- Understand the techniques for reading, analyzing, and writing about literature

- Recognize the importance of cross-cultural critique for appreciating literature’s role in reflecting the human condition

- Develop writing skills relevant to writing assignments across disciplines: writing as a process, citation, research, and an independent writer’s voice

- Prepare students to answer the question: “What does literature teach us?”

- Genre Forms: Fiction, Poem, Short Story, Novella, Drama

- Genre Roots: Fable, Fairy Tale, and Parable

- 4 Essays (to total the 6,000 word/24-page writing requirement) including one documented essay

- Examination of ‘modern’ fairy tales, fables, and parables

- Daily reading assignments; come to class prepared to talk about your thoughts on the reading

- Engagement in the writing process (responses, drafts, peer review)

- Keeping track of your writing, to be included in a final portfolio

- Integrity and respect

Interview, in groups of three, one of your classmates and prepare to report the following information to the rest of the class:

• Name

• (Possible) major / area of concentration

• Foreign Language Knowledge
  

• Favorite children's story
  

• Farthest travels

  ---

Free Write (time limit 10 minutes): Thinking of your favorite children’s story, what do you think literature teaches? What’s the most effective way for literature to teach?

Review of L. 1

Course goals and practice

Folk, fable, and fairy tale:

- Universal qualities

- Timelessness

- Generality of place

- Teach some kind of moral

Aesop vs. La Fontaine

What does literature teach?

- Imagination

- Curiosity

- Ideas

- Interpretation / Critical Thinking

- Morals

- How to Survive

How does literature teach?

- Fear / Horror

- Being understandable

- Geared to audience

- Entertaining

Review of L. 2

Common Elements in Fables and Fairy Tales (new ones)

- Opposition: city and nature

- Protagonist takes a journey

- Mnemonic device: 3’s

Writing Assignment: What does the frame narrative of Tales from 1001 Nights say about the purpose of telling stories? How does “The Tale of King Sinbad and the Falcon” relate to the frame narrative?

Shahrazad’s Storytelling

- Saves her life and those of other women in her kingdom

- Entertains the king / distracts him from killing her

“Sinbad and the Falcon” and Shahrazad

- Teaches King beauty of forgiveness and mercy

- Teaches lessons about merciful leadership

- Falcon story: King may regret killing loyal wife

- Doctor’s story: He w/o mercy will regret it

Techniques  for writing about literature

- NO PLOT SUMMARY

- Use examples from the text to answer a specific question

- Referring to the text should clearly have an argumentative point

- Be original—class discussion should be springboard for, but not content of, writing

- Be specific

- Make notes in your text so that you can find key passages later (“What does literature teach us?”)

Good Examples of Original Critical Thinking

Shahrazad uses stories to subliminally convince her king not to kill her. She tells him of many kings who are misfortunate when they kill people in ignorance. This shows us another purpose to storytelling that many of us use even today- to save one's hide . . . Shahrazad was like someone on trial representing herself.

The purpose of telling stories in this frame narrative is for Shahrazad to distract the king from killing her and to give him all these stories to think about. They [warn] him about all the bad things that could happen if he is not a better king . . . “The Tale of Sinbad and the Falcon” relates because it is about another king who thinks he is so powerful and makes wrong choices with killing the falcon.

If the King hadn’t let her tell the stories when she first asked permission, Shahrazad would be dead, the King [without heirs], and in the future more women would have died. The lesson acquired from this is to always give people a chance, and to listen to what they have to say. This moral is similar to that of “The Tale of King Sinbad and the Falcon” because if King Sinbad had had some patience and “listened” to the Falcon, he would have discovered the bird’s intent and surely not killed it. We must always give other people a chance, allow them an explanation for their actions, and not act [in haste].

The falcon in this story represented Shahrazad in a way because Shahrazad was trying to stop the King from killing all the innocent women including her, which would eventually cause him great sorrow.

Shahrazad’s purpose of telling this story to the King was to teach him leadership skills, to teach him he could trust again, and [that] killing is not always the answer.

If she [were] telling a story the King would be less likely to kill her because he would want to hear the end of the story.

Strategies for writing assignments:

- Narrow down the question in your own words

- Ex:

• Why does Shahrazad have to tell tales in the first place?

• What specific moral lesson does “The Tale of Sinbad and the Falcon” relate?

• Who or what does the falcon represent?

- Look back at your notes: What pertinent passages are underlined?

