Storybook Topics

Aboriginal Myth:

            Truthfully, I had never had any interest in visiting Australia until about six months ago. When considering places to study abroad, the idea of Australia’s spiders, snakes, and sharks scared me much more than Italy’s mountains of gelato. However, after a conversation with a Sydney resident, I was forced to reevaluate my opinions. Although Australia is a young country, its land is home to world’s most ancient culture. Aboriginal history is a field that is just beginning to receive the cultural and academic attention that it deserves, much like Native American history. However, unlike some Native American folklore that I learned growing up, I know absolutely nothing about these stories that have been similarly passed down for generations. I would love to find a storytelling method to incorporate these myths! Plus, since I am visiting Australia over spring break, it would be a great opportunity to learn about this culture both first-hand and through writing.

Research so far:

            I searched on the Internet Sacred Texts Archive and found Australian Legendary Tales by K. Langloh Parker in 1897. I am already intrigued by both the fact that the author is a woman (the K stands for Katie!) and that she took the time to research Aboriginal culture when most scholarship saw it as worthless. However, I am sure that there will still be some inherent societal bias in the writing as a reflection of the time that it was written. Most of the stories seem to involve animals or natural phenomena. I wonder if these stories will be more like explanations of origins or tales for moral lessons!

Uluru, sometimes called Ayers Rock, is sacred to Aboriginal Australians.
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Inferno/Paradiso:

            During my time studying abroad in Italy, I was fascinated with the artwork that depicted scenes from Dante Alighieri’s “Divine Comedy.” The most depicted section was undeniably “Inferno,” where Dante is led through Hell by the Roman poet Virgil. The poem is a comedy in the strictest sense; it ends happily in Heaven. However, there is nothing happy or funny about the circles of Hell described! During his journey through the nine circles, Dante learns about and meets people including fortune tellers, an adulterous couple, and even Popes! I think it could be extremely interesting to tell these people’s stories differently. What did they do to deserve Inferno? What if their story had been different and led them to Paradiso instead?

Research so far:

            I have read through both the class unit and the Wikipedia article on Dante’s “Inferno.” The poem was written at a really interesting time historically in Italy when both classical Rome and medieval Christianity had large influence on everyday life. Contemporary readers would have been familiar with the poem’s characters from both traditions. It was composed from Dante’s own contemplations, but also as a heavy moral warning about the fate of those who do not follow Christ. Some of the characters’ stories are well-known from history (Caesar, Cleopatra, etc.), but others are not at all fleshed out. It would be really interesting to get to write by both expanding the existing details and creating a whole new reality!

Painting inspired by "Inferno" by William Blake
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Anahita, Actually:

            I actually learned about Anahita, the Persian goddess of water, fertility, and, in some cases, love, from a Buzzfeed quiz! I have always been interested in Middle-Eastern culture, and so I immediately jumped into research over her mythology. In a class that I took called Arabic Culture through Modern Fiction, we examined texts that centered on subjects ranging from war to family. A few novels specifically touched on the balance between family, romance, and religion – all different forms of love! So, perhaps in a nod to one of my favorite movies, Love Actually, the goddess be a vehicle for showing all of the different forms that love takes! I can see this working through her own mythology or with her as a storytelling voice.

Research so far:

            Our Middle-Eastern unit has stories in both Persian Tales and Arabian Nights that could be great bases for Anahita as a story teller. On Wikipedia, there is a lot of great information about those who worshipped her in the Arabian Peninsula and Asia Minor. Perhaps the lives of her followers could work as a frame for the stories being told about Anahita!

Statue of Anahita on display at the British Museum
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Adam and Eve:

            Last semester in Indian Epics, my storybook combined mythological stories from several traditions. I think that the story of Adam and Eve could be an interesting twist on the same concept! Adam and Eve’s story of creation has elements that are present in myriad cultural origin stories. I think that it could be interesting to work off of these similarities to create a new collection of stories! I was taught the story of Adam and Eve at a very young age; however, I am just beginning to learn similar stories in traditions from all over the world!

Research so far:

            Norse Mythology also references an initial human couple. They are named Ask and Embla. Like Adam and Eve, they live in a “garden!” Sumerian creation myths include many similarities including the consumption of forbidden fruit and a subsequent curse. Also, the Epic of Gilgamesh features a section wherein the main character seeks out a magical plant (in this case seaweed!). Like in Adam and Eve’s story, the serpent is the antagonist, but in this story, the serpent steals the magic seaweed and deprives Gilgamesh of eternal life.

Adam and Eve as depicted by Michelangelo on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

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