Tuesday, October 11, 2016

Reading Notes: Russian Fairy Tales Part A

For this week's extra credit reading assignment I decided to read Russian Fairy Tales by W. R. S. Ralston (1887). I chose this option because this seems to be a cultural that I expect to be different from many of the others I have read so I am curious to see what tales are told. In addition, I am curious to see if there are any reoccurring morals across cultures. Below are my reading notes:

  • There seems to be an interest in peaking emotions then letting them go flat very quickly. At one point I was admiring and at another I was hit with an unexpected sad stance.
  • I like the spiritual punishment that was given and the idea of potential corruption and greed are strong writing points. 
  • Again, I see the theme of what today's world would perceive as silly stories but are actually stories with strong moral ties and reflections to today's problems.
  • Most of the stories have one thing in common and it's a theme of karma/fairness presented in the end of each tale. The bad wife is a good example.
  • I find it interesting that the poor orphan boy decided to choose love over greed as that is a very powerful decision and one many of us face in today's world sometimes.
  • Occasionally, like in the Aesop's Fables, we see the bad guy come out ahead. Which to be fair is how life turns out sometimes. The good guy doesn't always win and the bad guy doesn't always get punished even if he deserves it.
  • Commitment is also a cool moral that I hadn't seen in other stories I've read. This would be a pretty interesting theme to write on.
Wikipedia: Russian Fairy Tale

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