A Favorite Quote

One of my favorite quotes from His Dark Materials is on page 274. Lord Asriel says, "But think of Adam and Eve like an imaginary number, like the square root of minus one: you can never see any concrete proof that it exists, but if you include it in you equations, you can calculate all manner of things that couldn't be imagined without it."

This idea goes along with one of my earlier blogs about children being able to believe anything and everything. Having an open mind will never hinder you, it can only introduce you to more than you previously thought.

The Perception and Portrayal of Beauty in Fairy Tales

“Mirror, mirror, on the wall,
Who’s the fairest one of all?”

The portrayal of beautiful women as the main characters in fairy tales may subconsciously instill, into impressionable, young girls, the idea that beauty is an essential element in relation to personal satisfaction. The vision of physical perfection represented by princesses in many children’s stories emphasizes a woman’s appearance as the most important trait, potentially impacting the self esteems of young girls. Young girls are not only entertained, but influenced by seemingly harmless tales, which primarily focus on beautiful maidens, who, by virtue of their physical appearances, mesmerize prince charming, attain vast treasures, and “live happily ever after.”
A study titled “The Pervasiveness and Persistence of the Feminine Beauty Ideal in Children’s Fairy Tales” by Purdue University sociologist, Liz Grauerholz, and assistant professor of women’s studies at Western Illinois University, Lori Baker-Sperry, and supported by the Purdue Department of Sociology and Anthropology examined the notion that society’s beauty ideals stem from the perception of beauty in fairy tales and that this ideal can negatively impact young girls. The study examined the depictions of physical beauty in 168 Brothers Grimm fairy tales. “Beauty or ugliness is referred to in 94 percent of the Grimms’ fairy tales, with evil characters often being described as ugly” (Hanafy, 1). In Cinderella alone, beauty in a woman was referred to 114 times. The average reference of beauty per story was 13.6.
The study further illustrates a correlation between the perceptions of beauty with regard to fairy tales and the drastic measures adolescents take in attempting to meet implausible ideals. This behavior can ultimately lead to eating disorders or plastic surgery. There is also concern that women will “seek beauty at the expense of other pursuits, such as careers or education” because there is such a powerful message telling them they need to be beautiful (Purdue News, 3). These messages, created by a patriarchal society, may deter women from certain activities or careers including competitive sports or labor jobs because they do not convey femininity. Society’s beauty ideals may limit a woman’s “personal freedom, power, and control” (Purdue News, 3).
Stories such as Snow White, Cinderella, Vasilisa the Fair, and Sleeping Beauty depict that life is dependent upon one’s appearance. For example, the reason Snow White is exiled from her kingdom and subsequently rescued by the prince is because of her “fair” appearance. Had the prince come along and found a hideously, ugly maiden lying in her glass coffin, it is unlikely he would have decided to take her back to his kingdom. In much the same way, Cinderella is forced into a life of misery by her jealous step-sisters because she is more beautiful and kind than they, and she is noticed by the prince because she is more beautiful than all of the other maidens at the ball. The prince does not ask to meet Cinderella or get to know her; he simply desires to marry the breathtakingly gorgeous woman without the need for her to divulge any details regarding her likes and dislikes. Similar to the prince in Cinderella, the tsar in Vasilisa the Fair wants to marry Vasilisa as soon as he sets eyes on her. He does not care about her personality; physical looks are all he needs to make his lifelong decision. In the story Sleeping Beauty, The prince decides to rescue Briar Rose only after hearing how “fabulously beautiful’ she is. Again, it is doubtful that the prince would have risked his life to see the princess had she been ugly or even average or normal looking. All of these stories insinuate that, although beauty will lead one through obstacles, it is that same beauty that will save one in the end.
