Saturday, August 31, 2019

Topic Brainstorm

Hello, everyone!

This post is a brainstorming post for my Storybook semester project. Below, I will list four topics that I am interested in using for this project:



  1. The lais of Marie de France. Since I am a French major, it should come as no surprise to you that I have some familiarity with Marie de France. For those of you who don't know her work (which, reasonably, is most of you), she is a twelfth century poet from (you guessed it) France. She wrote in the form of what she called "lais," which are essentially fairy tales told in lyrical form. All in all, she wrote twelve lais, several of which I had the opportunity to read in my medieval French literature class. I would be especially interested in retelling some of these stories from the point of view of some of the side characters, or perhaps in altering the endings a bit. The stories are quite interesting, but some of the morality-related themes in them are so far from what is valued today, so I think it could be fun to address that through retelling. For example, ten of the twelve lais include adultery, and usually it is portrayed as a good thing in these stories. Obviously cheating on your spouse is not encouraged today, nor was it at that time in most of world literature, so it might be interesting to tackle that topic and see how the stories are changed if today's value system is imposed on them.
    If I choose this as my topic, I will likely find an English translation online of the specific lais I'm planning to include, but for now here is a collection of all twelve in their original Old French.
    Image of Marie de France from an illuminated manuscript



  2. Sea monsters. To be honest, I have very little background when it comes to mythology and folklore about sea monsters, but I'd be excited to learn more about it! Despite my Midwestern heritage, I have always been just absolutely fascinated by the ocean and all its mysteries. It's simultaneously terribly intriguing and honestly quite terrifying to me, knowing just how little we know about the dark depths and what dwells there. I read online recently about a living shark that was discovered a few years back that is believed to be between 272-512 years old! That's older than our country! Plus, it's so interesting to hear about sea monster-related myths and consider what ocean-lurkers could have been behind their origins (for example, the theory that stories of mermaids came from seals/walruses/manatees, or that the kraken could have been a giant squid or eel of some sort). So I think it'd be really fun to do retellings of some of the old sea monster stories, but taking into account the (still very limited) knowledge of the sea that we have today. Here is a link to some sea monster stories included in the Untextbook.
  3. Food. I saw this in the list of topic ideas and was immediately reminded of the book Like Water for Chocolate. For anyone who hasn't read it, it is a magical realism book told from the perspective of a Hispanic woman whose emotions pour into the food she makes and have wild effects on the people who eat it. I think it could be really interesting to incorporate that idea with foods of other cultures, or potentially to take myths that already include eating some kind of food and re-imagine them through that lens. For example, in this story about three sons and a king, one son claims to be a connoisseur of food, so the father sets rice before him and bids him eat. The son says no, because the rice smells to him of burning corpses, and it turns out that the rice was grown in a field near a village crematorium. If emotions really could pervade food when it is prepared, then a field of food growing next to a funeral home would be potent indeed. Also, since I work as a baker, I have a personal interest in food and its preparation.
  4. Norse Mythology. I know nothing about Norse mythology, save for what comes with the Thor/Avengers movies (which I'm sure is totally accurate), and a little bit from a very abridge version of Beowulf. So this would be an interesting topic for me because I would be learning everything from scratch, so new impressions could be made. I think what little I know of this subject is intriguing, and I've heard people say there are a lot of interesting stories here, so I'd be game to check it out. Here is a link to The Heroes of Asgard, which seems like it would be a pretty good source for me!

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Week Two Story: The Birth of an Ivory Girl

I was born to the kiss of a man, the weight of his hands on my hips, the taste of his mouth on my lips. A strange beginning, to be sure, but assuredly more pleasant for all involved than the usual ways of birth. Under the caress of the hands that carved me, so lovingly and so long ago, I could feel the cold ivory of my body giving way to the warmth of living flesh; organs separated from the stony mass inside my torso, forming themselves into lungs, brain, heart. I breathed deeply, for the first time, the fresh mountain air and the scent of spring flowers, the musk of my maker, my lover. Pygmalion opened wide eyes.

"My ivory girl," he whispered, and a surprised smile lit up his face.

