Hello, class! This is my first time creating a blog, but I can already see the value in it. A simpler way to present what you are trying to show through a medium which can be accessed by whoever has the link. This incorporation of technology will probably be paramount for me as I move on to eventually teach middle or high school English and History.
This week's readings were fairytales which included two stories Lanval Marie de France and Wife of Bath's Tale. In both of these stories, female characters had the upper hand on their male counterparts. In Lanval, the maiden commanded Lanval's love and affection with beauty, wealth, and adornment. He had to keep everything a secret, however, or she will never be his again. Guinevere also controlled both her husband's chivalrous duty to her defending her honor and Lanval's possible demise to a certain extent. This is even though Lanval did nothing wrong, it is the insult of his rejection of the queen which doomed him to give up the secret of his beloved.
In the Wife of Bath's Tale the queen of King Arthur, who we assume is Guinevere as well, sits over the trial of an accused Knight. The Knight is on trial for raping one of the fair maidens in Arthur's court. The queen stated that to escape his demise he must leave and return in one year with the correct answer to her question. Her question is what do women most desire in the world? The knight after searching almost a year for the right answer stumbled along an old, very unattractive lady who told him what he has been seeking, but only for a price. We find out later after the knight was saved and that the "price" is his hand in marriage. Once again the female characters were in control of all aspects and even the destiny of the main character. That's the kind of power you have as a fairy in a fairy tale. I found the Middle English version very hard to decipher, so I had to click the link to the translation almost as soon as I read the first page.
I have to admit that when I signed up for this course, my counselor looked at me and said: "Fairy tales.. what exactly are you going to do with that course?" I told her it was for my Masters in English and she still looked at me funny. When you think about it, however, fairy tales are a part of almost everyone's life and have been for centuries. I heard the typical fairytales growing up like Jack and the Beanstalk, or Little Red Riding Hood. I also turned around and told them to my children later in life on a pretty constant basis, before bedtime or whenever the mood was right. It's hard to imagine just how much fairy tales have contributed to culture or society throughout the years. I'm excited to find out by reading through the class and reflecting on what I know about history. I have a B.A. in history as well, and that's why I say that. I'm also excited to try out these blogs, Prezis, and other technology we are going to incorporate into this course.
This week's readings were fairytales which included two stories Lanval Marie de France and Wife of Bath's Tale. In both of these stories, female characters had the upper hand on their male counterparts. In Lanval, the maiden commanded Lanval's love and affection with beauty, wealth, and adornment. He had to keep everything a secret, however, or she will never be his again. Guinevere also controlled both her husband's chivalrous duty to her defending her honor and Lanval's possible demise to a certain extent. This is even though Lanval did nothing wrong, it is the insult of his rejection of the queen which doomed him to give up the secret of his beloved.
In the Wife of Bath's Tale the queen of King Arthur, who we assume is Guinevere as well, sits over the trial of an accused Knight. The Knight is on trial for raping one of the fair maidens in Arthur's court. The queen stated that to escape his demise he must leave and return in one year with the correct answer to her question. Her question is what do women most desire in the world? The knight after searching almost a year for the right answer stumbled along an old, very unattractive lady who told him what he has been seeking, but only for a price. We find out later after the knight was saved and that the "price" is his hand in marriage. Once again the female characters were in control of all aspects and even the destiny of the main character. That's the kind of power you have as a fairy in a fairy tale. I found the Middle English version very hard to decipher, so I had to click the link to the translation almost as soon as I read the first page.
I have to admit that when I signed up for this course, my counselor looked at me and said: "Fairy tales.. what exactly are you going to do with that course?" I told her it was for my Masters in English and she still looked at me funny. When you think about it, however, fairy tales are a part of almost everyone's life and have been for centuries. I heard the typical fairytales growing up like Jack and the Beanstalk, or Little Red Riding Hood. I also turned around and told them to my children later in life on a pretty constant basis, before bedtime or whenever the mood was right. It's hard to imagine just how much fairy tales have contributed to culture or society throughout the years. I'm excited to find out by reading through the class and reflecting on what I know about history. I have a B.A. in history as well, and that's why I say that. I'm also excited to try out these blogs, Prezis, and other technology we are going to incorporate into this course.
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