The Little Mermaid is the only fairy tale in which the princess does not get her prince, but this is simply because she loses part of that beauty, her voice. Though this story encourages girls to give up family and physical attributes and go through unbearable pain in order to get a man’s attention, at least it conveys the message to girls that you don’t always get what you want, and that the cruel world is filled with harsh realities and disappointments. Nevertheless, this story further depicts the necessity of physical beauty and a man’s desire for “perfection.”
The title, The Ugly Duckling, allows the reader know immediately that the story revolves around the importance of physical appearance. Only when the duckling becomes “the most beautiful of all the birds” does he find companionship and live a happy life. Until his blossoming, the poor little duck lives in lonesome misery. No one likes him because he is ugly. He is attacked by ducks, hens, and maids because he is ugly. He cannot even find food or shelter in the winter because he is ugly. As one of the side notes to the story explains, “the duckling’s suffering is so intense (due to his ugliness) that it moves him toward self-immolation.” The desperate duck longs for the salvation of death as long as the executioners are beautiful swans. If there were ever a story that drills into one’s mind the importance of being physically attractive, The Ugly Duckling is the one. How can one expect a young girl to come away from this story without feeling desperation for being as beautiful as a swan? This story conveys the message that only those who are beautiful have friends.
Stories such as Beauty and the Beast, East of the Sun, West of the Moon, and Hans My Hedgehog also illustrate the importance of physical appearance with regard to happiness. Even though Beauty does eventually love the Beast, despite his appearance, he still becomes handsome before the happily ever after arrives. And in both East of the Sun, West of the Moon and Hans My Hedgehog the young daughters do not love the prince until they see him in his handsome human form, then they are willing to walk to the ends of the Earth for him. Hence, it all comes down to being handsome or not receiving the love of the one you admire.
No less important is the impact the view of ugliness plays in fairy tales. “Ugliness is seen as a sign of evil in 17 percent of the stories” (Hanafy, 1). This leads to the idea that beauty and ugliness are indicators of good and evil. If you are ugly, then you are an evil witch or stepsister. Maybe this is the reason many children shy away from the old and decrepit.
This lack of self confidence and vanity in women found in the American culture is further perpetuated by boys also seeing, in these stories, the importance of beauty and in turn inspiring the desire to find a lover based on beauty. It is plausible that many men look at women and subconsciously compare them to the princesses they envisioned as young children. Fortunately, not all men base their love on the physical appearance of their significant other, but many do.
Though I have never realized this before taking Children’s Literature, I think some women’s self esteems and vain behaviors are a direct effect of being told through fairy tales that beauty is the key to happiness. This is an idea that has been instilled in them from childhood. There has never been a fairy tale in which the prince chooses his princess based on the fact the she is intelligent, fun to be around, or interesting. Some women feel they need to rely on looks to get their man, not on who they are as a person. I am sure women would want to be beautiful despite the princesses portrayed in fairy tales, but I am also sure that this desire to be visually appealing and the lack of self confidence related to not being beautiful are amplified by these stories.

