Jake's Mythology

In Chapter 11, we see a further development of some of the themes from Chapter 10. Now that their imaginary dinner is over, Wendy tells the whole crew a story about "the Darling family." She speaks of their dog and their loving parents. However, one day, the young children leave home. They can depend on their mother's unconditional love, though, and find the house open upon their return many years later. Peter disagrees about this being a quality of a mother's love, a feeling which frightens Wendy. She then decides that she and the boys must return home! As I mentioned before, I could certainly use tones from this scene in order to pit Peter against Wendy and her brothers. This would continue their realization of Peter's corruption, since they suddenly have a desire to return home and Peter wants them to stay. Though this happens, I am also trying to create a situation in which Peter comes to grips with his own corruption and has a change of heart before he ge...

One day, a man named Anansi was walking down the street. He could hardly focus on each consecutive step because he was so hungry. He had lost his job and was supposed to be supporting his family. He had a wife and two young sons. In the past, they had just gotten by. But now, he didn't even know how they were going to find food. It had already been several days since their last meal, and the lack of nutrition was starting to affect them. Then, everything changed. As Anansi walked down the same familiar alley on the way back to his house, a side door opened. He had never noticed it before. From inside the building, a golden shopping cart slowly edged to the street. He heard a voice. "Take the cart, Anansi. I'm here to help. Any time you need food, bring this cart back, and it shall be filled. Take care of your family, Anansi." He couldn't believe his luck! He held the cart by the handles, closed his eyes, and wished for his favorite foods... Boom! He...

How the Tortoise Got Its Shell I like this story in that it provides an explanation for something that we see today! The story starts out with a king throwing a huge festival, and he needs someone to go fetch some wine for the party. He sends his friend, tortoise, to go get wine from the palm fields of a chicken. First, the tortoise has to fight the chicken in order to access the palm trees and the wine, and he ultimately wins. However, he drinks a lot of the wine before beginning his journey back home. This ends up being a fatal mistake! By the time he gets back to where the king is throwing the festival, the gates are closed and they assume that everyone is already inside. At this point, the tortoise gets trapped outside of the gates for nearly two months, and he dies. Once the gates are opened back up, they discover him underneath a mound of dirt. Through magical medicine, they are able to revive him, but unfortunately, the ceramic pot had molded to his back. This is why tortoi...

Thunder and Anansi This one was one of my favorites of the unit, and perhaps of the semester thus far. This story was not only entertaining, but had several great themes! Anansi suffers from hunger, and by a fortunate sequence of events, ends up receiving a magical pot that makes him any food that he wishes. Though he contemplates sharing the food with his family, Anansi takes a selfish turn and decides to keep the pot for himself. One day, his family discovers the pot, but they manage to lose it while providing meals. When Anansi discovers that the pot is missing, he returns to the original location in hopes of receiving another magical gift. Instead of more favor, he receives a stick that beats him, presumably because of his selfishness! I appreciate the themes in this story. First, we see a subtle theme that a father should provide for his family. However, another message proves even more apparent - that being the selfishness of Anansi. It originally serves him well, but event...