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fandomhigh2007-01-07 11:33 pm
a-phale.livejournal.com) wrote in fandomhigh2007-01-07 11:33 pm
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Traditional Fairy Tales, Class One
Monday, January 8, Period 2
Aziraphale was in the classroom bright and early, to make certain everything was ready for his new class. With the assistance of Lana and Phoebe, he had quite a nice spread of pastries and hot tea, coffee and cocoa. As it had been last year, the classroom was arranged with comfortable furnishings rather than desks and chairs, and the walls held shelves full of books.
Once everyone was assembled, he stood near his armchair and smiled at the class. "Good morning, and welcome to Traditional Fairy Tales. For those of you who are new to the school, my name is Aziraphale. However, I do realize that's quite a mouthful, so you may shorten it to 'Mr Phale' or 'Professor Phale' if you like. Let me also introduce your TAs for this class: Lana Lang and Phoebe Halliwell. They'll be assisting me, and will also be available to help you should you need it."
With a wave of his hand, he indicated a stack of papers on the table by his chair. "This is your syllabus. All of the reading materials you'll need are available here in the classroom, and I'm certain also in the library. If anyone needs assistance in finding a text, please let me know. Also, I'll be holding office hours on Tuesdays during third and fourth periods, if any of you need to speak with me outside of class. And you're all welcome to stop by my office hours for any reason at all.
"Today, we're going to briefly discuss how exactly a fairy tale is defined. And then I'd like each of you to introduce yourself, tell me why you signed up for this class and what you hope to learn here, and tell us your favorite fairy tale.
"First, however, I want to explain just a bit about my expectations for you as students in this class, and also I want to take a moment to discuss the required Group Project.
"Attendance is mandatory, and you must sign at the beginning of each class. If you are unable to attend a class, do your best to inform me or one of the TAs in advance. If you miss more than one class without an excuse, you will receive detention. If you miss more than five classes without an excuse, you will receive a failing grade for the course."
Group Projects: "I have assigned each of you to one of four groups. Each group, as your final "exam" grade, will choose a fairy tale that is not on your assigned reading list. Working together, you will identify the elements of character type, theme, symbolism, and gender roles in that tale. You will then update the tale for a different type of setting, remembering to maintain those the elements so that they are still transmitted in the retelling, and then you will present the tale to the class on our final day."
Project Groups
LECTURE:
What is a fairy tale?
"For our purposes, we'll be studying mostly English and European tales, but I've also included a couple of Indian tales in your reading list as well. For your group project, however, you are more than welcome to choose a tale from any source you like. While fairy tale elements are present in a number of literary types -- Shakespearean drama is a good example, as well as many mythologies -- the tales we'll be discussing are separated from other literary traditions by two main features. First, fairy tales deal with religion in only a very general sense, as an element present in the environment but not as a central focus, as with mythologies. Second, fairy tales originate in the oral tradition, created to pass along advice and morals from one generation to the next. They are not created out of whole cloth, but rather evolve and change as they are told and retold. For this reason, you'll find numerous examples of common stories that are told in a wide range of styles. The well-known "Cinderella" tale, for example, has probably hundreds of variations.
"In addition, when possible, I've tried to choose versions of the stories for our reading list that are closer to the oral tradition than you might find in a publication by Perrault or the Grimm brothers. Many of you may recognize the central plots of the tales from more well-known sources. I've done this to try and maintain the oral history tradition of these tales, and to avoid as much of the more literary rewriting done by the professional publishers."
CLASS DISCUSSION:
"Please tell us your name, why you enrolled in this class and your expectations for it, and your favorite fairy tale." [ooc: Characters from non-21st century Earth societies are welcome to make up the name of a favorite story.]
ASSIGNMENT:
"For next week, please read "Jack the Giant Killer" and "Molly Whuppie".