Review of L. 3

Student Questions:

1. Why is the story set in China?
2. In what ways does this version differ from Disney’s and why? Why is there an emphasis on ‘wishing’ in the Disney version?
3. Why does he put so much trust in the Moor?
4. Why does the Vizier have so much power over the Sultan’s choices?
5. When Aladdin gets something from the jinnee, does someone else lose something?
6. Why did Aladdin put a sword between himself and the princess?
7. The Moor is referred to as an “evil sorcerer” (175). What kind of cultural conflict does this represent?
8. What is the moral of this story? What does Aladdin learn from his adventure with the Moor?
9. Will there be any consequences for Aladdin abusing the power of the lamp?
10. How does the element of greed play a role in the story?
11. How does wealth change the dynamic between the characters?

Synthesis of Discussion

- Merchants’ role in spreading tales, becoming central figures in them: Silk Road
- Disney vs. 1001: Reflections of audience beliefs and values
- Morals: greed, cleverness/trickery, trust/distrust, respect for women
- Symbol of the lamp: understated wealth, enlightenment
- Joseph Campbell, Rite of Maturation and the typical form of myth (teenager--no father, uncle, journey, boon, and rebirth)

Myth as a Ritual of Maturation (Joseph Campbell)

- A young man leaves his home, which is now destroyed because the biological father is dead

- A substitute father figure may exist (uncle)

- As the young figure meets obstacles, he gains helpers along the way.

- A rebirth occurs

- The young figure is now ready to become a father himself—a man.

 
NB: Some definitions

dervish: Member of Muslim aescetic sect who dances and/or chants

Moor

1. A member of a Muslim people of mixed Berber and Arab descent, now living chiefly in northwest Africa.

2. One of the Muslims who invaded Spain in the 8th century and established a civilization in Andalusia that lasted until the late 15th century.

Review of L. 4

Writing as a Process

- Good writing = good editing

- Evaluation based on progress and editing

- Writing = tool for learning

Examples of Good Peer Review:

- “You are very specific in your response, but could use a little more detail in your evaluation of techniques to convey moral lessons. You could further explore different techniques that are used in other fables as well as Aladdin.”

- “You have a lot of good ideas, but you need to expand on them a little more. What is the moral? How does the story of Aladdin convey that moral?”

- “You mention that Aladdin had an attitude change, what was it? What type of foolish things did Aladdin do? (elaborate how this relates to what fables teach)”

- “I find the term ‘vehicle’ to be a unique term to describe a fable; maybe it would be helpful idea to further explain how a fable serves as a vehicle to teach generations.”

Examples of Effective Citations:

As hard as the evil sorcerer may try, he can’t seem to gain possession of the lamp. When he does, his lust for the Princess clouds his judgments and he lets his guard down. The Moor “did not know this love of hers was a snare to destroy him” and is killed (Dawood 227). Even when he had the same amount of power as Aladdin, he was still defeated.

When all seemed to have fallen into place the Moor’s evil brother is inserted into the story with the goal of seeking revenge and finding the lamp. “He cast the sand to find out where the lamp was hidden, and saw that is was in the palace and not on Aladdin’s person. At this he rejoiced exceedingly . . . ” (Dawood 217). Here we discover that if something is of great value to you perhaps one should constantly keep an eye on it or hide it in safekeeping.

Example of run-on sentence/comma splice (#1 common error):

The stories aren't meant to bore the reader, they are meant to entertain the reader.

--HOW CAN WE CORRECT THIS STYLISTIC ERROR?

Review of L. 5

1. Why does Judar keep forgiving his brothers? What does the mother’s constant forgiveness mean?

2. Why does Judar have to undress the phantom mother?

3. How does “Judar and his Brothers” relate to the frame narrative?

4. What is the significance of the numbers on page 345?

5. What is the significance of the ending?

Symbolism:

- Water: purity, innocence, cleansing

- Fisherman: tales, commoners / honest, fisher king, fertility

- Mirroring/Doppelgänger -- repetition

- Magical primary numbers

"Aladdin’s" morals

- golden rule, generosity, kindness

- caution re. Strangers, repetition

- greed 180-81, 175-76

- envy, jealousy

- cleverness, magic

-  Frame: merciful, generous king (216)

- Women: powerless, need of guidance (236)

"Judar and his Brothers:"

- Primogeniture

- Filial piety / faith

- Religious / Golden rule; sacrificial

- Brave / independent

"Judar" vs. "Aladdin" >> Happy vs. tragic end for the naïve/clever protagonist

Review of L. 6

Good use of strong verbs:

- This story shows the reader that looks may be deceiving.

