ON-LINE TASK 1.

ON-LINE TASK 1.

Folktale

List some of the well-known folktales from Malaysia.

1. Sang Kancil and the Crocodiles

2. How Melaka Got Its Name

3. The Cursed Princess

4. Bawang Putih dan Bawang Merah

5. Badang

6. Si Tanggang

7.  The Story of the Coconut Tree

8. Unlucky Si Belang

9. Greedy Does not Pay

10. Paddy That Turns Gold

List some of the possible issues found in The Son of the Turtle Spirit.

1. Consequences of having sex with a stranger and before marriage.

2. Usually dreams are warnings that foretell the future.

3. Never underestimate a person’s ability in solving problems.

4. The price that one pays for lust.

5. Never disobey the rules set by the elders.

Are those issues universal in nature or are they only relevant in the Chinese culture?
Most of the issues are universal and are practised in most culture and abstaining from having sex is before marriage is drummed into every girl’s head.

Fables

What are the other morals that can be gotten from the other fables by Aesop? List at least two.

1. The Ant and the Grasshopper - It is best to prepare for the days of necessity.

2. The Dog in the Manger - People often grudge others what they cannot enjoy themselves.

3. The Fox and the Goat - Never trust the advice of a man in difficulties.

4. The Fox and the Grapes - It's easy to despise what you cannot have.

5. The Lion and the Mouse - Little friends may prove great friends.

Myths
One well-known literary figure from the Elizabethan age used Ovid’s Pyramus and Thisbe as a model to one of his famous plays. Who is he and what is the play?

He is the great William Shakespeare and the most famous love tragedy; Romeo and Juliet.

Legends
List some of the popular legends we have in Malaysia.

1. The Legend of Mahsuri

The famous legend to emerge from Langkawi island is of Mahsuri, a ravishing maiden who lived over 400 years ago. This story reveals how an island was plagued by misfortune. Many believe Mahsuri’s curse had befallen the island and the island may still have the traces of the curses.

2. Kedah's Legendary Fanged King

This tale is about a Raja or king named Ong Maha Prita Doria in the state of Langkasuka (Today's Kedah). Read the enthralling story about how he got addicted to human blood and got named as Raja Bersiong or Fanged King. Until today the wild boars are found in the surrounding Jungle with fangs in their mouths.

3. The Mysterious Giant Footprint

The legend of Big Foot has long been recounted in the state of Penang. In Batu Maung, a fishing village near the south end of the island there is a rock with a large footprint that many believe belongs to Bigfoot. Nevertheless, the origin of this 33-ince long footprint has never been determined and is steeped in myth and folklore.

4. Sri Rambai, The Magical Cannon

Fort Cornwallis was built in 1786 to commemorate the site of Sir Francis Light’s historical arrival in Penang. Sir Francis Light was a prominent captain in British Imperial Navy. Erected between 1808 and 1810, Fort Cornwallis holds numerous cannons among which Sri Rambai, a brass cannon with an intriguing history.

5. The Seven Magical Wells

Telaga Tujuh or Seven Wells Waterfall is a unique natural formation of seven pools with one pool cascading on top of the other, to a height of over 90 meters.

6. Magical Lake of Pregnant Maiden

A prominent Langkawi legend is a story of pregnant maiden or Dayang Bunting. The legend is intricately intertwined with the amorous exploit of Mat Teja, a male genie and Mambang Sari, a beautiful female spirit.

1. Who is Thomas Malory?

Sir Thomas Malory (c. 1405 – 14 March 1471) was an English writer, the author or compiler of Le Morte d'Arthur.

2. When was Le Mort d’Arthur written?

It was written in the early 1450s and completed it by 1470.

3. How many books/ parts are there in LMDA?

9 books altogether in LMDA

4. What is book 8 about?

The book 8 is about the death of King Arthur.

5. Who were the two people who had an affair?

Sir Launce lot Lancelot and Queen Guinevere are the two people who had affair.

6. Book 6 has a strong connection to a popular modern fiction which is now a movie. What is the title of the popular modern fiction?

King Arthur (2004)

7. State three well-known facts about King Arthur/ his time as a King.

a. Merlin was the teacher and mentor of King Arthur.

b. King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table.

c. Mordred was the villainous nephew of King Arthur who actually turns out to be his son.

Think of 2 ways in which you can use folktales/fables/myths or legends in the classroom. Explain briefly.

ROLE PLAY

In class we can give the students folktales/fables/myths to act it out in class. They can do in group of three or four. They can use simple costumes. They will have to write out the script and analyse the storyline first before acting. This will teach them to be independent learners and instil the love for reading.

SUMMARY WRITING

We can ask them to do a simple summary writing based on the story. They can extract the moral values and the main issues from the story.

 

THE MYSTERIOUS BRAIN...WHAT TICKS IT

PSYCHOANALYTIC CRITICISM

What makes  writers write such fantastic, dark stories yet intriguing tales  which delves into the human minds? This is where psychoanalytic criticism adopts the methods of "reading" employed by Freud and later theorists to interpret texts written by such writers. It debates that literary texts, like dreams, express the secret unconscious desires and anxieties of the author, that a literary work is a expression of the author's own neuroses. One may psychoanalyze a particular character within a literary work, but it is usually assumed that all such characters are projections of the author's psyche. A few authors such as Edgar Allan Poe, William Faulkner’s works have been used as research materials by psychoanalytical theorists.  Psychoanalytic literary criticism can focus on one or more of the following:

• the author: the theory is used to analyze the author and his/her life, and the literary work is seen to supply evidence for this analysis. This is often called "psycho-biography." Just like Poe’s literary works are mostly based on his life and his problem with alcohol.
• the characters: the theory is used to analyze one or more of the characters; the psychological theory becomes a instrument that to explain the characters’ behavior and motivations. The story is very real like when the full analysis is done.
• the audience: the theory is used to explain the appeal of the work for those who read it; the work is seen to embody universal human psychological processes and motivations, to which the readers respond more or less unconsciously.
• the text: the theory is used to analyze the type and role of the language used and symbolism in the work which are very significant in the story.

For my literature class, I will use A Rose for Emily as a short story and ask my students to write out their criticism of the story and about the main protagonist. I will also guide them in analyzing the story using psychoanalytic criticism. The task will cater to their standard. It will be very simple. I will ask questions like:

1. Why do you think Emily did not marry?

2. Do you think what Emily’s father did was right? (keeping her inside the house/suitors away)

3. What made the author write such a story?

These questions are to give the students a head start in writing out their criticism.

 The brain holds so much of mysteries and we will never know for sure how it creates ideas in one's mind.