Shea's Myth-Folk Blog

I think this week's readings are going to be very helpful for me, as I always feel unsure about the feedback I give to others. I typically feel rude giving constructive feedback and think I am being too critical. When I have given feedback before, I usually say something like "I like what you did at this one part..." because I do not want to be rude. The gallery, however, gave me good ideas on how to give good feedback that doesn't sound too harsh. I specifically like the idea of asking questions about parts that were unclear to me. Questions are not mean, but rather allow the author to look at the story from the reader's perspective. The first article I read was " How to Give Feedback Without Sounding Like a Jerk " by Adam Grant. This article first looks at the "compliment sandwich" style of giving feedback: give a praise, give the criticism, then finish with more praise. Grant examines why this often does not work for the person receiving ...

One topic I am interested in doing my project on is Greek Constellations. I think it would be interesting to tell the stories behind the people/animals that are depicted in the formations. I could just tell the story of what the constellation depicts, tell the story of how it became a constellation, or tell the story of the constellation in modern times watching the world below. The first (former) constellation I think would be fun to write about is Argo Navis . Although it has now been divided into three separate constellations, it once depicted the ship which Jason sailed in search of the Golden Fleece. I would like to tell the story of Jason's journey and the trip the boat sailed. The second constellation I could tell the story behind is Andromeda , who was chained to a rock as a sacrifice to a sea monster. This constellation is one of 88 that remains as a modern constellation. The third story I would like to tell is of the constellation  Pegasus . The constellation depi...

I walked around the palace gardens, blissfully taking in the bright sun, light breeze, and soft grass. But my favorite part of the gardens has always been the abundance of flowers in it. Every day, I came out and picked a bouquet from the various stems and bushes of tulips, roses, daisies, petunias, lilies, and carnations. Today,  I walked around on my daily walk selecting the most beautiful flowers I could find. As I reached the center of the garden, I came upon a single orchid. I pass by this flower every day, but have strict orders from my father-in-law that I must never touch this flower. I never questioned him, but rather just admired the flower's beauty every time I walked past. As I selected a red rose, the finishing touch for today's bouquet, I was approached by one of the palace workers. He came up and said," Princess, why is the orchid not a part of your bouquet? I see you admire it every day, and yet you never pick it." I replied, "The king has tol...

The stories "They Die a First Time" and "Suicide and the Salvation" take place after Adam and Eve have eaten the fruit in the garden and have been punished by God. Both stories are written from a third person perspective. In my story, I could write from one the character's perspectives. In the stories, it is difficult to understand what Adam and Eve are thinking when it comes to their actions; telling a story from their perspective would be give some insight into why they do what they do. Telling the story from God's perspective would also be interesting. Like the reader, God watches Adam and Eve, but telling the story from his point of view might make the audience feel closer to the story. There are many recurring themes throughout these two stories. The first that stood out to me was death. There are several instances in which Adam and Eve die, come close to dying, look like they are dying, or think they are dying. The fear of dying is also very preva...

In the story of the fall of Adam and Eve, a serpent asks Eve why she has not eaten from the garden of Eden, to which she replies that God has ordered her not to or she will die. The serpent tells her that God does not want her to eat the fruit because it will give her knowledge and wisdom. Eve knows the fruit looks good, and eats it with her husband, Adam. After they eat it, their eyes are opened to their surrounding and they become self aware. God returns to the garden to find Adam and Eve hiding in embarrassment of their nudity and he realized they have eaten the fruit. God curses the serpent by making it a lowly animal and creating a divide between it and humans, woman by giving her a painful pregnancy and having her husband rule over her, and man by making it difficult for him to live from the land until his death. The serpent and the forbidden fruit have become popular symbols. The serpent has come to represent deception, evil, etc. The fruit has come to represent sin, desire, ...