Pygmalion was simultaneously new to me - as was everything else - and somehow deeply familiar, as though he was etched into my skin and bones. And really, he was. Before my awakening, my dear husband had sought for himself a beautiful wife, a virtuous wife, and had come up empty. The other women around our rural home were haughty and proud, empty of compassion or grace, so he elected to live a celibate life. His choice left him virtuous but lonely, though, and so I came into existence (though not yet fully - I existed in form only, but my life was yet to come). He took up the tools of a sculptor and carved my body dutifully, delicately, from ivory. Even before I became alive, he treated me with all the affection and love a woman could hope to obtain from a man: he brought gifts and laid them at my feet; he clothed me with beautiful robes and jewelry, he laid my head upon the softest of pillows.

To the goddess of love, this was pleasing indeed. In fact, my Pygmalion was pleasing in the eyes of all the gods for his humbleness, his noble character. At the festival of Aphrodite, Pygmalion gave up his offering graciously, then asked quietly for the chance to love a woman like what he had made me to be. Aphrodite was moved by his integrity and chastity, and when he returned home and kissed the cold hardness of my lips, she granted that breath should fill me, and that I might become as real and living as any human who has walked the Earth.

Three days later, we were married at the temple of the goddess who gave us to each other, and I swear I caught a glimpse of her shimmering figure smiling down at us from the corner of my eye.

Now, the story could happily end here, and that would have been enough. But in her goodness, Aphrodite did not limit her breath to my lungs only. Since that day, whatever creature is produced with Pygmalion's sculpting tools shivers jubilantly to life at our touch. He often carves me beautiful flowers, sweet little birds, or soft rabbits as gifts.

Aphrodite has blessed us greatly. We bring offerings to her daily now, so thankful are we for her gift. And another gift has been graced us: though I also carry in my womb a son, this morning, we carved for ourselves a child. A beautiful little ivory girl.

Artus Quellinus I's "Sleeping Infant"


Author's Note:
This story is my own retelling of the story of "Pygmalion" from Ovid's Metamorphoses. I have added some to the original story; the most important change to note is the addition of Aphrodite granting Pygmalion the ability to bring more to life with his sculpting tools than simply his bride, who was the only statue to gain life in the original myth. Additionally, the original is told in third person, as most myths are, but here I have altered it to retell it from the perspective of the woman who is brought to life by Aphrodite. 

Bibliography. "Pygmalion" from Ovid's Metamorphoses, translated by Tony Kline (2000). Web source.


Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Week Two Reading Anthology - Reading Notes

I am taking notes on the story of Pygmalion, from Ovid's Metamorphoses, translated by Tony Kline in 2000.

Notes:


  • Begins with revealing to the reader the virtuousness of the protagonist (all the women he met were full of "wickedness," so he chose a life of loneliness rather than marriage to someone unworthy). This is important, because it clues the reader in to what type of person he is, and directs them to anticipate his virtuous nature being rewarded (which does occur at the end).
  • The next bit is fairly weird, but it's the ancient Greeks, so what do you expect? We see Pygmalion, our protagonist, create an ideal partner for himself, as a measure to alleviate some of his loneliness while still rejecting the wickedness of the women around him. Again, the reader is meant to see in this some evidence of his virtue, bolstered by the description of the treatment he gives his "ivory girl" - even with an inanimate woman, he treats her with all the love, passion, and appreciation that a good man would bestow on his wife. He brings her all manner of gifts, he ensures her comfort with a soft pillow and bed, and he talks to her and gives her affection and compliments. The reader is, I think, supposed to take away something along the lines of "Wow, if this is how well he treats a woman made of ivory, imagine how well he'd treat a real woman! He deserves to have a wife worthy of his noble character." (Granted, if I met a dude in real life who was feeling up a statue, this would decidedly not be my first reaction, but I say again: it's the ancient Greeks, so what do you expect?)
  • In the next section, the reader is shown one more facet of Pygmalion's virtue: his dedication to the gods. He goes to a festival for Venus/Aphrodite, and pays homage to her in the form of sacrifice. After his offering, he requests a bride like his "ivory girl."
    • An important note: He makes his request "shyly." Now we see his humbleness in the face of the gods, marking him for us again as a man of virtue.
  • Venus/Aphrodite is moved by his request *because he is favorable in the eyes of the gods*. This is the moment we've been directed to all along. The author presents Pygmalion to us as the epitome of virtue (for that time/culture, anyway), so we as readers are expecting this moment all along - in fact, we'd feel almost cheated if it unfolded differently.
  • The ivory girl is made human as Pygmalion gropes her (gross, but okay.) They get married and live happily ever after with their son.
    • An important note: Venus/Aphrodite attends the wedding - she is pleased with Pygmalion and wishes to see the product of her own benevolence.
Regnault's Pygmalion priant Venus d'animer sa statue



Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Week Two Reading Overview

Tentative Reading Schedule:


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

Week 3: Cupid and Psyche

Week 4: Homer's Iliad

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

Week 5: Tales of a Parrot

Week 6: Sindbad

Choose from ASIAN and/or AFRICAN units for Weeks 7 and 9. [Week 8 is review week.]

Week 7: Lang

Week 9: West Africa

Choose from NATIVE AMERICAN units for Weeks 10 and 11.

Week 10: Inuit

Week 11: Hiawatha

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

Week 12: Celtic Tales

Week 13: More Celtic Tales

Choose from EUROPEAN units for Weeks 14 and 15.

Week 14: Kalevala

Week 15: La Fontaine



I am really looking forward to a lot of these readings, as mythology/folklore in general is quite interesting to me, so it's honestly difficult to pick out which of them are the most enticing to me. I am particularly looking forward to the Celtic Tales, as that is an area of folklore that I haven't had many encounters with, but I've always been really interested in Greek mythology as well, so the first couple of units will be exciting for me, too. Additionally, since I am a French major, Week 15's study of Jean de la Fontaine is of particular interest to me. Really, though, I could go on about why each of these is compelling to me in some way, so I suppose it's best to just leave it there.

If I were to add anything here, I would be interested in learning about what kind of lore is native to the islands of the Caribbean, specifically Haiti, as I have a vested interest there. However, since Haiti is comparatively a very young nation, I don't know the extent to which it has developed folklore, although I do know there is a very interesting blending of culture/religions/languages there due to the history surrounding their revolution. I imagine much of their lore is African-based, with trappings of French/Spanish culture, and then, of course, distinctly "Haitianized" to be unique to their culture; this is, of course, mostly conjecture.

Punch Magazine Political Cartoon based on La Fontaine's Fable "Le Loup et l'agneau"
A brief note about the image above: this is a political cartoon from the 1880's reflecting the desire of the French to subjugate Siam (now Thailand), and it is a play off of one of La Fontaine's fables which I happen to be familiar with - "The Wolf and the Lamb" - which deals with the idea of the strong and powerful oppressing the weak and vulnerable.


Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Time Strategies

Eat the Frog
“If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it First Thing in the Morning. And if it’s your job to eat two frogs, it’s best to eat the BIGGEST one first.” — Mark Twain

This line from Mark Twain was included in the first of the two articles I read for this assignment:
Eat The Frogs First Thing In The Morning by Thomas Oppong. The main idea is that, if you have an unpleasant task that you know you need to accomplish, get it over with first, ideally within the first hour of being awake. This way, the rest of your day is more pleasant, and rather than procrastinating on that one Very Unpleasant Thing, you can be productive on all the smaller things you have left to do. For me, when I have the self-discipline to implement this strategy, I find it to be really effective. My day is much more pleasant after having accomplished whatever thing I was looking forward to the least, and I tend to be more productive with everything else afterward. He also talks about not saying yes to everything - another area I should work on.

The second article I read was about the Psychology of Checklists, by Lauren Marchese. It talks about the benefits of using a checklist (i.e. the little dopamine boost you get when you check something off) and of setting "SMART" goals. SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Time-bound. Personally, I enjoy making checklists when I'm feeling overwhelmed with things I need to do, or when I'm trying to remember a lot of tasks.

