Modern Day Fairy Tales

A lot of these fairy tales that I have read remind me of modern day cartoon shows. For example, after I read The Cat and the Mouse Set Up House it instantly reminded me of the cartoon show Tom and Jerry. Just like the cat in the fairy tale, the cat (Tom) in this cartoon show is constantly trying to eat the mouse, which is basically what happens in the story in the end. The cat was very sneaky and lied to the mouse about the food they stored up for the winter and in the end when the mouse figured it out, the cat ate the mouse too. I find it interesting because shows like these that are very popular now have parallels with these fairy tales so maybe its possible the creators based the show off these fairy tales and changed somethings to make it more appealing for the audience like how Tom and Jerry is a slapstick comedy. Even though the show doesn't have any dialogue between the cat and the mouse like it did in story, it forces you to imagine what the characters are thinking and what they would say if they could talk.

Source: http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/tom-and-jerry/images/2507494/title/tom-jerry-wallpaper-wallpaper

Some other fairy tales that I read like The Devil with the Three Golden Hairs and Godfather Death (and this is sort of a stretch but it) reminds me of the cartoon show The Grimm Adventures of Billy and Mandy. Their story lines aren't exactly the same but to me this show had a close resemblance to these fairy tales. Again, since it does have some similarities it is possible that this show was based of the fairy tales like these. These fairy tales have a like a "what is the moral of the story" thing and so does the show to an extent I guess. But, this cartoon show incorporates powers from the grim reaper (from a higher being) and the characters Billy and Mandy controls the Grim Reaper.       

Source: http://www.kidsgamesheroes.com/tags/billy-and-mandy

I just think a lot of cartoon shows that have become sort of main stream drew inspiration from fairy tales like the ones we have read in the Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm. 

   

Grimm's Fairy Tales

It’s really shocking to read about the fairy tales that I sort of have some knowledge to, from a totally different perspective. A much more sad and gruesome perspective I might add. I honestly didn't even know these stories existed in this form and I get why the tales were toned down for Disney. Obviously, you wouldn't want your five year old kid hearing about how the evil stepmother of Cinderella told her own two daughters to “…cut a bit off [their] heel…”and to “cut off [their] big toe” just to become the next princess. Also, portraying doves pecking people’s eyes out at Cinderella’s wedding in a Disney movie would NOT be acceptable by American culture.

Source: http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/cinderella/images/18561379/title/stepsisters-photo

The gruesomeness continues with Rapunzel when the prince’s eyes were poked out by thorns when he fell from the tower, when the hunter cuts open the belly of the wolf in Little Red Riding Hood to save them, and also when the witch queen stabbed Snow White to death with a poisoned combed on the head. Not to mention boiling kids up in a pot and eating them in the tale of Hansel and Gretel, which reminds me of it relating back to Mid-evil witches eating dead babies. So I can see there are some parallels there. But it's very interesting how these fairy tales can have multiple "moral of the stories" and themes and how it's not clear but is open to interpretation.  

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_(Snow_White)

It is also interesting to see that in these stories and fairy tales that have been so popular, how all of the main characters are female that act as the protagonist and how a witch is the antagonist (for the most part). Maybe this is because the authors that wrote these stories grew up in a society that viewed witches as evil creatures. Why else would they cast the witches as the "bad guys"? It's just interesting to see how all the male protagonist stories aren't so popular vs the female protagonists. Maybe it's because some of the tales don't have happy endings like Godfather Death and people like seeing a story end on a good note rather than a bad one.   

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godfather_Death

All this talk about magic and mysticism.

When we were given the assignment to read about Hildegard von Bingen and Catherine of Sienna and about mysticism, I did't even know know what that meant. So, of course I looked it up on Merriam-Webster dictionary and it said mysticism is "a religious practice based on the belief that knowledge of spiritual truth can be gained by praying or thinking deeply" and it also said, "the belief that direct knowledge of God, spiritual truth or ultimate reality can be attained through subjective experience (as intuition or insight)". Thank you to http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mysticism. 

Source: http://radix24.deviantart.com/art/Strange-lights-in-the-sky-4400158

Okay so do you guys believe that someone who prays so deeply can really understand the knowledge of God? I mean do you really believe that this could possibly happen? I thought that God was suppose to be infinitely powerful and have infinite amounts of knowledge and from the religious perspective God is so holy that a mere human being can not see him, can not touch him, let alone for a mere human to actually understand the knowledge of God is mind boggling. I would think that if you were to attain the direct knowledge of God you would just burst into tiny million pieces because God's knowledge is infinite. It makes me question if these people were like crazy or what? I dunno...

Source: http://www.vasc.org/rental/bday.html

This also sort of reminds me of the class discussion we had a while back when our classmates asked the question "could magic be an illusion?" From what I have actually seen about magic, which is not a lot, I think so. I mean, the rabbit coming out of a hat, the deck of cards tricks, making things disappear they are all just like mind tricks. There's a reason why a magician says oh I don't reveal my trick secrets because its just a trick. It's not like they have supernatural powers. What do you think? 

Hildegard von Bingen vs. Catherine of Sienna

I feel like during Hildegard's time she could have been viewed more as a witch rather than a saint in comparison to Catherine and her time. Hildegard does go on in great detail about the female sex and what-not and I agree that things like this was more connected to being a witch since our books always say witches have sex with the devil. So it makes sense that she got this information from the devil. During Hildegard's time it was easier to directly link her with witchcraft because if you are suppose to be holy and be like on God's side I would think that she would be more like Catherine.