Believing Like a Child

In class on Monday we talked about of how children believe. I think the beauty of children is that they can believe everything at once. Pullman's book is a good example of how children are free from the boundaries a set belief can create. In this book "God," angels, witches, polar bears with opposable thumbs, magic spells, ghosts, medicine men, and separate universes all exist together. A child doesn't point out that these are conflicting ideas. They just believe that anything is possible. I wish so much that I could still look at the world through the eyes of my nine-year-old self. I wish I could believe in everything without having to judge and question each credence. Today I was watching the news when a story about a little boy who was home alone when a robber tried to break in came on. When the boy was being interviewed the reporter asked what he did. He said that he hid in his room and dialed 911, but if he would have had super powers he would have arrested the bad guy himself. I loved it. I wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. This boy made this proclamation with such conviction that it was beyond great. Honestly, I felt so jealous of this boy and I can't even explain why.

My Daemon

After thinking about it for a couple days, I can't decide what kind of daemon I would want. I just can't choose between all of the options. Having a wolf or a hawk would be cool, but there really aren't too many animals I would be disappointed to have. From what I know about myself I would assume I would have some sort of cat as my daemon. I'm very catlike in many ways. I took two separate quizzes on quizilla.com and was told I would have either an ermine or a cougar. The quiz that told me I would have an ermine only asked one question that I thought was poorly worded. The quiz that told me I would have a cougar asked a good amount of questions. I like what the site says about having a cougar, this does match my personality.

"Cougar~ Yay for you...you are a cheerful hyper kind of person...but you do like your space sometimes. Annoying people is fun and you always play fair.....well almost always. You don't like the rat because you think he/she is a cheater and a con. In your opinion."

Dust as God

I found an extremely interesting site in which the discussion of rather dust represents god is debated. It comes down to how you interpret the meaning of "god." Of course dust does not represent the Biblical or Christian version of God, but if you relate god with human consciousness than yes, you could say dust is a "cosmic life-force," or a god. I think the most interesting part of this site is how one decides to interpret what an author is saying. If you believe in something enough, you will always twist things around to fit into your own preconceived notions. Here is a quote from the site that shows how many different ways there are to see what you are reading. The funny thing is, I don't believe in God and yet this quote makes perfect sense to me. The idea of believing in some significant force that makes humans human is not too far fetched. I still don't fully agree, but I like his way of thinking.

"Having read the books from a Christian perspective, I've come to the conclusion that the Authority portrayed in the books is most certainly not God. Instead, the Authority represents all of the cruelties and atrocities committed over the years by people 'in the name of God', such as the Crusades or the Spanish Inquisition. The Authority displays what mankind has turned the idea of God into - a tool for mankind's use. Pullman has also portrayed the true God, in the form of Dust. Dust is the unseen but always present representation of love, conscious thought, and free will. It is what makes us human beings."

http://www.facingthechallenge.org/ppfaq03.php

Religion in His Dark Materials

Though we have been told in class to trust the tale and not the teller, I found it hard after hearing about all of the controversy in the news to not think about Pullman's religious views while reading the book. Since I am not religious, I personally did not find it offensive, but I can see how someone of the Christian religion would. The church and God are the bad guys. If I worshipped a being that someone else portrayed as being a coward who tricks his followers I would probably be upset. Then again, other authors have written books that contain witches or mythological gods/creatures or people who travel to other universes, and no one makes a big deal about those stories. I think it is just human nature to get overly excited about any hint of controversy.

To be agnostic means that you are simply skeptical about rather God exists, it does not involve claiming true atheism. An atheist is one who believes there is no deity. I don't think Pullman's intentions were to change the world's mind about religion. It was just good material for a good book. As a side note, it is interesting that the gnostic gospels are a collection of writings about the teachings of Jesus. And gnosis is the "practical spirituality at the base of all religions."

Lyra and Little Red Riding Hood

I was googling His Dark Materials and found an interesting site (http://www.darkmaterials.com/golinter01.htm) comparing Little Red Riding Hood with Lyra. Though Little Red Riding Hood is a simple fairy tale and His Dark Materials is a complex novel, the similarities are quit obvious. Both stories deal with a young adolescent female confronting the desire for independence, both deal with sexuality, and both deal with the young female being stripped of her innocence. Both characters stray from the safe path. Lyra refused to listen to the people trying to keep her from harms way like L.R.R.H refused to listen to her mother. Both character have "idealized familial figures who turn out to be vicious predators." "Both have corresponding antagonists who destroy the heroine while in the role of her benefactor and protector." Both girls are betrayed by someone they trusted: L.R.R.H. by the wolf and Lyra by both of her parents. Innocence and maturity are the themes in both of these stories. I thought this was an interesting comparison even worthy of a term paper topic.

