Monday, October 5, 2015

Reading Diary B: Japanese Mythology

Myth-Folklore Unit: Japanese Mythology

(Image from jpellgen)

Reading B:
1. The Labors of Yamato - The Grotto of Love
  • I love having the short poem in the beginning. I think I am going to do that in this week's story.
  • Sirens and mermaids! I did have a siren in one of my novels, but I've never written about mermaids. I think that might be interesting to try! Then again, writing about sirens are always interesting. What is there was a siren that fell in love with a human, but has a hard time getting over her evil nature, and in the end kills him.
  • Dragons! Also would make a cool story. Maybe I could write about people who can turn into dragons?
  • The siren sends him on a mission, and when he finds a certain magical object they can fall in love.
2. The Labors of Yamato - The Golden Apple
  • Riding a bird, like a stark. Reminds me of the giant eagles that are rode upon in Lord of the Rings.
3. The Labors of Yamato - The Demon Boar
  • He is sent upon another quest. That would make an unsettling ending. Like, to have the hero (or heroine) on a quest, and when he comes back he has to go on yet another quest! A cool cumulative tale would include a hero going on various quests! 
4. The Labors of Yamato - The Grass-Cleaving Sword
  • The fire as a barrier. A great fire lighting ablaze that hinders the main character of the story.
  • A maiden in fiery clothing, running through the fire. What a fantastical and interesting image! How can she walk through fire? Surely she is some sort of supernatural creature.
  • She ripped her clothes off and her hair singed.
  • He cut the grass and I believe did save her?
5. The Labors of Yamato - The Sacred Sword
  • That was horrible! He told her to get lost because of the burns and her singed hair! That is not okay.
  • Labyrinthine trails
  • The siren has rejected him.
6. The Sacred Sword (cont.)
  • Kwannon, Goddess of Mercy and Love
  • Being lent hounds by the Goddess
  • A magical stag
7. The Labors of Yamato - The Dragon
  • A dragon has ravaged the city
8. The Dragon (cont.)
  • Just when you think it is happily ever after, the princess is killed. I kind of liked this ending. I didn't expect and it was an interesting change of pace!
9. The Faery Robe
  • Tennin or tenshi are mystical beings similar to angels or faeries. Really cool! I like this story already, obviously. (I love reading about faeries!)
  • The faery dropped a robe
  • What a mean fisherman. He makes her do things like dance to get the robe back.
  • A faery that skims the tops of the oceans and leave a shimmering rainbow behind.
10. The Jewel of Heart's Desire: The Land of Morning Calm
  • Tide Jewels are magical gems that the Sea God used to control the tides.
  • A woman secretly ruling the lands
  • Sea dragons
  • A crystal ball
11. The Quest of the Jewel
  • Ama dive for pearls. What is a teenage girl was diving for pearls and she stumbled upon a mereman? And of course they fall in love and all that good stuff. But, the problem is that well, he is a mereman! Maybe she has to go on a hunt for a certain gem or pearl that is in the sea that can turn him human?
  • A sea-dragon attacks!
12. Uraishima
  • Turtle as a symbol of long life
  • A dragon palace guarded by nixies, which I am under the impression that they are mermaids.

1 comment:

  1. I like the way you write your Reading Diary. When I do mine I usually give a slight overview of the unit as a whole with any features or themes the stories may have in common. After that I normally summarize my favorite of the unit and sometimes pose a question or two. This looks exactly like the notes that I take on paper while reading. I might try this style out!

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