Famous Last Words Week 4: Drowning in Applications

I'm sad to say that this is the first week that I've missed a Storytelling post. My favorite part of this class is my ability to have an outlet for writing, and I've loved taking the opportunity to challenge myself to retell stories in new styles and interpretations.

I'm not one to make excuses for myself, but I know why I dropped the ball. To begin, let me offer a metaphor to describe my life at college right now.

Imagine that you're a newly hired dog walker. Eager to get started, you head over to pick up your first client's dog. However, you discover that it's not just one dog. It's fifteen to be exact, and they're all hyperactive miniature dachshunds. (Trust me, I speak from experience when it comes to the dachshunds.) While none of them could over take you alone, together they constitute unpredictable collection of canines seeking to pull you every which way.

A tame version of my metaphorical college career at the moment. Wikipedia Commons.

That about sums it up for me. I don't mean to complain, but these past few weeks haven't hesitated to add helpings to my plate. A few secondary applications for medical school flew into my mailbox. The university has nominated me to apply for both the Rhodes and Marshall Scholarships. The deadline for my Fulbright grant proposal has completely hit me by surprise. My independent study awaits its paperwork to be filled out.

There is light at the end of the tunnel, however. The scholarship applications require that everything comes in by the end of September, and medical school secondaries can't come in forever. I look forward to having more time to read and play accordion. I'm eager to break in my hammock during one of Oklahoma's rare, perfect autumn days. The key is too relax and take things one day at a time. For now, I'm lucky to have friends in my life who keep me sane and my priorities in check.

Here's to flying by the seat of my pants! Cin cin! 

Essay Week 4: Storytelling as Time Capsule for Language

I never met my dad's father, but from what I hear, my late grandfather had a gift for oration that captivated his audiences. He knew how to weave words whether it came to congratulatory speeches or eulogies. Even thought I never met Jack, I find myself wanting to live up to that Morgan talent.

My journalist father seems to share his dad's ability to craft a tale. Through his blog, Dad has given life to stories that don't make it to the front page. He's written on my grandmother's feverish obsession with pecans. He's touted our cat's impressive 1-9 record when it comes to the litter box. He's marked the poignant occasion in which his mom sold his childhood home a couple of weeks ago.

I bring this up because storytelling hones the craft of speaking, and in the process, stories become heritable units of language. Just as we inherit our genes from our parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, etc., stories are passed down from generation to generation and contain within them themes, diction, syntax and pronunciation.

Italian storytelling for the ages. Wikipedia Commons.

This pattern of inheritance, however, is not limited to stories within families. Dante and Boccaccio come to mind. When Italy became a nation, a standard language was born-- a language that only two percent of the population spoke at the time. It was based on Tuscan Italian--that is, the Italian of Dante and Boccaccio. What strikes me most as a student of Italian is my ability to make sense of the stories without much difficulty. The idea that I'm able to connect with a form of a language that was spoken seven hundred years ago both astounds and humbles me. In my opinion, it speaks to the ability of stories and literature to anchor languages in a world that's drawn toward colloquialisms and slang such as YOLO and "getting turnt up."

Week 4 Reading Diary: Arabian Nights

Scheherazade: Wow, there's something so exciting about the way this Unit opens up! Scheherazade's confidence hints at her thorough cleverness, but at the same time, there's so much suspense with her life on the line. Also, the way in which she reacts makes her a very likable character right from the get-go. What bravery!

The Merchant and the Genius: I love the analogy between the merchant and Scheherazade both of whom find themselves relying on stories for their salvation! Not to mention the laying of stories in this work reminds me so much of the Decameron. 

The Hind: I'm still trying to determine what the men mean by "the third part of the merchant's punishment." Perhaps it has something to do with a reference to the proposed murder. The question of identity for the son in the form of a calf reminds me of the story of Io in the Ovid Unit I read. Both that story and this one involve the eventual realization on the parent's part that the animal is his daughter, in the case of Io, or son, in the case of the old man's story.

The Two Black Dogs: Once again, we have another example of metamorphosis, so it looks like I choose a good unit with which to follow the Ovid units. A trend I'm noticing is that metamorphosis acts as a compromise between death and freedom for the wrongdoers in these stories.

The Greek King and the Physician Douban: Some of these stories feel way too familiar, and I'm getting a strong feeling that I've read versions of these in the Decameron. Speaking of which, I'm impressed with the amount of narrative layering that's going on in Arabian Nights. I also appreciate the clever way in which revenge is taken by the physician. It communicates a type of "eye for an eye" justice.

Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp: The scene in which Aladdin has the genie lock the groom outside reminds me of the story of Rinieri and Elena in the Decameron which a woman tricks a suitor and forces him to remain outside in the bitter cold to near death. In my opinion, the end of the tale of Aladdin seems to resolve too easily thanks to the genie, but I guess that's the perk of finding the lamp.