Similarities between Wonderland & Sunderland

One of the main relationships between Alice in Wonderland and Alice in Sunderland is how both characters go through similar mood swings. Both Alice and the actor in Sunderland go from high to low in seconds. They both question themselves too often. For example, when Alice meets Tweedledum and Tweedledee they easily make her cry by saying that she might not be real and just a part of the Red King's dream. Yet she doesn't cry when faced with other strange incidences. And the actor breaks down several times during his performance in Sunderland. One moment he'll be performing his play, and the next he's questioning his age or the play itself. Both books are filled with breakdowns.

Favorite Chapter

My favorite chapter in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is Pig & Pepper. I chose this chapter as my favorite because I like the conversation at the end between Alice and the Cheshire-Cat. This conversation seemed to me more dream-like than any other part of the book. First, Alice asks where to go and the cat responds by asking where she wants to go. Alice has no real preference, which is how dreams often are. Does anyone ever know where they should go in a dream? Secondly, I like the way the Cheshire-Cat explains his madness. If a dog is not mad, and it wags its tail when it is happy and growls when it is angry, than a cat must be mad if it growls when it is happy and wags its tail when it is angry. I think it is humorous how something as logical as comparing and contrasting can be so illogical. Thirdly, I like how normal Alice’s reply to the cat’s question about the baby is. "It turned into a pig." There is no need for further explanation because that’s what happened and it’s as simple as that. This is the way dreams come to me. Nothing makes sense and nothing has to.

The Wizard of Oz in Futurama

The other night I was watching Futurama, a cartoon on Comedy Central, and they did a parody of the Wizard of Oz. The main female character, Leela, is hit on the head and passes out. When she awakens she is in a mysterious place. All the characters from Futurama play a character from the Wizard of Oz. The funniest part about this episode is that at the end Leela doesn't want to go back to her poverty stricken aunt and uncle in the desert, instead she wants to take over the wicked witches place in Oz. She becomes the witch only to have water thrown on her. As she is melting away she wakes up to find all of her friends hovering above her. She says, "I had the weirdest dream, and you were there and you were there and you were there."

My Dream

A couple of weekends ago my boyfriend, Chaske, and I went home for my dad's 50th birthday party. Usually when we go home for the weekend we come back on Sunday, but this particular Sunday we decided to stay the night and head home in the morning because the party didn't get over until late and Chaske was tired after hunting all day with my dad and brother. Sometime during the night I had a dream that we had gotten home to find Chaske's little brother, Kameron, who is living with us at the time, throwing a party at our trailer. When we walked in, him and five other people, one of which being an old friend of mine, were hovering around a bottle of liqueur making a lot of noise. I drug Kameron into my bedroom and proceeded to yell at him for having a party. At this point I realized that he was high on meth. I looked at him straight in the eyes and said, "I know you're tweeking right now. Tell everyone to get the hell out of my house and we'll deal with this in the morning." Then I woke up. I laid in bed sleepily thinking about the dream I just had until I fell back asleep again. Then I woke up again, or at least I thought I did, to hear Kameron and his cracked out friends running around the house and yard screaming and hollering. I jumped out of bed, stomped my way out into the living room and again yelled at Kameron and all his friends. I told them all to get out of my house and for Kameron to go to his bedroom. After everyone left I went back to my bedroom where Chaske was sound asleep and went back to bed. Again I woke up, but for real this time. I laid there for a while trying to determine rather I was just dreaming or if that had really happened. After some time I decided that waking up to find Kameron and his friends still partying was a dream, but that catching him partying in the first place really did happen. I laid there for at least an hour worrying about how I was going to deal with this situation come morning. I thought about waking Chaske up and decided not to. I just laid there thinking and worrying and fretting until I finally rolled over and realized I was at my parents' house. A huge wave of relief rushed over me. By realizing I was still at my parents' house meant that I couldn't have caught Kameron at my own house. After my revelation I was able to fall back asleep peacefully. The reason this dream is imprinted in my memory is because of the difficulty I had determining rather it was real or not. Like Dorothy I awoke certain that what had happened really happened. And the fact that my two dreams were seperated by conciousness added to my confusion. My dreams were two different books like Alice in Wonderland and Trough the Looking Glass.

