpanaka

My favorite part of this reading was Soorpanaka’s extreme lust for Rama.  Even though he blatantly refuses her offers multiple times, she still schemes various plans to get him.  However, these schemes result in either herself or her family being harmed or killed.  Even after Lakshmana deforms her by cutting off her nose, ears, and breasts and Rama still denies her, she doesn't give up.  Her devotion is comical because she never gives up even though every plan she tries fails miserably.

Her final attempt is to trick her brother Ravana, much like she tried to trick Kara, into lusting after Sita.  With Ravana looking to capture Sita and take her away from Rama, Soorpanaka believes that this will leave her the opportunity to become Rama’s lover.  In fact, Soorpanaka is so obsessed with Rama that she must constantly fight her feelings to appear to others as though she hates Rama for every misfortune that has occurred. 

One of my favorite quotes from this section that shows Soorpanaka’s comical obsession with Rama includes:

“‘Even if I had a thousand tongues, I could never fully explain his beauty and the grandeur of his personality.  Even if I had a thousand eyes one could not take in the splendor of this being’...She realized that she had made a blunder revealing too much of her inner feelings for Rama and corrected herself by adding, ‘For all his looks, what a cruel heart he has!  His mission in life is to wipe out our whole family, clan, class from the face of this earth,’” (Narayan 75). 

I like this quote because it demonstrates Soorpanaka’s intense infatuation with Rama.  Even though she has been maimed and had members of her family killed due to her obsession with Rama, she is still able to praise his looks and personality.  Furthermore, Soorpanaka explains that Rama’s duty in life is to kill demons like her.  This is perhaps the most comical point because Soorpanaka still lusts for Rama even though it is his fate to kill her.

Lakshmana is shown maiming Soorpanaka in the lower right-hand corner. Source: Wikipedia

Reading Diary A Week 2: Thataka

One of my favorite excerpts from this reading was “Thataka’s Story.”  I found Thataka to be interesting for several reasons.  The first is the great contrast from her past as the daughter of Suketha, who was known as being pure and courageous, to the wife and mother of troublemakers.  It seems that Thataka has no real influence over what her life has become until her husband is killed, then out of character, she becomes this evil force devouring every living thing.  This complete transformation is really shocking and interesting because Thataka’s life up to this point gives no evidence of such things occurring.

Another reason I found Thataka to be interesting was that she is a woman.  I believe there is something to be said about a woman who is described as turning fertile land into an unlivable desert.  From a literary point of view, she is obviously being criticized as an unfit woman.  This is furthered more directly through Viswamithra stating, “‘You shall not consider her a woman at all.  Such a monster must receive no consideration...A woman of demonic tendencies loses all consideration to be treated as a woman,’” (Narayan 12).  Basically, instead of performing the duties of a woman such as producing valuable offspring or exuding fertility, Thataka does the complete opposite by being a destroyer of life.  Thataka’s story was my favorite part of this reading because it demonstrates such a harsh view of women who do not live up to society’s standards.  Of course, I could be reading too much into this but I believe it does say something about the view of women during this time.

Rama battling Thataka. Source: Wikipedia

Famous Last Words: Week 1

This week has definitely been hectic.  I’m glad the first week is over but I’m still too exhausted from everything to be ready for this semester to start.  I knew that the start of this semester would be a mess but I didn't know how big of a mess it would actually be.  The biggest problem this week was being extremely shorthanded at work.  I had to work every day and even be at work at 6 am on a few occasions.  It was a difficult start to the semester, but I know that it will get better with more people applying.  On that note, I’m glad that I started early on this class because I would have been in big trouble. 

I’m also glad that this is my last semester and I’m taking nothing but electives.  My semester seems like it I going to pretty relaxed if I can just keep on top of my work which I know I will.

Within this class, I enjoyed doing the re-write of a story.  It was surprisingly fun, but after reading other stories, I wish that I would have more creative.  Oh well, there is always another chance within this class.  I enjoyed reading several introductions and my group’s storytelling posts.  I’m looking forward to this class as a creative outlet.  Hopefully, it will help me blow off some steam this semester. 

I’m glad to have the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday this week but I’m already looking forward to the weekend.  I know it’s bad but all I really want to do is sleep for two days straight without the stress of work or school.  I know it’s a lost cause but I can still dream.  Well, I've already started to count down the days to spring break which tells me I’m ready for this semester to be over with.  

