Tag Archives: Narrative

Tale – Shimchong: The Blind Man’s Daughter

Nationality: Korean
Age: 19
Occupation: Student

Text: 

This is the story about this kind daughter who lives with a blind dad then she hears this announcement that to whoever volunteers to be the live sacrifice to the ocean or the people who have to sail um they will 100 bags of rice to that family because they were too poor and the daughter wanted her dad to be able to survive have food to eat she volunteers to be the live sacrifice so they sail out and at the point where theres a tornado in the ocean the girl dives in to be the live sacrifice and the dad finds out later because suddenly he is gifted with 100 bags of rice but at that point she had already sailed off and jumped into the ocean but the girl jumped in and she sank down into the ocean kingdom the ocean king heard the story and he thought she was very nice for she was a very good daughter and her love for her dad like he thought it was big like he considered it big like he valued her doing so so he decided to send her back up so they put her into this giant lotus and sent her off to up to the surface where she was fund by other fisherman who brought her back to the land back to one of the nobles parties that day the dad was also at the party because in Korea when the nobles throw a party they often open up their front yard and all the food for the people in the village too so it was like a whole party like feast going on and her dad was invited to when the girl entered and when the dad heard her voice he recognized her and when he turned toward her voice he was suddenly able to see again so that’s a happy reunion and this girl falls in love with either the nobles son or something like that the point is they values her actions and sent her back up

Context: 

This was told by one of my friends who is from South Korea. She explained that this is a well-known fairy tale that everyone has known of from a young age. She liked this story when she was young because the book was “tiny [and] it was easy to carry around.” Looking back she says that it appears to be a “very brutal story for the girl” which she did not notice as a kid. 

Analysis: 

This story is a common fairy tale in Korea. It teaches kids from a young age the values of Korean culture. The overall message this story shows is that one should love their parents and make sacrifices for them. This is because even though it seems like a sacrifice at the time it will eventually work in favor of both parties. It also shows that people reward those who are considered good children. The ocean king rewarded the girl for her actions and allowed her to go back to her family.

Myth – Hindu Cosmology

Nationality: Indian
Age: 19
Occupation: Student

Text: 

“One of the biggest beliefs in Hinduism is the belief of reincarnation and that kind of stems from how the universe started. For Hindus, the universe was created by Lord Brahma who was the creator who made the universe out of himself. There are different beliefs on how he created the universe. One of the beliefs was that after he created the universe, the power of Lord Vishnu, which is part of the power that the universe carried, turned into a kind of you could say the responsibility of life and death and the cycle. It’s more specifically described as karma; the more good you do the better your next life will be until you achieve a kind of enlightenment stage. The third part is Lord Shiva who is responsible for the destruction of the universe; we believe that at some point that’s going to happen. As for how the universe came into origin specifically, one of the theories was that Lord Brahma divided himself into two parts one man and one female to start life. Another theory is that after he created the universe, Lord Vishnu grew a lotus flower and that flower was divided into three parts: the sky, the earth, and the heavens, which brought life.”

Context:

This story was told by my roommate who is from India. Her religion is Hinduism so she hears this creation story from a young age. She always remembered this story as it is a part of her religion as well as a part of her identity. When she explains this story to people it is not just a belief that’s written somewhere, it is her belief as well.

Analysis: 

I think for each religion there are differing beliefs in the creation of the universe. In Hinduism, there are three main gods with powers that are divided between the three; one represents destruction, one represents destiny, and the other represents the cycle of life and death. Even though the three gods are separated all three are needed in the creation of the universe symbolizing this idea of completion and divinity. Also, the god that represents the cycle of life emphasizes karma; the better you do in this life your destiny for the next life will be better.

Tale – Small Line

Nationality: Indian
Age: 19
Occupation: Student

Text: 

“The tale is one of the tales from Akbar and Birbal. Akbar was a mogul emperor; one of the biggest and most well-known mogul emperors of India. Birbal was a Hindu who was the minister in Akbar’s court and he was very well known for his wisdom and for being very wise. Akbar was often impressed by that and the other court ministers were often jealous of him, so one day, Akbar came into the court and he gave a puzzle to all his ministers by drawing a line. He said to make this line shorter without erasing any of it, and Birbal came forth when none of the other ministers could answer the riddle, and he drew another line, which was longer than the one Akbar drew. He was like, ‘now this line is shorter.’” 

Context: 

This story was told by my roommate. She is from India and she shared how this might seem like a “kind of silly tale” that presents “just a trick or just a puzzle” but a lot of messages that are conveyed within the culture can be seen in this tale.  This story is very well known in India and it kind of just celebrates the history of India and the wisdom that a lot of the ministers had. It overall shows how important being wise is in solving problems. She heard this tale when she used to go to elementary school in India. Her parents bought her this book of Akbar and Birbal tales and this was one of the tales in that book.

