Styles

I would like to focus on the topic of Gods and Goddesses of the Indian culture. I found two stories that I am considering. The first one is called "A Mountain on a Finger." What drew me to this story was the title. It reminded me of the God Atlas from the Greek and Roman Mythology. Instead the mountain is the world.  The Second one is called "Ganesh."

Bibliography
"A Mountain on a Finger". Website: Indian Mythological Stories.

"Ganesh". Website: Indian Mythological Stories.

(Ganesh)

Brainstorming Styles
    I know that I want to use the third-person storyteller and first-person style. Some possible styles I am considering are an Insider or paparazzi style, a diary entry style, a therapist/patient style, and a script style.
     Last semester in the Mythology Folklore course, I did an insider/ paparazzi style and really enjoyed it doing it. I enjoyed it so much I am considering doing it again for this particular course -- Epics of India. Since my topic is Gods and Goddess I thought it would be fun to characterize the Gods and Goddesses as celebrities and the humans as the "regular people." The Insider would be a magazine that exposes the Gods and Goddesses to the mortals. This would be in the third-person storybook style.
    The second style I am thinking about is a diary entry style. This would be in the first person of the Gods and Goddesses. By doing it in a diary entry format allows the reader to know what is going through the God or Goddess's head. What is he/she thinking about. I thought that this would entertaining and interesting for the reader. Normally, we just read about Gods and Goddesses. We don't know who they truly are or what emotions are going through them.
    I thought that doing the storybook in a therapist/patient kind of style would be interesting. In this kind of format there would two characters: the therapist and the patient, who will either be a God or Goddess. The therapist will ask the questions and the God or Goddess will answer in a kind of anecdote style.
    The final style that I am considering is a script style. In this kind of format the storybook will solely be dialogue -- like a movie or television show script. I just thought this would be entertaining and fun for the reader. I believe that his kind of style will make the reader feel like he is actually present during the story. I believe this will help maintain the readers interest and focus.
     

    




 

Storytelling for Week 3: Sugriva and Vali

Sugriva and Vali  

   There once was two best friends named Vali and Sugriva. Vali and Sugriva have known each other since they were children. They did everything together – played the same sports and had the same interests. As they grew their friendship only grew stronger.
    Vali was heir to the thrown and so when his father died he became the ruler of his country. Sugriva was always a little jealous of Vali but that did not hinder him from being proud of Vali and congratulating him. Sugriva was Vali’s right hand man and for Sugriva that was good enough.
    The country was at war and so being king Vali had to go into battle and lead his people. Vali fought well for a time but after a few months of battle the enemy got the best of him and him and soldiers surrounded. The enemy killed everybody at that battle or that was what they thought. Vali was actually the only one that survived the battle but no one was aware of this. The enemy had him as a prisoner of war.
     Contrary to the truth, word reached Sugriva that Vali was killed in battle. Sugriva was devastated by the news. He mourned for his friend Vali for days. So because the people believed that Vali had been killed in battle they decided to appoint Sugriva as king. He was the second hand man to Vali so it only made sense to. Sugriva dutifully accepted the appointment.
    For years, Sugriva ruled and he was a good king. The people loved him for he brought an end to the war and brought wealth to the kingdom. Vali was forgotten.
    Seven years had passed and Vali is finally able to escape from the enemies. His time as a prisoner of war was horrible. They tortured and humiliated him. Every day during his imprisonment he prayed that his friend Sugriva would save him but as the years progressed Vali gave up. He started to go crazy and formulate absurd ideas. For instance, he believed that it was Sugriva that put him in this prison. He began believing that Sugriva struck up a deal with the enemy to get rid of him so Sugriva could be king. Vali vowed that he would escape from his imprisonment avenge himself. His plan was to steal Sugriva’s wife.
    Upon arriving at Sugriva’s palace, Vali approached Sugriva. Sugriva did not recognize him. Vali introduced himself and then angrily accused him of leaving him in the enemies’ hands to die. Sugriva tried to explain himself, saying that he truly thought that he had died but Vali would not listen. Instead Vali grabbed Sugriva and held a knife to him, telling him that he was going to kill him. Sugriva started crying. Seeing Sugriva cry woke Vali up and made him look around him. All over the palace were paintings and memorials of himself. This made Vali realize that Sugriva truly did care about him because then why would he have all of these decorations up. Vali embraced Sugriva and asked for Sugriva’s forgiveness to which Sugriva replied that he would only accept if Vali would accepts his forgiveness.

(Vali and Sugriva)

Author’s Note:
This story is loosely based on “Sugriva’s Story.” I changed it to be more focused on friendship and I also wanted it to have a happier ending. I did not include Sugriva’s wife because I wanted the story to just focus on Vali and Sugriva and how they were able to sustain their friendship despite the incredible hardhips.

"Sugriva's Story" from Ramayana (1913). Public Domain Edition Ramayana

Reading Diary B

    The second portion of this story was formatted a little different than the first part. For instance the breaks between the paragraphs were not as short. The paragraphs were longer. This took me by surprise because I expected the second portion of the story to look similar to the first part.
    Despite the differences between the two, I still really enjoyed the second portion of the story. Some of the chapters that I really enjoyed was Ravana's Death and Mandodari's Lament. In spite of the depressing topic these chapters cover -- death. I though it was really interesting it kind of marked the beginning of Rama's reign. 
     In "Ravana's Death" the story begins with Rama and Ravana fighting. Soon enough Rama defeats Ravana and becomes the king of Lanka. The chapter ends with a rhyming poem. I thought it was different to include a poem -- different but enjoyable. The poem was very detailed. Its choice of words allowed me to imagine the setting. It really created the atmosphere.
    Unlike Ravana, in "Mandodari's Lament" not everyone was too happy about the death of Ravana. For instance Ravana's cheif wife Mandodari was devastated. Reading this chapter I could just tell how devastated Mandodari is based on what she says. For instance, she goes on saying that happy days are done. This suggest that she has no hope of getting over Ravana.
    Another thing that enjoyed about this reading was the pictures. The pictures are always very colorful and they are always very detailed. This really helps me as a reader to imagine the setting and the  atmosphere. For instance in the picture of Ravana's death below, from just looking at it I can tell that the atmosphere is depressing. I can tell because of the very detailed expression of the people in the picture.

(Ravana fallen)

Reading Diary A: Public Domain Ramayana

   I really enjoyed this section of the reading. Some of my favorite chapters or stories was Sugriva and Hanuman and Sugriva's Story. In the "Sugriva and Hanuman," Hanuman is introduced. He is introduced as Sugriva's helper. In this first chapter they do not say much about Sugriva and his background until the second chapter. I liked how it was formatted like that. It kind of leaves the audience guessing and wanting to read more.
   In the second story "Sugriva's Story," the backstory of Sugriva is revealed. It begins with telling a tale about the source of Sugriva's and his brother's animosity for each other. Apparently it was one big misunderstanding. Sugriva's brother Vali thought that Sugriva tried to kill him so that he may rule over his people but that was not really the case at all. Sugriva tried to explain himself but Vali would not listen. To get back at Sugriva, Vali stole his wife.
    It was not until Vali's Death that Sugriva finally overcame Vali. Sugriva and Vali had a great battle. Toward the end of the fight Sugriva shot an arrow toward Vali and got him. This arrow killed Vali.
    Another reason why I liked this section of reading was because of they it was formatted. The breaks in it made the story very clear and concise. I did not think it was too fluffy or had anything that unnecessary.
   I also liked the pictures that were included in this section of the reading. They were really colorful and allowed me to set the setting of the stories. It helped me imagine and put the details together.

(Rama kills Vali