“Puss in Boots”

- // Judar: division of wealth; issue of inheritance

- animals: cat ‡ noble, survivor, predator, clever

- cat // Shahrazad: has to tell tales to survive

- Cleverness ‡ rise socially

- Feudalism/rising in the ranks: pretend you’re better than the king

“The Frog Prince or Iron Heinrich”

- Theme: An implicit or recurrent idea

• Rite of maturation

• Becoming an adult

• Separation from parent

- Motif: A repeated theme

• Promise

• Animal transformation

- Symbol: Something that represents something else by association, resemblance, or convention, especially a material object used to represent something invisible

• Frog: male sexuality

• Golden ball: youth

• Iron bands: loyalty

Take a few minutes to write a couple of sentences about the theme, motif, and symbols of “The Frog Prince or Iron Heinrich,” using some of the strong verbs suggested in the last class.

Review of L. 7

Analysis vs. synthesis

Sentences:

The frog symbolizes male sexuality.
The theme of maturation is highlighted by the symbol of the golden ball.

The "deeper meaning" of fairy tales:

Lüthi

- female protagonist ‡ audience + narrators
- male protagonist ‡ “hero”
- journey: growth + maturation
- separation from community
- entertainment

Bettelheim

- polarities, dark side of humanity ‡ moral choices
- conscious / unconscious
- target children’s needs and fears: safety, losing a parent, independence, maturing, loneliness, sibling rivalry
- solutions: confidence, leadership, relativity, love

Interdisciplinary Approaches

Threshold:

- crossing over between house, civilization and forest, desert

Review L. 8

1. Essay I Topics: the Pedagogy of Fairy Tales

2. Oral vs. literate literature

‡ How do oral tales change from audience to audience?

‡ Are the sexual innuendos of ‘oral’ tales completely obscured in modern versions?

3. Angela Carter, “The Company of Wolves”

FW: Synthesize the main ideas from Warner’s essay, “Go! Be a Beast.” What is the "deeper meaning" of fairy tales for Warner? (10 min.)

Review of L. 9: Understanding Symbolism

"Cinderella," p. 39

- Pumpkin, mice, lizards: raw material, nature’s gifts
- Pumpkin = bounty of fall / transformation
- Midnight = transformation / transformation from a girl to a woman
- Slipper/foot—emphasis on slender feet in women ‡ symbolizes superficial level of story (Cinderella as hopeful aristocratic uprising)

NB: Perrault’s revisions to tale: absolutely giving
- Be skeptical of his morals—how might they please or critique an aristocratic audience?
- Nobility of character rather than of station
- Religious connotation

"Ashputtle," p. 45

- Stepmother: conflict between generations, feeling of not belonging to parents (adolescent fantasy)
- Father: neglectful, loves wife more than daughter (Oedipal/Electra complex)
- Birds: sexuality
- 47: lentils—food of the poor / select good from bad (as story is about selecting good and bad character)
- Hazel sprig: filial piety, humbleness ‡ magical properties / ex. of syncretism: The wood was used in sacred fires at Beltaine and in water divination. The nuts of the tree are associated with the wisdom of the Otherworld.
- 49: Tree gives gifts
- Pagan religions: tree center of rituals (oak, Xmas tree)
- Nature = fairy godmother
- Ashputtle’s connection to nature = closeness to a divine community
- Bloody feet = binding of feet
- Doves / eyes > Blinding of truth

"Snow White"

- childlessness: pain and witchcraft // midwife
- stepmother > teen angst
- liver and heart: symbol for centers of life
- 7 > magical #
- 62: Snow White’s domestic duties: prepare her to become a woman
- mirror: reflection of self
- red-hot shoes: allegory for walking in another’s shoes

"Rapunzel"

- childlessness: pain and witchcraft // midwife
- garden: nature, fertility > behind house (controlled power of nature)
- hair / letting down of hair = undressing, sexuality
- in tower / leaving tower: metaphor for gaining independence

GOALs for today: Leave with an introductory paragraph for Essay I; understand what distinguishes poetry as a genre (portfolios); recognize value of fairy tales for modern authors

Review of L. 11

Qualities of Good Writing

- Focus

- Intro: attention/interest, main idea/thesis/argument

- Geared to audience

- Well-defined thesis

- Good examples

- Strong ideas that support thesis

- Good organization

- Original ideas

- No mechanical errors

- Good use of vocabulary

Argumentative vs. descriptive

Sample arguments:

Bettelheim argues in “The Struggle for Meaning” that fairy tales represent young children’s fears of abandonment and give them hope for a happy ending (of marital bliss).

