Reading Notes: Tales of Arjuna Part A

This week I read Tales of Arjuna and really enjoyed it. This was my first comic book to read this semester and I really enjoyed it, I need to find more! I like how the monkey was interactive with the humans, that definitely made for it to be a more lighthearted and funny story. Overall, I really enjoyed this story.

Bibliography: Tales of Arjuna (Link)

Monkey: (Pexels)

Feedback Thoughts

I am a big fan of feedback, positive and negative. They both serve different roles in the feedback process. Negative feedback is the most influential, because it is what you need to change in order to further improve your work. Positive feedback is also important, because this is what you're doing great at and what you need to continue doing. The two articles I read were 5 Tips For Taking Feedback Like a Champ and 8 Things to do When You Make a Mistake. These were two really great articles for feedback and I liked the numbering format of the steps. They put it really clear on the mindset you need to have when dealing with feedback, and the majority of it was in line with my beliefs about feedback.

Feedback: (Pixabay)

Topic Brainstorm

Indra, The Thunder God:
I wanted to include at least one God in my four topics, and this one interested me the most. I have no prior knowledge of Indian Epics, so all of this will be new to me. I would like to learn more about Indra's thunderbolt weapon and its capabilities (link). It will be interesting to see how the weapon plays in the stories and how I can develop a plot around it.

Supernatural Characters:
This topic popped out at me just from the title. I am fascinated in any sort of supernatural character of any kind. I am looking forward to learning about the different kinds of characters, especially the Rakshasa (link). Having these characters will be awesome to develop stories around.

Animal Characters:
Since I was fascinated in the supernatural characters, I thought it would be best to explore the animal characters as well. My favorite one to look into was Jambavan (link) the king of the bears. My first story revolved around a king of monkeys and a king of crocodiles, so I think I would be able to develop some good plots with these characters.

Epic Battles:
I'm sure this is a topic of interest for a lot of people in the class. "Epic Battles" just sounds like there is a lot to be written about and it can go in any direction. It was cool looking into the Kurukshetra War (link), as it was like a movie. The weapons of the warriors were also very appealing to me.

Rakshasa: (Wiki Commons)

Week 2 Story - The Monkey's Revenge

Once upon a time, monkeys and crocodiles ruled the Amazon River. These were the only two species in the Amazon in this period of time. The crocodiles had control of the water, while the monkeys had the power above. The two kings, Melvin (king of the monkeys) and Gordon (king of the crocodiles) have a known rivalry, but have never came in contact with each other. The crocodiles watch the monkeys swing from branch to branch all day long, and finally Gordon's wife said to the king in confidence "I wish to have that monkey's heart to eat." Gordon was stunned by the ridiculous statement, as they could never get close to the monkeys, but made it his goal for his wife.
 
Gordon devised a plan to get close to Melvin. He crept to the bank of the river, and asked the monkeys permission to see their King Melvin. Gordon claimed to want to make peace between the two animals for ultimate survival in the amazon. The monkeys thought this plan could work, and scheduled a meeting for the next day.

The day of the meeting marks a significant event in the amazon. This is the first time these two kings have came in contact with each other. As Melvin approaches Gordon to begin the meeting, all of the crocodiles pounce to grasp his tail and capture him. "IT'S A TRAP!!" screeched by all of the monkeys. But this was all apart of their plan. As the crocodiles were busy trying to capture Melvin, the monkeys collectively dragged Gordon deep into the trees. Melvin barely escaped the strong clamp of the crocodiles jaws and returned back to the bank of the river. As the crocodiles were distraught about the failure of their plan, they realized their king was gone with no notice.

Gordon ended up being the monkey's dinner for the next year, and they never came close to the river again...at least until they get hungry.

King Melvin versus King Gordon: (Flickr)

Author's Note:
This story is based off of an original "The Crocodile and the Monkey's Heart." In this story the wife wants the monkey's heart, but their plan to get it is to offer a ride across the river. After the money knows it's a trap, he lets the crocodile go back home. When I read this original story, I thought the crocodile deserved a more punishing revenge, so I made him be cooked as dinner in my version.

Bibliography. "The Crocodile and the Monkey's Heart" from Eastern Stories and Legends by Marie L. Shedlock. (Link)

Reading Notes: The Monkey and Crocodile

These stories were much different than I had expected. They were short and straight to the point. My favorite one was The Crocodile and the Monkey's Heart because of the deception of the monkey. The crocodile convinces the monkey to get on his back to cross the river, then reveals that he wants the monkey's heart to give to his wife. Once the monkey is aware of his intentions, he deceives the crocodile and sends him back to his home. I would have ended the story with a more gruesome punishment for the crocodile, and wouldn't have let him return home alive.

The Winning Monkey: (Wikipedia)

Reading Options

I am very excited to begin the readings for this course because I have never been exposed to any material like this. It will be interesting to see how I like it and if I am able to comprehend it as intended. Some of the readings I am interested in is The Ramayana, Dasharatha: The Story of Rama's Father, and Narayan's Mahabharta. These were the three books / comic books that stood out to me based on their story plots. Obviously I don't know them in depth yet, but these are some of the options I am panning on choosing to read later in the semester.

Indian Epics: (Wikimedia Commons)