Spring Break banner.  Source: Clipart

Storybook Favorites

The first story I found interesting was Paranormal: The Ayodhya Files.  This story caught my eye because it obviously involves aspects of paranormal horror.  From the title, I immediately knew that the story was about paranormal activity.  Furthermore, by using the word “files” in the title, I knew that the story would pertain to mysteries or specific cases.  The Introduction really caught my eye because it seems to be a retelling of the Ramayana.  Furthermore, the Introduction sets up the story and some background while leaving plenty of mystery.  The thing that really grabbed my attention was that the story made the Ramayana a paranormal horror.  I think it is extremely creative.  The layout of the page definitely makes it an easy read.  I really appreciate that the creator put two pictures in the Introduction.  I also appreciate that the creator labeled each page as a specific case file.  The entire site has a creepy feel from the foggy background of a forest to the green text.  It reminds me of a cheesy paranormal show, but I love it.  I also like that each page has at least one picture, but the picture that is posted on the page “Case File: The Demon Ravana” doesn’t exist anymore.  Overall, I found the site to be aesthetically pleasing and very easy to navigate.

Another story that caught my attention for similar reasons was Indian Horror Story: Tales of the Lingering Souls.  Obviously I was interested in this story because it is a horror story.  From the Introduction, I immediately became intrigued because it set up previous, mysterious deaths.  The Introduction also gave hints as to what could go wrong within the story.  Although some might find this to be cheesy, I didn’t mind it because the Introduction still left plenty of mystery.  The design of the site was easy to navigate, but the Introduction was only labeled “Soul of a House.”  For this reason, I was a little confused at first where to read the Introduction.  I liked that each page had a picture.  Especially on “Soul of a Sobbing Man” because it contained pictures of hand-written letters, which I personally thought was cool.

The last story I found was Zoo Animal History: Trolley Tour.  I chose this story because I like animals.  What I found to be intriguing from the Introduction was that the story was essentially a zoo tour of the mythological animals from the Ramayana.  The story is set up like a children’s story, but because I am a kid at heart, it didn’t bother me.  Since it is geared towards children, the layout is covered with a background picture of various colorful animals as well as fun, cartoon pictures on some pages.  However, the pages that describe the animals use lifelike paintings of the creatures.  This is not a bad thing, but it is a bit out of place from the atmosphere that has already been created.  Another thing that I did not particularly like was the font.  It is fun and different, but it does make reading a bit harder.  Overall, the site was easy to navigate.

Zoo Animal History: Trolley Tour Source: Sarah Hardgrave

Overview

For this class, I’m really excited about storytelling.  Before I wrote my first story, I wasn't sure about the entire process or how fun it would be.  However, after I finished, it was surprisingly fun and simple.  I’m also really excited to read the same stories from two completely different authors.  I think that will help out with retelling stories for this class.

I have read excerpts of the Ramayana in a literature class. I don’t remember much since that was four or five semesters ago.  Other epics that I have read fully or excerpts from are Gilgamesh, the Iliad, and the Odyssey.  I have read these for various classes from high school to college.  I do like epic movies such as Lawrence of Arabia and Doctor Zhivago. 

Peter O'Toole as T. E. Lawrence in David Lean's 1962 film Lawrence of Arabia. Source: Wikipedia

I really have no personal experience with India or Indian culture, but from the various pictures I have seen, it looks very rich and colorful.

Introduction: About Me

Hi, my name is Kristen Ritchie.  I’m twenty two years old and a senior English-writing major at OU.  I’m am from a small town in southern Oklahoma and come from a big Italian family.  I have two sisters (I’m the middle child) and a niece who turns seven next month.  Since I did grow up with her, our relationship is more like sisters and I’m waiting for the day she grows tall enough to be taken to Six Flags.  I love playing video games, which is what I enjoyed most over the break because I find no time for it during the semester.  To be honest, I would rather get more sleep than play games. 

I love television.  Some of my favorite shows are RuPaul’s Drag Race, Taboo, River Monsters, The Golden Girls, Bridezillas and basically any show that involves graphic surgery.  A few kids’ shows that I only grew to love because my niece forced me to watch them a thousand times are Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse and Monster High.  Other than television, I watch YouTube daily.  One of my favorite YouTube personalities is the AngryJoeShow.  I definitely recommend him if you are into video games.  I also love movies.  Some of my favorite movies are the Jurassic Park franchise, Lawrence of Arabia, The Bridge on the River Kwai, and WALL-E. 