Alice in Wonderland

This is the first time I've ever read Alice in Wonderland. In fact, I'm not sure if I've ever even seen the movie all the way through. The funny thing is though, even without ever having read the book or seen the movie, I could have told someone the entire story. How or why I know the story, I'm not sure, but I feel safe guessing it has to do with the fact that everyone knows the story and eventually I would have to hear it. Alice in Wonderland is one of those stories that is so popular it's hard to remember when or where you first heard it. Like knowing that boiling water will you burn you. I don't remember ever learning such a thing, but I know I've known it since I can remember. So my knowledge of Alice in Wonderland is very similar to my knowledge of burning water.

Funny Halloween Joke I Got In An Email

Term Paper Ideas

At this point I plan to write my paper on vanity in fairy tales, focusing on the impact that the vision of beauty portrayed in these stories has on the self esteems of young girls.

Some other ideas:
religious impacts on the creation of fairy tales
the meaning behind the stealing of children in fairy tales

Link to Bryan Talbot's Biography

http://www.bryan-talbot.com/biog.html

The Connections of Reading

The discussion in class yesterday made me think about the adults' role as a reader. We were talking about how children not only read a book, they put themselves in a book. I think adults do this as well. When I read a good novel I often place myself into the story. Rather I am one of the characters or a ghostly figure hovering above, watching, I find myself involved in the story. I think this is one of the connections that still strongly exists between children and adults. Even as you grow up, you still hold the ability to place yourself into another world. One is still able to enter a portal at any age.

My Book and Heart Shall Never Part

I like how the film discussed why children's books were made. Today we read books to children for entertainment and enjoyment, but that is not how it has always been. Of course every story has a lesson, but that lesson is found through a character's adventure versus a single sentence pointing out the threat of falling down stairs. Most of the books for children written in the 18th century and discussed in the movie, however, were simply ways to formalize children. I think the formality of these books made them tools in disguise instead of toys. I'm probably belittling the importance of the lessons these books taught, but I've always been one to value exciting stories over common sense lessons about drinking hot tea. It is also interesting how Euro-American colonizers used the same techniques (literacy and thus books) to convert children into adults as they used to convert Native Americans into civilized people. It is sad to me that such a wonderful thing like literacy is used as a weapon of control by those who already possess the gift of reading and writing. This leads to the idea that literacy ends a child's childhood which is definitely an interesting concept. It is true. The more you read, the more you learn, the more developed your brain becomes, and the more adult like you become. In every story there is some piece of information or idea you have never thought of before. In every story there is a situation or experience you have never gone through before. In every story, no matter how trivial, there is some lesson to be learned. And it is the accumulation of lessons that lead to adulthood.

Is a child ever really a child?

In class on Monday we discussed rather a child is ever really a child. I like to think so. I think it comes down to simply believing a child is a child. If you truly believe something than to you it is real. I think this is one of those topics that need no evidence or justification, you just believe it to be true or you don't. I know from my own personal experience as a child that I was nothing like I am today. When I was a child my mind set, my views on life and people, my attitude were all different. When this transition occurred, I could not tell you, but I can assure you it did occur. Even though adults are "building" children the second they are born, a young child is still naive to the things that make an adult an adult. A child has that raw way of looking at the world based soly off of the nature they were born with instead of the experience that drives the way adults think. No doubt there are exceptions to this, like there are in anything and everything else, and maybe there are people out there who have never experienced childhood, but I refuse to believe that childhood as a whole does not exist, so it does.

Grimm Fairy Tales

I searched Grimm fairy tales in Google Images and about 90% of the pictures found were of provocative women dressed as some fairy tale character. I assumed pictures found in Tatar's book would come up or other drawings from stories written by the Grimm brothers, but my assumption was obviously wrong. I guess this is a simple way to keep adults, primarily men, still interested in fairy tales. Here is one of the pictures that popped up.