Technology

Global Technology
This post is in response to the listed tools/tips for using technology in class this semester. I'm looking forward to learning more about some of these available tools over the course of the next few months.

I was kind of sad, though - under the section about websites for Storybooks/Portfolios, I tried to view the examples of branching story websites, and none of them would work for me. The links would take me to the sites, but then I couldn't view the stories on them, which was unfortunate because the idea seems really fun to me! I'm hoping I can get it figured out by the end of the semester, because I think that might be a fun route for me to go on my project. 😊

Assignments

Storytelling 

After perusing the types of assignments we have to anticipate from the upcoming semester, I am definitely most looking forward to the story-reading and the storytelling assignments. I think I mentioned in my introduction post that one of my minors is English Writing - as you might expect, I very much enjoy reading and writing, so these assignments seem like by far the most fun to me.

I also thought the Wikipedia Trails extra credit option seemed interesting. It's sometimes easy to go down those rabbit trails anyway - you look something up because you're curious, and then there are just links upon links of other things that seem equally interesting, so this seems like a really fun way to engage in learning.

Growth Mindset Reflection

Image from Professor Gibb's Blog, originally from Cheezburger
This post is a reflection on the "growth mindset" idea presented by Carol Dweck. A growth mindset is essentially a way of thinking wherein you focus on the improvements that you can make in an area, rather than on the things you feel as though you've failed to grasp or master yet. According to Dweck, one of the problems our society/education system faces is its failure to create a growth mindset for students. Dweck proposes that this failure causes students to celebrate when things are easy and become frustrated when things are challenging, rather than valuing a challenge when it comes along as an opportunity to grow and learn.

Though there are aspects of Dweck's presentation that I don't totally agree with, I do agree that people today seem to be always looking for an easy way out (I have found myself guilty of this on occasion as well, and I am working on redirecting my own way of thinking on this matter), and shying away from challenges which could be beneficial for them. One example that I see a lot of in my peers (and this is where I tend to find this flaw in myself, as well) is the desire for easy classes with easy professors who will give them easy A's. In fact, in the last year or two, I have felt a growing frustration with some of the programs here at OU, because it seems that the majority of my classes require very little effort on my part to receive a good grade, and at the end of the semester I end up having learned very little. Granted, some of that is on me. Just because a class doesn't require me to put in much effort or extra time doesn't mean I can't do it anyway, and take my learning more into my own hands. I am trying to work on self-motivating to actively learn and improve on my own time. That said, I would have an easier time of this is my courses were more challenging in general. However, I have had a difficult time finding many classes here that offer that kind of challenge to me, so in my opinion, the issue is partly on me, and partly on the courses/school system.

That said, I can still work on improving my side of things, even if I can't do much to effect change in academia. So, I'm taking steps this semester to require extra work from myself, regardless of what is required of me to make A's.

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Introduction to a French Major

Hey everyone! This post is a brief introduction of me and my interests, pursuits, goals, etc.

Firstly, my name is Allison Murphey, but you can refer to me either as Allison or Alli - either way is fine! I am twenty-two years old and a senior at OU. I am majoring in French, but I am also minoring in English Writing and Studio Art, but I'll get into that a little bit more later. I am married - just over one year now! - and my husband is also a student at the University of Oklahoma. He is currently working on a Master's degree in the field of Electrical and Computer Engineering, focusing on radar. My husband's name is Alan (I know, Alan and Alli - Al^2), and he's pretty much the best.

Originally, I am from Iowa, but I've lived in Oklahoma for four years now, and since I got married here, I'm an Oklahoma resident now! I've really enjoyed living in Oklahoma while I've been here, and I'm really grateful for the opportunity I've had to study at OU.

