Tuesday, March 28, 2017

Reading Notes: Eskimo Folk Tales, Part B


I don’t like the gory stories. Killing and blood don’t interest me as far as stories go. The names are still distracting for me, but I do recognize that this is only a cultural thing. I try not to let it interfere with my impression of the story. I did like the justice found in some stories like the one that ends with the fact that the man who kills is punished in the end. I am very fond of justice, but I don’t necessarily want to read about people killing other people just to find justice in the end. Again, I see the value in teaching about not killing nor lying, but I hate that the woman who lied got killed for her punishment. Why kill someone in the story as a punishment if killing is in fact something we are trying to teach is bad? I still sometimes get uncomfortable with the idea of animals marrying humans. I get that it is for the sake of teaching a lesson or entertainment, but it does not make for a great story in my opinion. I definitely want to emulate these stories in that I want my stories to also teach valuable lessons, but I want to leave out the gory details. I also don’t like the way women are portrayed in these stories. They are portrayed as weak almost and needing a man’s help for their rescue. I do not get the vibe that they are being revered in these stories, which of course, I would prefer they were. These stories seemed to be darker than the ones before. I like more positive, happy stories! Perhaps I can rewrite one of these in a more positive light! I liked that the stories included lots of family interactions such as father/son and brother/sister. I think family stories are great because most people can relate to them on some level.
Inuit Family, online source

Bibliography: Eskimo Folk Tales by Knud Rasmussen, link to online source

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