The White Goddess

I googled white goddess, and after finding sites involving witch craft, pagan religions, and even naked women, I found a site that is not only interesting, but also relevant to this class. The site is Genesis of Eden (http://www.dhushara.com/book/diana/diana.htm) and it states, "Just as the Great Goddess frequently comes in a trinity of phases, the virgin of sexual love, the mother of nurturing and the crone of death..." These three "trinity of phases" are what makes up the Three Part Goddess.

Review Test Questions

What is the archetypal ladies name in Finnigan's Wake? The Prank Quean
What is an example of a portmanteau word? Quean
What is misplaced concreteness? asking a question about a fairy tale that shouldn't be asked
What numbers in fairy tales are considered privileged? 3 & 7
According to Arney Thompson which story is #333? Little R. R. H.
How is the collective unconscious revealed in fairy tales? through archetypes
Which story is this quote from? "If your really crafty you'll get them both." L. R. R. H. (wolf)
What are 3 parts of the universal quest (Joseph Campbell)? separation, initiation, return
What are the 3 parts of the triple goddess? maiden, mother, crone
Why is there no such thing as an original? lit. is displaced myth
What are you recognizing in someone when you bow to them? their divinity
Genie: "I'm not history, I'm _______." mythology
According to Thompson Arnie which category are E. of the Sun..., Han's My Hedgehog, & B. & B. grouped into? search of the missing husband or beast groom
Name the mythological mother/daughter duo. Demeter and Persephone
What causes the transformation in B & B? love/feeling
Who is an archetypal for a talking animal? The Golden Ass
What woke Cupid up as Psyche looked at him? hot wax
What is an example of spoonerism? sisty uglers, flop the moor
Which romantic poet thinks man already knows everything, they just need to remember it? Williams Wordsworth
What mythical story is B & B based off? Cupid and Psyche
Which gender is most often involved in morals? Female
In which of the Grimm's fairy tales is the witch a main character? Hansel & Gretel
Who wanted to marry L. R. R. H.? Charles Dickens
What is a clue you're reading a fairy tale? Once upon a time or Long, long ago
Know the differences between the Grimm Brothers' versions and Perrault's versions.

My Rebuttel For The Moral of Cinderella

To get your dude
Don’t worry 'bout being lewd
Just wear a short skirt
And be a flirt
It has nothing to do with grace
Just the prettiness of your face
For it is the fairest one of all
Who is chosen to attend the ball

Cupid and Psyche (Anthoney Van Dyck)

What is Nature?

It is no easy task defining something like nature, in fact I don't think it should confined by definition. But since this is an assignment, I guess I'll give it my best shot. If you really think about it, nature is everything. Of course the land and the trees and the mountains and the animals are all parts of nature, but so are the buildings humans have constructed, for it is the nature of man to build. So I guess it is all these parts of nature bundled together that make nature itself. However, the good nature, the raw and natural nature, is the little bit of land tucked away from human civilization. Being that I was raised in Big Timber, Montana I have been, and still am, fortunate enough to be able to frolic in these tucked away pieces of nature. Nature is something everyone needs.

The reading room I wish I had as a child.

" This scene from Alice in Wonderland was painted in the bookstore Slightly Foxed in Oamaru, New Zealand. You can see at the bottom left that there is a small door with the scene of the book with the shrinking elixir on the table painted around it, for children to enter into their own shrunken reading room. The stairway leading up to the right has the Cheshire Cat perched in a tree on the top of a bookshelf." Acrylic paints
Posted by Greg Hartman at Saturday, April 28, 2007
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgzzbqSU-opFGnaC02459YSGbvKi9mSf_oEnvpDmMnwnRMj01wqeFUJC2-CRK3R3ZCFYiIIlE_yFC6rUu9C7lwb6o6dOwpQR12lkhgRKkqtdZZGdEzjU4_kXliQAQERxtfs11q0RXTelvY/s400/Alice+in+Wonderland+Mural+4+Luann.jpg&imgrefurl=http://thepaintedperception.blogspot.com/&h=298&w=400&sz=22&hl=en&start=58&usg=__DfzY4s60e628i7A3MgxsUVo7MZQ=&tbnid=Rs9H9Lk-47dasM:&tbnh=92&tbnw=124&prev=/images%3Fq%3DAlice%2Bin%2BWonderland%26start%3D40%26gbv%3D2%26ndsp%3D20%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Dactive%26sa%3DN

What is a book?