 

Source: http://www.marypages.com/SienaEng.htm

In the reading for Catherine of Sienna she uses a lot of Biblical references which to me makes it seem like that is what a saint should be like. She describes the sin that people make and the process that people would have to go through to be let into heaven once they die. I feel like the way she justified her arguments would be taken better by the people of her time period. I know we said that it was absolutely strange for her to speak for God by saying I this, I that but to me the things she wrote about made sense. Also, she definitely did not talk about sex like Hildegard did.

Even though they both dedicated their life to God I thought that Hildegard was more on the humanist-biological point of view whereas Catherine was more from a religious-godly perspective point of view. Maybe Hildegard went into great detail about sex because once she read the Bible she felt like there was information needed on this topic. I mean the bible doesn't really talk about sex in great detail so that makes sense. I feel like her upbringing and her status definitely played a major role though as to why she was not tried for witchcraft. Like if a poor low class women who no one knows started saying what Hildegard said, she would have an unhappy ending.

We also talked about how it was strange for these two women to be like a saint and have a higher connection with God but I mean if God wants to send out information to humans why can't it be women that receives these messages? I mean at that time I just think they were sexist because God is suppose to be forgiving, loving, and all these great things but is God a sexist then if God only speaks to men? I just feel like its a lose-lose situation that's going on here.            

My answers to the class discussions.

In Chapter VII of Kors and Peters, our wonderfully talented classmates posed the question: If God is the source of all the magic then how can magic be considered blasphemous? Which by the way I think is a really great question and if you guys have a thing or two to say about it please feel free to comment!

I feel like it is the way you use the magic powers that makes it good or bad or neutral. For example, Jesus did many miracles that showed the power of God like make the dead come back to life, cure diseases, turn water to wine and etc... But i feel like because Jesus was the son of God and everybody knew that, they considered that a miracle because Jesus didn't like kill people with his powers and he could actually perform these miracles in front of people as proof. Now if people did not know he was the son of God, like if Jesus just appeared out of nowhere and started doing this then I feel like the people would have said otherwise.

 Source: http://www.stpaulsyg.com/home/p=921 & http://beachristian4rapture.blogspot.com/2012/04/miracles-of-jesus-christ-which-were.html

So then when you compare it to this time period (the early 1500's), I think that the people were too quick to judge the ones that were blamed with sorcery. Did they have solid proof that the ones being accused of sorcery or heresy were killing babies and people? Like did they see with their own eyes or as a mass of group? I don't think so. I feel like they were just going off on speculation and lies and rumors of what they heard from other people. And since the things that they heard were blasphemous, they were conditioned to think like this from their early childhood to their adult life which affected how they lived their lives. For example, the sorcery detected at Orleans was just from a letter that someone wrote and I don't consider that as enough evidence for sorcery. I need to see the evil magic with my own eyes!

Source: https://drawingbynumbers.org/data-design-basics/note-1-where-is-your-evidence

To them magic was considered blasphemous because they were conditioned to think that way and no one dared to say the opposite. Also because they considered that the power did not come from God like it did to Jesus. To incorporate Olivia's last blog question "why did the mid evil folks killed their own kin?" I just think they were too scared to go against their society and the conformity that was going on at the time. I also think it was kind of too late by that time to turn back and even if they knew that killing was wrong and that there was no such thing as evil magic killing babies and humans and livestock, there was nothing they could do and say or they will be killed as well so they sadly just let people die.    

              

A little bit of everything

When I read the Kors and Peters’ text I honestly think it would be extremely horrifying if we were to live during the medieval period. Wouldn't you guys agree? It would be really cool for a second or two there but I mean can you imagine? The food and clothes would be completely different and no technology! Do you guys recall talking about what super powers we could have in the start of the semester? If you time traveled back to this era and just popped out of nowhere, the people would call you witch! And you would probably be in grave danger from that point on. I guess what I’m trying to say is living in this place/time is a great privilege I think.

Source: http://wonderfulworldofworldhistoryemrc.wikispaces.com/Middle+Ages

I just wanted to talk a little bit more about my sections for the presentations. Do you guys remember Pope John XXII and Nicolau Eymeric (Document 21 & 22)? This was in the 1300’s but these two powerful leaders were so harsh and cruel. The tongue piercing that was executed as punishment for heretics to people was I think just inhumane and Pope John was so worried about heretics. He says that “…many who are Christians in name only…sacrifice to demons…ally themselves with death and make a pact with hell” (120). It was such a serious issue back then and I don’t think I can fully comprehend that still. What do you guys think they should have done instead for punishment? Lock them up and isolate them like the prison (Nurmengard) in Harry Potter?

Source: http://harrypotterfanon.wikia.com/wiki/File:NurmenGuard.jpg

I know you guys have heard of the phrase, “beauty is in the eye of the beholder”? Well, I honestly think that if you were to just take the “beauty” piece out and substitute in the word “magic” I think it is a legitimate fact. One of the first things I thought of was the Nickelodeon cartoon show The Fairly Oddparents. Do you guys know what I’m referring to? I know some of you do! It was one of my favorite shows to watch when I was younger. I was trying to prove that not everyone thought of this show first when you hear “magic”. See? 

Source:http://fairlyoddparents.wikia.com/wiki/File:821516~The-Fairly-Odd-Parents-Group-Posters.jpg