Max Lüthi suggests in “The Fairy-Tale Hero” that protagonists and folk tales represent the desire of the individual to reunite with the community.

In “Go! Be a Beast” Marina Warner points out that the motif of bestiality in fairy tales underlines young women’s fear and eventual acceptance of male sexuality.

Review of L. 14

1.    In what ways does the novel relate to other fairy

tales we’ve read?

•    no mother

•    journey

•    dilemma / conflict

•    #s

•    moral

•    frame

•    symbolism: fish, unbelievable magic

2.    What’s the significance of the number 11?

- Time of mother’s departure

- Primary #

- Before 12/time of transformation

- Parallel

3.    Where does Rashid find his stories?

- 17: Story Sea

- Play on words: full of steam

4.    What’s the significance of the name Butt/Buttoo?

- But, but, but—disbelief and the end of Rashid’s stories

- Egalitarianism of the fairy tale (bus driver/politician)

- To butt

- A butt

5.    Do the factories manufacturing sadness have a

deeper political meaning?

•    materialism

•    globalism

•    labor practices and pollution

6.    How does Rushdie play with languages like Spanish?

- Flexibility of language, flexibility of the world

7.    What’s the connection between the signs on the road

and the story?

- Lawless society

- Importance of life

8.    Is there a specific town or country Rushdie mocks?

-Kashmir (disputed territory between India and Pakistan)

9.    Why is Rashid referred to by the name his enemies use?

- Literally: blah

- Use of by narrator reflects:

•  Haroun’s frustrations

• Suppression of Rushdie’s writing by the Islamic world

• Weak attempt at insult

• A way to avoid repetition

• 2 identities of each person?

Editing Survey

- Majority happy w/process

- Minority: feel more effort can be made in editing

- Suggestion: Read peers’ responses carefully

- Parallel structure? Correct the following sentences:

1) He took the advantages of the jinee and applied it to useful things such as supplying food.

2) Wolves eating people and witchcraft were a strong belief at the time.

Review of L. 15

1.    Is Haroun dreaming this?

2.    What’s the symbolic meaning of the turtle- and peacock-beds?

3.    Why does the bird have the same name as the bus driver? Why is he telepathic?

4.    What do the colors symbolize?

5.    What does the Dull Lake symbolize/mean? Why do emotions affect the environment? 50

6.    What do the Water Genie’s clothes mean? 55

7.    What does the root of all stories in other stories mean? 79, 86

8.    What is the importance of animals in the story? Why the walrus?

9.    Why do the Guppees use a library system? 72, 73, 83-4, 88

10.    Why is the disconnector tool so important?

Dreamworld:

- Archetypes/Carl Jung

- Slippage between the Figurative/literal

- Like literature: everything has a common root

Haroun, Rashid, and the Genie; Buttoo and Hoopoe

- Mirroring

- Doppelgaenger

- Complementing

Literature in the Land of Gup

- Shapes the entire society

Essay II: The Politics of Haroun and the Sea of Stories

Review of L. 16

Political allegory = moral lesson told through narrative, story, and symbolism (i.e., blind figure holding scales = justice)

1. Literature and propaganda: 89, 98, 106

2. Globalism and economics: 92

3. Use of force and torture (war): 97, 100

4. Freedom of speech and censorship: 101, 118-19

5. Gender: 107

6. Shadow Warriors: 125, 131, 151, 154-55

7. Anti-monarchy

Research

- Remember if you find an article exactly about Haroun and the Sea of Stories NOT to merely mimic/repeat that author’s argument

- EXCELLENT papers will find fault with, critique, and/or counter-argue that author

- You may show where your argument intersects with that author’s points

- Preserve your own writing voice!

Review of L. 17

Novel’s arc:

- Exposition: frame narrative

- climaxes

- turning point: Haroun wishes for sun to come out (11 minute concentration)

- resolution/denouement: too quick and easy?

Narrative perspective:

- First person: Limited perspective, “I,” from one person’s point of view

- Second person: Limited perspective, occasionally “I,” with intimate knowledge of the characters b/c he or she is in the story

-  Third person: Limited or omniscient perspective, speaks mostly in the third person, not involved in the story

Haroun and Politics

- 1990/reunification/peace

- vs. caste, hierarchy, dictatorship, and monarchy

- pro democracy

Ending/anti-fairy tale

- “artificial happy endings” (208)

- ambiguous heroes (Blabbermouth, Rashid, Haroun) and ugly princesses

- utopia/dis-topia; real world/fairy tale world

Review of L. 18

Purpose of peer review

- Learn editing strategies

- Receive another reader’s point of view (audience)

- Learn to incorporate feedback

Annotation of Article

- Thesis—Be able to summarize in one sentence

- Evidence—Selective?

