Looking Back

In my British Literature class, I did a post where I looked at the influence map we made at the beginning go the semester, and thought about what images I would change from what I learned over the semester. That post was helpful for in me reflecting on the semester, and in getting ready for finals, so I'm going to do it for this class too.

On my first influence map for this class, I had a lot of images that referred to types of magic ideas and beliefs like alchemy or voodoo. I had images from movies like The Witches and Harry Potter, and The Wizard of Oz, which showed that many of my ideas of magic came from popular entertainment. Through the semester, I have found that some of my ideas of magic have changed.

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On my first influence map, I included an image of the Disney version of Sword in the Stone. I would still include an image of Merlin on my map, but what I've learned over the semester is that Merlin is not just a ridiculous old man, he is a character that has evolved and changed over time. I've learned that there are multiple versions of Merlin, and while the version from The Once and Future King is the version that closely matches my idea of Merlin, other stories have given Merlin different powers, which influences the way he lives his life. In Geoffrey of Monmouth, Merlin has the power to see the future,which causes him to eventually leave civilization and move to the woods. In the Prose of Merlin, Merlin is able to see the past and the future because his father is a demon and he inherited his powers and God gave him the power to see the future. In the Sword in the Stone, his magical powers included talking to animals. In the BBC Merlin, the character is able to move objects with his mind, and is young instead of old. Merlin would be included in my map because his character and survived since at least 1150 AD. His magic has evolved, and is still a major influence in how we view a magical person. When thinking of one I still think of an old man with a cloak and hat with white beard. Merlin would be necessary to keep on my map because he does represent a magical person.

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Another image that I knew about, but never considered for my first map, was the history of witch trials. The extent of the knowledge I had for witch trials came from Salem without even thinking about Europe. I learned from the Witchcraft in Europe text about religious views, and how they influenced the view of magic. When we looked at text like The Hammer of the Witches there were intense misogynistic views that would make claims about traits that meant a woman was a witch, but then also noted that if the woman could do the opposite of the trait they could still be a witch. It was the ultimate "damned if you do, damned if you don't" scenario. I also found this text to be interesting because it described the trials for witches, where I was able to draw parallels from our own court systems. It was scary because instead of our "innocent until proven guilty system", they relied on a "guilty until proven innocent". I feel this would need to be included on my map because it refers to the history of magic and witchcraft, and carries a lot of importance in understanding how views of magic have changed.

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On my original influence map, I included an image of a Grimm's Fairy Tales book cover and an image of "Hansel and Gretel". If I were to redo this assignment I would include a picture of "Cinderella" similar to this. I think I tend to forget about the magical element of "Cinderella". In the tale "Cinderella" talk to animals and nature, and in turn they support her in her goals, helping her to eventually marrying the Prince. The other aspect of Grimm Fairy Tales that is important to note, is the dark tone of the tales like the stepsisters cutting off their toes and heels. It questions who the true audience of these tales were suppose to be? If they were for older people, how come we have gotten to the point where we view the stories as innocently recreational? and Why have they bee censored?

The last image I would include that I hadn't is Lord of the Rings. This text included many different ideas of magic by using different characters like hobbits, elves, wizards, dwarves, and men, and seeing how these character use magic. This text goes beyond magic, but includes political views through the different races, and also focuses on a magical element. Ultimately, this text showed how magic was used in a battle between good and evil, and the difficulty to es on a magical element. Ultimately, this text showed how magic was used in a battle between goodd evil, and the difficulty to not cross that line.



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