I loved the
Georgian Folktales. They were so interesting and all of them seemed to be fable like. I felt like in each one, I was learning about the values and beliefs of the people who told them. There seemed to be a lesson in each of the stories, which I really appreciate. I love that stories can be used to instill values in children and in others.
One of my favorite stories from this unit was
Fate. It definitely had a classic fairy tale feel. I also really liked how it dealt with the concept of fate. The entire story revolves around the idea that your fate is inevitable, and that no matter what you do to try to avoid it, it will catch up with you. It reminded me of the Greek character Oedipus. Although Oedipus's fate is much darker than the prince in this story, the basics are the same. Both Oedipus and the prince learn of their fates, and in distaste for them, endeavor to do all that they can to prevent it. In this story the prince finds the poor weaver's invalid daughter whom he is fated to marry and stabs her. However, like Oedipus, he is ultimately unable to escape his fate. He finds a beautiful woman in a palace in the woods years later and marries her. It turns out that she is the same poor weaver's daughter, but has had a change in circumstances. I like that this story is so reminiscent of Oedipus's story, but does not end in such tragedy as his did.
I also really loved the story
The Serpent and the Peasant. This story had such a great message of understanding, forgiveness, and grace. I could definitely see the religious influences within the story which testifies to their commitment to Orthodox Christianity. The snake is so full of grace and faithfulness. The peasant comes to him for help continually, and then continually acts thanklessly afterwards. He gives the snake back nothing. Even still though the snake offers his help without complaint when the peasant comes to him. When finally the peasant shows remorse for his actions and offers the snake what he had promised him. The snake acts gracefully. He forgives the peasant for his greed, for his violence, and for his thankfulness, and even says he does not want what he is due. This story to me is so representative of the faithfulness of God, and how He is there for us, and cares for us even when we turn our backs on Him. Further when we finally come back to Him, He is not vengeful or angry, but forgiving and full of grace. I love that this story seems so influenced by Christian beliefs.
I'm not sure about this template. The colors go well together, sure, but they're pretty challenging to read. With that being said, I was able to read your reading diary here, and I found it very interesting. I had no idea that the Gregorian Fables were so interesting (frankly, they're a set of fables that I hadn't heard of prior to this class).
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