- Purpose—Different than yours!

- Audience—VIP: academic, east coast liberals (Mother Jones, Atlantic Monthly)?

- Intersection with your thoughts

Incorporating Research into Paper

- Give full title of author and article (not necessarily journal, unless it’s a popular magazine) the first time you cite it

- Clearly distinguish between your interpretation and [Teverson’s] interpretations

- In text: Rushdie "use[s] literary allegory to respond to [his] detractors" (Teverson 446).

- Note use of square parenthesis for your manipulation of verb and pronoun agreement

Works Cited—at the end of the Document

Works Cited

Rushdie, Salman. Haroun and the Sea of Stories. New York: Penguin, 1990.

Teverson, Andrew S. “Fairy Tale Politics: Free Speech and Multiculturalism in Haroun and the Sea of Stories.” Twentieth Century Literature 47.4 (Winter 2001): 444-466.

Review of L. 22

Keywords:

- labyrinth

- threshold

- parable: master/teacher, question/answer

- fable: animals

Synthesis of Discussion:

- Authority / bureaucracy / higher power?

- In Metamorphosis: boss and father

- “the incomprehensible is incomprehensible”

- Hardworking / indefinite bugs

Free-write/Warm-up Question: What moral lesson, if any, does “The Metamorphosis” teach? (10 min.)

Review of L. 25

Portfolio Assignment

Genre = type, category (of literature)

- novel

- poem

- short story

- novella

- drama

Drama, Play, Theater, and Performance

Terms for Ibsen:

- Naturalism/Realism

- Darwin/inheritance

- Marxism and workers’ rights

- Fourth wall

Tragedy

- “Hero”

- Tragic flaw/error (hamartia)

- Crisis = confrontation with tragic flaw

- Death of loved ones

- Sympathy

Review of L. 26

Main points about Ibsen:

- Known as the father of Naturalism and modern drama

- Ambiguous relationship to feminism

- A Doll’s House (or, A Doll Home) is based on Laura Kieler’s own story, which she sent to Ibsen

Synthesis of Discussion:

- Nora is paradoxical, playing to and rebelling against stereotypes of the nineteenth century woman.

- The setting of the play is realistic, signifies the Helmers’ financial situation, and perhaps symbolizes Nora’s confinement from the outside world.

- Disguise, forgery, and counterfeiting have overt and symbolic meaning in the play.

Free Write: Why is this play titled “A Doll’s House”? (10 minutes)

Review of Course Goals

1) Understand the techniques for reading, analyzing, and writing about literature

- Close reading

- Multiple reading(s)

- Literary elements: symbols, repetitions/motifs, and word choice

- Fairy/folk tale root of all stories: maturation, journey, and transformation

- Genre: Short story, frame narrative, poetry, novel, novella, and drama

2) Recognize the importance of cross-cultural critique for appreciating literature’s role in reflecting the human condition

- Culturally specific practices

- Arabic tradition: 1001 Nights, Haroun and the Sea of Stories

- Western tradition: Folk and Fairy Tales, The Metamorphosis, A Doll’s House

3) Develop writing skills relevant to writing assignments across disciplines: writing as a process, citation, research, and an independent writer’s voice

- Giving credit for others’ work/research = academic writing style

- Writing as a process: Good writing begins with good editing

4) Prepare students to answer the question: “What does literature teach us?”

- Summarize from portfolio work, first in a partner setting and then in class discussion

Review of A Doll's House

Family Tragedies

- Nora: Father dies; she leaves family

- Torvald Helmer: Illness / estrangement from wife

- Rank: Suffers from father’s syphilis and then dies as a result

- Krogstad: Wife died / seeking to overcome unnamed “indiscretion” to help sons’ standing

- Christine Linde: Sick mother and responsible for brothers / marries for money / husband dies alongside loveless marriage

- Anne Marie: Abandoned illegitimate daughter

Parenthood

- Compromise

- Sacrifice

- Obligation

- Lack of feeling between mother and father, parent and child

Outside the stage

- Nora’s village

- Letterbox

- Bank

- Rank, Linde, and Krogstad’s houses/apartments

- Orphanages

- Italy / Capri

- Stenborg’s apartment

- Fjords

A Doll's House Summary Question:

How would you characterize each figure? What motivates each character?