Mythology and Folklore MLLL 3046

Image on  Pixnio The first article that I read was Criticizing (common criticisms of) Praise by Alfie Kohn. Kohn asserts that any kind of judgement, whether negative or positive, essentially hurts a child when giving them feedback. In fact, “good job” isn’t really feedback at all. It is actually positive judgement, and it can hurt a child’s performance just like negative feedback. Kohn’s article is very similar to the work of Carol Dweck, who believes that praising a child actually makes them self-conscious and not willing to try. Consequently, they underperform. Dweck believes that praising the process that a child is going through in order to complete something, such as a math assignment, makes the child want to better, and so they try harder. This is because a shift in their mindset has made them believe that they are capable. Unlike Dweck however, Kohn believes that praising process can actually have negative outcomes, as well. He states that “at least three ca...

Ireland on  Pixabay Yeats on  Wikimedia The Storybook project that I would like to do is on W. B. Yeats’ In the Seven Woods, which are poems and a play on Irish mythological themes. Here, I have read some of the poems and have chosen three that I could potentially make complete Storybooks out of. Baile and Aillinn is a lengthy poem of several stanzas. It is about two lovers who have been tricked by the Master of Love, Aengus. He wants them to be lovers forever in his own world, the land of death. He tricks Baile and Aillinn separately, telling each that the other has died, whereupon they individually die of heartbreak. It would be interesting to do a Storybook on these lovers, including their relationship, Aengus’ tricks on each, and their deaths. I could even change the plot to where the lovers outsmart Aengus and do not each die of heartbreak. Adam’s Curse is about the narrator and a young woman whom he loves. They sit and talk about poetry. This shorter ...

Echo and Narcissus on  Wikimedia As a curse from vengeful Juno, lovely Echo could not speak words of her own. Where once she was a great storyteller, she was reduced to only being capable to speak words that someone else had just spoken. Echo became a more solitary being, and walked alone in the woods often to think things over. Men and gods alike were no less enchanted with the young nymph after receiving Juno’s curse, but she paid them no mind. Echo had never considered falling in love until she happened to catch sight of a handsome mortal, Narcissus. Narcissus was admired by all for his porcelain skin and curly hair, but these features spoke nothing of his personality. He was a demanding and selfish child who grew into a proud and arrogant adult with a sharp tongue. Echo knew none of this. She followed him deep into the woods where she had seen Narcissus and waited for him to speak so that she could return his call. Upon hearing a footstep, Narcissus called, “Is there a...

Venus and Mars:  Wikimedia This is a continuation of my Reading Notes for Ovid’s epic poem based on Greek mythology, Metamorphoses, Books 1-4 . Unlike my previous notes for these books, I had actually heard of the first three of the four stories that I have provided notes for. The first is Echo , which I learned about in one of my French courses, and this tale is followed directly by its companion, Narcissus . The third story is Pyramus and Thisbe , which many are probably familiar with, as it is used in A Midsummer Night’s Dream . Lastly, I read Mars and Venus . I expected this one to be a longer tale, because it is about a love affair that I expected to be tricky. However, it was the shortest reading that I have provided notes for from the Metamorphoses . Each story in the collection deals with an aspect of transformation or shapeshifting. I like to take notes by lists, and have marked the transformations I noticed, as well as important themes and mythologi...

Ovid on  Wikimedia For this week, I chose Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Books 1-4 for the reading assignments. I chose Ovid because he was mentioned in a work that I read for one of my French courses, and I have always been interested in Greek and Roman mythology. The Metamorphoses is an epic poem of Greek mythology, and each story within deals with the theme of transformation. I have made note of some important familial ties between characters, the theme of transformation regarding each story, as well as what I liked about each. Each story is divided into smaller sections, similar to chapters, though they may only be a couple of paragraphs long. I like this style, because I like making lists to keep things organized while note taking. I also have an easier time referring back to the text, since each section has a heading of what is about to take place. Each tale also mentions other characters in Greek mythology that are important in their own right, but not necessaril...