MythFolk Topics Brainstorm

Common Women in Greek Mythology

Comments:

Having read Ovid’s Metamorphoses (books 1-4) I can already see that women are a key component to nearly every story. What is interesting is that, though they are vital to the story, they hold little to no power over their fate.

Possible Stories:

With plenty to choose from in all three parts of Metamorphoses. Anything that includes a mortal women should work well.

Sample Story Comments:

In books 1-4 od Metamorphoses, there is a story about a girl who is violated by Jupiter, then turned into a heifer for her protection, then taken prisoner by Juno, until she is saved and finally restored to a human.

Bibliography:

“Io” from Ovid’s Metamorphoses, translated by Tony Kline; Web Source: Poetry in Translation

Smarts in Brer Rabbit

Comments:

Knowing that I plan on reading Brer Rabbit later this semester I did a little research and found that Brer Rabbit often uses his intelligence to get him into and out of situations. This may be something that recurs in all the stories.

Possible Stories:

I can use any of the stories from the Un-textbook from Brer Rabbit I, II or any other stories I may come across while searching around on the internet.

Sample Story Comments:

In the sample story, Brer Rabbit is fooled by Brer Fox. Brer Fox wisely uses a tar doll to entrap Brer Rabbit, and Brer Rabbit never suspects a thing.

Bibliography:

“The Wonderful Tar-Baby Story” from Uncle Remus: His Songs and His Sayings, by Joel Chandler Harris (1881).

Religion in the Canterbury Tales

Comments:

I have always wanted to read the Canterbury Tales but have never been able to find the time, so I am greatly looking forward to reading it later in the semester. After doing a little online research, it seems that the role religion plays in many of the stories is a very interesting topic to follow throughout.

Possible Stories:

Any of the Canterbury Tales in the Un-textbook or online that include a religious/clerical figure. Specifically focusing on how the character is portrayed and how the character acts.

Sample Story Comments:

This is the story of a young Christian boy named Hugh. Thanks to his mother, Hugh had a deep love for Christ from a young age and was so passionate that he learned a song the older kids were singing, O Alma Redemptoris. This upset Satan, and so he had an “evil” Jew slit the boys throat. But even with his throat slit, thanks to holy powers, he was able to continue to sing until it was his time to join his maker.

Bibliography:

“The Prioress’s Tale: Little Hugh” from The Chaucer Story Book, by Eva March Tappan (1908)

Animal Tendencies in the Tales of Bidpai

Comments:

Only knowing that I plan to read the Tales of Bidpai later this semester, I did yet another search to try and find out a little bit more. The use of animals in these tales is so prevalent that it could be something very interesting to track the tendencies of certain animals and if they may play the same role in different stories.

Possible Stories:

Nearly all of the Tales of Bidpai in the Un-textbook have animals and most of the animals are used in more than one story.

Sample Story Comments:

The story had a thin cat who wanted what a fat cat had; unfortunately, she was so blinded by her greed for more food that she didn’t see the hands that would kill her right behind her.

Bibliography:

“The Lean Cat and the Fat Cat” from The Tortoise and the Geese and other Tales of Bidpai by Maude Barrows Dutton, with illustrations by E. Boyd Smith (1908).

(Image Information: My fat cat in her royal kitchen;
a personal photo from July 2014)