A picture of WALL-E. Source: StuMander1989

This past winter break was pretty hectic for me.  I went on vacation to Mexico before Christmas and arrived back home on Christmas Eve.  I also went to a few Christmas parties before my trip, which was not a good idea because now I feel like I never got any rest over the break.  On top of being social, my neighbor’s house got robbed while I was home which was pretty scary and my mom got sick on top of all that.  My break was up and down.  Now, I’m just looking forward to Spring Break.

I’m excited to get this semester into gear because I graduate in May.  

(Personal photo of myself; photo from January 2015)

Quote made with BeHappy.me

Storytelling Week 1: "The Owl and The Grasshopper"

In a forest far from civilization, there was an old owl.  The owl had grown cranky with age.  She would grouch and yell at other forest creatures that annoyed or angered her.  This was especially true when her sleep was disturbed, which was often because owls sleep during the day.

One day in the midst of her sleep, the owl was awoken by a grasshopper singing a loud, happy song.

Spotted owl peeking out from den. Source: Wikipedia

Infuriated, the owl yelled “What are you doing? I’m trying to sleep! Go away if you want to sing!”

“No.  I want to sing a beautiful song right here.  You can’t make me leave,” the young grasshopper laughed.

Seeing the grasshopper’s stubbornness, the old owl decided that arguing further would lead to no peaceful resolution.  She decided the only way to get the grasshopper to stop would be to eat him, but she could not fly down to him because of her poor eyesight during the day.  Due to this, the owl came up with a cunning plan.

“Well, since you won’t leave and let me sleep in peace come closer so I can fully enjoy your beautiful song.”

Upon hearing such flattery from the old grump, the grasshopper was pleasantly surprised and immediately started jumping towards the owl’s home in the oak tree.  However, about half way there, the grasshopper thought the owl’s change in attitude was odd because of her sour reputation known throughout the forest.  For this reason, he stopped and began to sing again.

“Oh, that is not close enough for me to fully appreciate your musical talents.  Please, come closer,” begged the owl sweetly.

Once again, this flattery struck the grasshopper, who was often shunned by his family and friends for singing too loud.  As a result, the grasshopper quickly began to hop closer to the owl’s home.

Still suspicious, the grasshopper just stopped short of being directly in front of the opening in the tree and once again began to sing.

“Oh no, you must let me see you as you perform.  A skilled musician such as yourself can only be truly appreciated when seen up close.  A live performance is just ruined when the performer cannot be seen.”

Instantly, the grasshopper threw away all of his previous concerns because he was so flattered and excited to finally be appreciated by others.  He immediately jumped in front of the opening and even hopped inside.  Before he could even begin to sing, the owl gobbled him up.  Content and full, the owl fell fast asleep.

Author’s Note

The original plot of “The Owl and the Grasshopper” is similar to my retelling.  A grumpy, old owl becomes irritated when a grasshopper interrupts her sleep by singing.  She asks him to stop, but he will not.  She then decides the only way to get back to sleep is to eat the grasshopper, but her eyesight is terrible during the day.  For this reason, she must trick him into getting close enough so that she can eat him without moving.  The owl decides to do this through flattery.  Once he is complimented, the grasshopper immediately goes into the owl’s home and is eaten. 

I decided to add more detail to the story such as giving some background information on the owl and expanding how much flattery the owl gives in order to trick the grasshopper. Within the original story, the owl only compliments the grasshopper once, but I decided to create more dialogue and attempts at flattery.  For this reason, I added the grasshopper’s skepticism towards such out of character flattery as well as describing the grasshopper as someone who is not often appreciated for his musical talent.

Bibliography

“The Owl and the Grasshopper” by (anonymous), illustrated by Milo Winter from Aesop for Children (1919). Web Source: The Project Gutenberg

Favorite Place-Chickasaw National Recreation Area

One of my favorite places is the Chickasaw National Recreation Area in Sulphur, Oklahoma.  I love this place because it is a park that includes beautiful rock structures, reflecting pools, streams, camp grounds, and various nature trails.  It is just a great place to experience nature within southern Oklahoma.  The sights are just beautiful.  The best part is that it is relatively close to my house.  

Rock steps across a stream in the Chickasaw National Recreation Area.  Source: Intenteffect

A rock bridge across a stream in the Chickasaw National Recreation Area.  Source: Intenteffect

Buffalo Springs in the Chickasaw National Recreation Area. Source: Brian Wright

First Blog

I'm excited to start the spring semester.