To me a book, a good novel that I choose to read, is an escape. When there's a lot on my mind and I'm really stressed out the only way to forget about all of my worries is to read. When you read you have no choice but to focus on the words and the characters and the plot. Your mind has no way to focus on everyday stresses and reality. You can get lost in the worlds of Tom Robbins, Tracy Chevalier, and Anchee Min, completely different times and places. A book is a portal that leads you out of reality and into anywhere.

What is a Child?

A child is a "blank slate." Though children are born with instincts, the way they view the world, the way they view people, the way they view life is left to be determined by experience. Children are born without judgement or preconceived notions. A very young child is optimism, naive to the reality of life. A child is a person who can think anything. A child is as close to innocence as any human can get. I think it is experience that differentiates children and adults. The more experience a child has the more adult he or she becomes.

Fairy Tales In Real Life

The story Taylor put on her blog about the man falling asleep in the midst of burglarizing a house is definitely a reminder that fairy tales are happening all around us. I wonder if anyone outside of this class would have made the connection to The Three Bears or if the man himself would find that connection humorous or embarrassing. Taking this class really makes hearing real-life stories more interesting.

Displacement Story

Mary’s Diary

March 10, 2008:
Today is the worst day of my life. Prom is less than a month away and my dad is demanding that I go with the son of some guy he plays cards with every Wednesday night. Though I would do anything for my dad and I don’t want to hurt the boy’s feelings, he’s a complete looser and all of my friends have cool dates. Plus, I heard from Suzy that Tom told her that Brian was planning to ask me to go with him and I’ve had a crush on him for so long. Plus, he’s a senior, and like how many freshmen get asked to prom by a senior? This is my first prom and I wanted it to be perfect. I wish I could die.

March 13, 2008:
I hinted to my dad today that I would rather go to prom with Brian, who asked me yesterday, but he told me it was either go with Mark or don’t go at all. I’m so mad at him. My friends were horrified when I told them I had to turn Brian down. I know my sisters are happy though, and just because their jealous that Brian asked me. I saw both of them snickering when dad told me I had to go with Mark.

April 15, 2008:
I met Mark today. He was nice, but I still want to go with Brian. I only know Mark as the weird kid who sits by himself at lunch every day. I guess he really didn’t seem weird when I met him, but I only talked to him for a few minutes while my dad picked up some tools from his dad’s house. He gave me a rose that he picked from his neighbor’s garden which was sweet, but I still don’t even know this kid and he’s nowhere near as cute as Brian, in fact, he’s not cute at all. Of the 4,000 kids in my high school why does my dad have to be friends with his dad?

April 20, 2008:
I went and bought my dress the other day, it’s so pretty. I can’t believe prom is only a week away. Mark came with his dad to poker last night and my dad made me hangout with him for like four hours. Honestly, and I would never say this to my friends, he was actually fun to be around. He brought me another rose which was nice. Then he showed me how to play some crazy card game and even showed me a card trick that I can’t wait to show someone. When the stars came out he showed me the Big Dipper and Orion’s Belt. Anyway, I still wish I could go with Brian, but Mark really isn’t as bad as I thought he was.