Analysis: 

In Indian culture wisdom and problem-solving is strongly valued. This story emphasizes thinking outside of the box and coming up with solutions that might not be obvious. This story shows that it is a very common fairy tale told to young children. This tale was more popular than ones like Cinderella as the lessons within this tale better represent the values of India. This tale also connects to one of the most powerful empires in India. It also consists of one of the most powerful kings and one of the smartest people. This story also gives people a touch of emotions.

Legend – La Llorona

Nationality: Mexican-American
Age: 18
Occupation: Student

Text: 

“This is the legend of La Llorona, who is a woman that roams the towns in Mexico searching for her dead children. This story [is set in] old-time Mexico. There lived a family: a husband, a wife, and their two children. The family was happy; the dad worked and the mom stayed home to watch over the children. Somewhere along the way though, there started to be financial difficulties, so when the husband encounters a young and beautiful woman from the next town over and he starts having an affair with her. Unbeknown to his surprise, the mother finds out and rage fills her and ends up clouding her mind. She wants a way to get back at him, but she can’t think of anything. She wants to kill him but she wants to hurt him deeply and that’s when she notices her children. She’s like my children, that’s the one way that will hurt him. She guides them to a river on the pretense that they’re going to go play by the river. While they’re playing in the river, the mother slowly goes into the river and starts telling her children to come with her. The children don’t know that it’s too deep for them and that the current of the river would end up taking the children and drowning them. The children follow their mom since they love her, and they start to realize that they can’t touch the floor. They’re screaming out for their mom like ‘Mom help me.’ She goes over and starts drowning them both. Now that she has drowned them, she starts to realize what she’s done. She realizes she ended up killing both her children and she went crazy, but she still seeks revenge. She goes over to her husband and ends up murdering him. From that moment on, the agony of losing her children has taken over her. It is said that near the rivers in Mexico, there will be a woman who you’ll hear screaming and crying for her children.” 

Context: 

This story was told by one of my roommates. She heard this story from multiple members of her family. She said that this story is passed down from generation to generation. It is a very well-known legend in Mexico, and she said that not a single Latino would not know who La Llorona is.

Analysis: 

This legend is similar to the concept of the boogie man. It’s kind of a way for parents to scare their children into doing something. In America, I think the boogie man is more well-known than La Llorona, but the idea behind the legend is the same. Parents will often say something along the lines of “go to sleep or the boogie man will get you.”  This is similar to La Llorona; parents in Mexico would use this legend as a way to make sure their children would come home before sundown. In a way, this was also a way for parents to keep their children safe from wandering the streets at night. 

Cold Wind on a mother’s back

Context:

J is a 23-year-old Salvadorian-american and resides in Southern California. She’s heard various superstitions and stories from her family and friends. She heard this one from her mother after a family reunion.

The context of this piece was over a dinner when J was asked if she had heard of any folk beliefs from her family.

Text:

J: “I know of one that we always make sure to follow no matter how like dumb people think it is. Like my mom told me about this one so that when I have babies I wont get sick or anything like that. She told me stuff like women need to be wrapped up after having a baby. Kanda like a baby themselves. If they didn’t then stuff like the wind would get to them,”

Me: “The wind? What do you mean by it getting to those women?”

J: “Like if a woman left her back exposed after having a baby, then they’d get really bad back pain because of the wind. My mom said that the cold wind was the worst thing a woman could be touched by after giving birth. It’s because wafter having a baby the woman’s body is like weak and its sensitive. So she has to be covered in clothes or blankets so that her and her back stay like warm.”

Me: “So if the wind touches her back, it hurts her?”

J” Yeah so like wind is cold and since the baby took all of her warmth and strength the wind would leave her in pain. We just say the back is the most important part because that’s where they put like the shot thing for the pain so its left more out in the open. So yeah, now you know to always have you back covered up after having a baby”

Analysis:

I think it’s really interesting to hear about this folk belief because something as simple as wind could have a greater affect on someone’s body. I know that the wind is usually avoided as it brings the feelings of coldness but the way it is spoken of in this belief is somewhat animalistic. This belief connotes the wind negatively as it makes it clear that the wind is something that can hurt a woman and should be outright avoided. I think this belief is especially interesting because it revolves around a woman’s body post-birth. I know that in many cultures birth is sacred and the creation of a new life in the world is highly valued, so it was interesting to hear how the birthing process needs the after-care.