[ooc: Not all of the posts will be this long, I promise! Lots of housekeeping to get done in the first class.Please wait for the OCD threads are up! *rings bell*]
Syllabus
Class Roster
Project Groups
Linkdrop for classes
Aziraphale was in the classroom bright and early, to make certain everything was ready for his new class. With the assistance of Lana and Phoebe, he had quite a nice spread of pastries and hot tea, coffee and cocoa. As it had been last year, the classroom was arranged with comfortable furnishings rather than desks and chairs, and the walls held shelves full of books.
Once everyone was assembled, he stood near his armchair and smiled at the class. "Good morning, and welcome to Traditional Fairy Tales. For those of you who are new to the school, my name is Aziraphale. However, I do realize that's quite a mouthful, so you may shorten it to 'Mr Phale' or 'Professor Phale' if you like. Let me also introduce your TAs for this class: Lana Lang and Phoebe Halliwell. They'll be assisting me, and will also be available to help you should you need it."
With a wave of his hand, he indicated a stack of papers on the table by his chair. "This is your syllabus. All of the reading materials you'll need are available here in the classroom, and I'm certain also in the library. If anyone needs assistance in finding a text, please let me know. Also, I'll be holding office hours on Tuesdays during third and fourth periods, if any of you need to speak with me outside of class. And you're all welcome to stop by my office hours for any reason at all.
"Today, we're going to briefly discuss how exactly a fairy tale is defined. And then I'd like each of you to introduce yourself, tell me why you signed up for this class and what you hope to learn here, and tell us your favorite fairy tale.
"First, however, I want to explain just a bit about my expectations for you as students in this class, and also I want to take a moment to discuss the required Group Project.
"Attendance is mandatory, and you must sign at the beginning of each class. If you are unable to attend a class, do your best to inform me or one of the TAs in advance. If you miss more than one class without an excuse, you will receive detention. If you miss more than five classes without an excuse, you will receive a failing grade for the course."
Group Projects: "I have assigned each of you to one of four groups. Each group, as your final "exam" grade, will choose a fairy tale that is not on your assigned reading list. Working together, you will identify the elements of character type, theme, symbolism, and gender roles in that tale. You will then update the tale for a different type of setting, remembering to maintain those the elements so that they are still transmitted in the retelling, and then you will present the tale to the class on our final day."
Project Groups
LECTURE:
What is a fairy tale?
"For our purposes, we'll be studying mostly English and European tales, but I've also included a couple of Indian tales in your reading list as well. For your group project, however, you are more than welcome to choose a tale from any source you like. While fairy tale elements are present in a number of literary types -- Shakespearean drama is a good example, as well as many mythologies -- the tales we'll be discussing are separated from other literary traditions by two main features. First, fairy tales deal with religion in only a very general sense, as an element present in the environment but not as a central focus, as with mythologies. Second, fairy tales originate in the oral tradition, created to pass along advice and morals from one generation to the next. They are not created out of whole cloth, but rather evolve and change as they are told and retold. For this reason, you'll find numerous examples of common stories that are told in a wide range of styles. The well-known "Cinderella" tale, for example, has probably hundreds of variations.
"In addition, when possible, I've tried to choose versions of the stories for our reading list that are closer to the oral tradition than you might find in a publication by Perrault or the Grimm brothers. Many of you may recognize the central plots of the tales from more well-known sources. I've done this to try and maintain the oral history tradition of these tales, and to avoid as much of the more literary rewriting done by the professional publishers."
CLASS DISCUSSION:
"Please tell us your name, why you enrolled in this class and your expectations for it, and your favorite fairy tale." [ooc: Characters from non-21st century Earth societies are welcome to make up the name of a favorite story.]
ASSIGNMENT:
"For next week, please read "Jack the Giant Killer" and "Molly Whuppie".
[ooc: Not all of the posts will be this long, I promise! Lots of housekeeping to get done in the first class.
Syllabus
Class Roster
Project Groups
Linkdrop for classes
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