April 28, 2008:
Last night didn’t go at all like I thought it would. Mark showed up with a whole bouquet of roses, the first bouquet I’ve ever gotten. He was so sweet and so gentleman like. His dad drove us to the prom in his convertible mustang. When we got there all of my friends told me to ditch Mark and come with them, but I just couldn’t do that to him. But then Brian asked me to dance and I couldn’t say no. While we were out on the dance floor I saw a bunch of Brian’s friends go over to Mark and then I saw him run out of the gym. I went to see what was going on and Tom told me that they told him he was a looser and I only came with him because I had to. I felt so bad. I ran out looking for him and found him walking home. I told him that they were all jerks and that I would much rather spend time with him than with any of them. And to be honest I would. He might not be as cute as Brian, though I don’t know why I ever thought he was as ugly as I did, or as popular as Brian, but he’s so sweet and fun to be around. We talked for a long time and I never thought I would say this, but I like him. He’s supposed to call me later tonight and I can’t wait.

Robert Bly

I found an interview of Robert Bly about his book Iron John that I thought people might find interesting.

http://www.pbs.org/kued/nosafeplace/interv/bly.html

A Picture of the Rapunzel Plant

The Not So Innocent Little Red Riding Hood

The True Story

Here is a link to the True Story of The Three Little Pigs: The Wolf's Side of the Story

http://www.shol.com/agita/wolfside.htm

Finding Adverture

One thing we talked about in class was how fairytales often start out with a character being told not to do something and then always doing it. For example, Snow White would have never met her prince had she not gone against the dwarfs' wishes and allowed a stranger to give her an apple. This makes me ask the question, how you can read a fairytale to a child and then expect him or her not to enter the closet you firbid them to?

Notes From Class

Here is a list of key things Dr. Sexson has said in class:

• Children's Literature is a portal to mythology
• All lit. is displaced mythology
• Things usually happen three times in fairy tales
• There are two kinds of books: ones with morals and ones without morals
• There are no concrete originals to stories, only variants
• Stories revolve around a three part goddess: the maiden or virgin, the mother, and the crone or old lady
• The protagonist is often helped by creatures of nature in fairy tales
• Don't ask what a poem means. Ask how a poem means.
• If a fairy tale starts out by saying not to do something, the reader can be sure the character will do what they are told not to do
• Once you hear the call of adventure you can't ignore it, the adventure has already begun

One Good Moral

It seems that most of the classic fairytales in Tatar's book lack any well-defined moral, however I do believe both Beauty and the Beast and East of the Sun and West of the Moon have a very good moral. In the two stories a young woman willingly gives up her freedom for the wellfare of her family. Beauty saves her father's life by giving herself to the beast and in the other story the girl gives herself to the polar bear in order to allow her family a life of wealth. This devotion to family is something I would definitely want my children to learn at a young age.

The Little Mermaid

Though The Little Mermaid was no less gruesome and painful than most of the other children's stories, I did find it to be surprisingly different in a huge way. In this story the princess doesn't actually get the prince and in my opinion doesn't live too happily-ever-after. I don't think I have ever read a fairytale in which the main character finds dissapointment at the end of their journey. The unfortunate outcome for this princess of the sea does however deliver a message to young girls that will eventually be conveyed anyway, that you don't always get what you want. I think many of these stories set girls up for dissapointment. Girls grow up reading about other girls always getting the guy they want, always overcoming evil, and regrettably that is not how it works outside the castle walls. Though it's wonderful to have an optimistic view as a child, it is also important to prepare yourself for the harsh reality of the cruel world.

Vanity in Fairytales

One thing I've noticed so far in reading these children's fairytales is that every story that has a princess as the main character elaborates on how beautiful the princess is. They are always the "fairest in the land," the most beautiful anyone has seen. I think this subconsciously puts the idea into young girls minds at a very early age that beauty is the key in finding a "happily ever after." There are so many things in today's culture that lead to vanity and a lack of self-confidence in women. I guess I'm realizing where this all stems from. We cannot only blame our Britney Spears and Paris Hilton for the high expectations women face, but also our Mother Goose and Brothers Grimm.