Myth- Aliki, The Gods And Goddesses Of Olympics Essay, Research Paper
Myth- Aliki, The Gods and Goddesses of Olympics
History 106-05 Nov. 27, 1996 Eng. 265-01 Oct. 1, 1996 Prof Janice Antczak
Myth- Aliki , The Gods and Goddesses of Olympics , Harper Collins Publishers ,
1994 .
After reading The Gods and Goddesses of Olympus , my first reaction was
that it was a wonderful and fascinating example of how Greek mythology explains
the theories about life , death , and the wonders of nature . Although I enjoyed
the book , I also wondered if it was a little too confusing to a young child ,
since many long Greek names were used and many characters interacting together
became too complicated and involved.
The story began with the creation of the earth , sky, all living things,
and with the birth of the Gods and Goddesses that reigned on Mount Olympus . The
author also took each of the twelve gods and goddesses and individually
summarized their personality and duties and their purpose and connection to the
world . The author who also illustrated the book , used brilliant and vibrant
colors and also portrayed the personality visually by scenes and images that
clearly showed the emotional side of the gods .
This myth contained some violence , sinister and inappropriate behavior
among the gods and cruel and even frightening illustrations that I thought might
be too overwhelming for a young impressionable mind . An example of this would
be when ” Cronus married his sister Rhea , and they had many children . But
Cronus was afraid that one of them might overthrow him just as he had overthrown
his father . So as each child was born , he swallowed it .” Although Cronus
eventually “throws up” the unharmed children in the end, I feel the initial
reaction might be more lasting , as well as the fact that Cronus married his
sister , which is an unacceptable taboo in society . There were other strong
images conveyed , both verbally and visually dealing with death , jealousy ,
deceit , and deformities of man and beast . Although I enjoyed this book , I
felt it should be read to an older audience that will not be negatively
impressed by some parts of the story .
Tall Tale : Kellog Steven , Sally Ann Thunder , Ann Whirlwind Crockett , Morrow
Junior Books , 1995
In this tale , author Steven Kellog depicts the incredible story of a
girl named Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind who has an amazing amount of
strength, vitality and agility and who sets off for the frontier at age eight .
She lived with the animals and loved her life in the wilderness until one day
she meets a stranger in the woods that needs her help . It is Davy Crockett ,
the most famous woodsman in America . They fall in love and marry, but the
amazing feats of strength and courage fill her daily life and continue to
surprise the town folk in this nineteenth century tale .
My first reaction to this tall tale was that it was funny , light , and
had a lot of vitality . The plot was simple for children to follow and had only
one main character , which would let the children focus on the cumulative
events that happened to this character and how the story leads to it’s climax.
I definitely got the feeling that I was looking at a nineteenth century
story by the authors illustration and colors used. Earth tones of brown, yellow ,
green and blue set the stage for an early American atmosphere . This tale ,
portrayed in a humorous way , showed how the rugged heroines of long ago dealt
with the hardships and dangers of frontier life . I feel young children will
like this book and enjoy it’s funny and whimsical dialogue and illustrations ,
and perhaps get a comical glimpse of life on the frontier of long ago.
Folktale : Aardema Verna . Why Mosquitoes Buzz in peoples Ears , Illustrated by
Leo and Diane Dillon , Dial Press , 1975 .
I found this African folktale to be a delightfully imaginative and
entertaining tale that has a simple lesson that young children would be able to
understand and relate to . The tale begins with a mosquito that tells a tall
tale (lie) to an iguana . This sets off a chain reaction that ends in a terrible
disaster involving the death of a baby owl , and a mother owl that reacts to
this disaster by refusing to hoot and wake the sun the next morning . As the
talking jungle animals tried to pinpoint who was the cause of this terrible
accident , a sequence of events recounts back to the origin and eventually the
mosquito is incriminated.
This is a cumulative tale which used repetition , accumulation and
rhythm to make a interesting and appealing story for young children .This folk
tale teaches the most basic lesson that you should never lie or there will be
serious consequences as a result . In the end, the mosquito would not admit to
his lies and therefore as a result he had a guilty conscience thereafter . In
the last paragraph the author ties the entire story together by saying that
because the mosquito has a guilty conscience he always goes around whining in
people’s ears asking ” zeee ! Is everyone still angry at me ?”, and that is the
reason “why mosquitoes buzz in people’s ears “.
The illustrations were colorful, bold and gave the reader the feeling
and flavor of an African jungle . The only part I thought was sad was when the
baby owl died , and I thought it brought a solemn note to an otherwise
entertaining and creative folktale . The author also uses certain words three
times whenever describing the sounds of the animals or an important emotion to
be emphasized . An example of this is when the monkey “flew into the forest
crying “kaa, kaa ,kaa !” When expressing the sadness of the mother owl the
author repeated the words “so sad , so sad, so sad !”I felt this book would be
enjoyed by a young audience and would teach a valuable lesson about the
importance of truth as well as being a fun and entertaining edition to a school
or home library .
Fable :Jones , Carol. Town Mouse Country Mouse , Houghton Mifflin Co. , 1995
The Town Mouse Country Mouse was a an adorable fable that I felt was
excellent for young children . The basic and simple story begins with two
cousins , Town Mouse and Country Mouse who decide to visit one anothers homes .
Town Mouse has unrealistic expectations about life in the country , and soon he
is out of place in an environment filled with unusual sights, sounds , and
dangers . He begins to long for his familiar world in town and heads back home
along with his country cousin who longs for a glimpse at city life . Country
Mouse discovers also that he is happier in his own familiar world and both
realize that there’s no place like home .
This story would be very easily understood and enjoyed by small children.
The two main characters have a simple plot and dialogue however , it is very
descriptive which gave me the feeling of being there and going through each
encounter that the mice did. The timeless fable also teaches a very moralistic
lesson of how people can falsely believe the grass is always greener on the
other side .
The author , who also illustrated the book , created cut out peep holes
through the pages in order to see future happenings which added a different
dimension and creativity to the book . I thought the illustrations were cozy and
charming and certainly gave the reader the feeling of being in the country and
the city . The Town Mouse Country Mouse had a touch of humor and warmth that
would delight any age group and both children and adults can relate to it’s wise
message and moralistic lesson for generations to come .