Now, the question people always ask when they hear that my degree is in French is, "What are you planning to do with that?" Fair enough question, so I'll answer it for you! My long-term goal is to do Third World mission work, and a great deal of Third World and developing countries speak French or French-variant languages. For example, I've spent a good deal of time working at an orphanage in Haiti, where Haitian Creole is the most commonly spoken language. Haitian Creole is a French-based Creole, so my knowledge of French has been hugely instrumental in assisting me as I learn Creole, and I have been far better able to communicate with people there because of it. Similarly, many other impoverished island nations - and many developing nations in Africa - speak French or French creoles or pidgins. So, the hope is that French will be useful to me in communicating with the people I hope to work with. My art minor is simply for my own enjoyment, but the writing minor is with the intention/hope of publishing about the work I do in these nations and perhaps helping others learn more about what they can do to help as well.

After I graduate from OU, and while my husband works toward his Professional Engineer title, I hope to get my RN certification and become a nurse, which will be extremely useful to me in my aforementioned career goals as well. Ultimately, I would love to work in a village clinic or orphanage clinic and help provide health care and health education in areas where it is severely lacking.

My other interests include drawing/painting, ceramics, and reading. If you have any questions, feel free to drop them in the comments! Below is a picture of my fantastic cat, Atticus (the Catticus) Boots Murphey!

My own image



Storybook Favorites

After going through a number of the storybooks provided to us, I have selected three which I particularly enjoyed.

1. My Brothers Grimm

     This storybook was an interesting new take on a set of old classics - the Brothers Grimm's stories, told through the perspective of a secret sister. In this storybook, the author relates the same stories of the Brothers Grimm, but through the eyes of their sister, who claims to be the real reason for all of their successes and grand tales. She talks about confronting them and telling them how she was secretly saving their butts all along, and then offers up her version of several famous stories as evidence. This storybook was intriguing because of its twist on something as well-known as the Brothers Grimm, and the design and layout of the blog lent a foreboding, mysterious atmosphere to the stories as well.

2. Queen of the Underworld

     The second storybook I selected was called "Queen of the Underworld," and it concerns the stories of Persephone, bride of Hades, in ancient Greek mythology. This takes the myths about Persephone - the most famous of which is the myth of Hades abducting her to be his bride in the Underworld, much to the dismay of her mother, Demeter - and offers Persephone's view on them. One thing I enjoyed about this storybook was the variation in the way the story is told. Specifically, much of it is told in simple first person narrative, as though the narrator is talking directly to us, but for the discussion of the abduction myth we are offered insight into the narrator's diary instead. The image below was included at the introduction, which immediately offered an idea of what the storybook would be about and the general tone the reader should expect.
Persephone and Hades
3. Touching the Skye

    The third storybook I chose was actually my favorite and the most genuinely interesting to me. Since I knew precious little about Scottish fairy tales going into this, I really enjoyed getting to learn more about them, and I thought the author's choice to set the story in the 1930s, rather than today, made the story even more interesting by adding another layer. I did wish that there was more to the story, however; it felt as though I got partway into a story and never got to read the ending.

Friday, August 9, 2019

Favorite Places





I have difficulty choosing favorites of anything, usually because I feel that there are so many wonderful options and I simply can't pick between them. Choosing a favorite place is no exception - I have a habit of falling in love with nearly any place in which I spend very much time. So, rather than bore you with what would end up being nothing more than a comprehensive list of every place I've ever lived or visited for more than a day or two, I will just share my first "favorite" place: my hometown.

La Porte City, Iowa, is a sleepy little town of around 2,200 people, and my family lives a few miles outside of it. Surrounded by the whispering green of endless cornfields, the landscape is certainly serene. 

(Iowa cornfield)
However, despite the (mostly correct) popular belief that Iowa is composed of nothing but corn, there is more to it than that. I hail from the southeast corner of the northeast quadrant of Iowa - almost central, but not quite. If you're willing to travel a bit further to the northeast, there are achingly beautiful scenes to behold: deep, green forests coating soaring bluffs, the Mississippi River carving its way through trees and limestone, and lakes and ponds scattered amidst it all. 

(View of the Mississippi River from Pikes Peak State Park, Iowa
Photographer: McGhiever)
Iowa is a beautiful state, and it was my very first home. 

Test Post 8/9

This is just a quick test post for my blog for MLLL 3043-996, Mythology and Folklore.