Ireland
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Breathing My Life into Folktales by Nancy Newlin
“I love storytelling because it is so intensely individual. The storyteller chooses her own story and tells it as she sees it and feels it.” (In his book, Suddenly They Heard Footsteps, Dan Yashinsky shares these words that Alice Kane wrote to him in a letter.) One day…
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What’s in a Name? by Anne McDowell
Is a name important? Does it have power? Many parents devote a lot of consideration and time in choosing just the right names for their children. For example, they want to make sure the first and last names go well together, and that the names…
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Aiming True by Phyllis Ralley
Last Friday night, October 4, was the Greek and Roman Myth Throw-down in SMCC's Studio Theatre and we had standing room only! True, twenty six of those in attendance were the tellers, but this is becoming a popular event. I was up first, and this was my first time using a microphone, which I find…
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My Little Red Wagon and Me by Nancy Newlin
I loved the story of “Little Red Riding Hood” when I was a little girl. To this day I love the story. It was so much fun for me to read so many different versions as I prepared for my folktale expert presentation. I also read the book The Trials and Tribulations of Little Red…
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“Rumpelstiltskin”: Demon or Maligned Helper with Emotional Issues? by Anne McDowell
“Rumpelstiltskin” is a German tale with, as Gail de Vos and Anne E. Altmann, authors of New Tales for Old: Folktales as Literary Fictions for Young Adults, aptly stated, “one that seems to have no redeeming characters at all!” The characters are liars, boasters, betrayers, misogynous miscreants, and suspected murderers. No one likes these people, yet…
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Living the Cinderella Tale in Modern Times by Diana Monell
I have been truly blessed and honored to live the tale of Cinderella by being awarded a scholarship from the Nina Mason Pulliam Legacy Scholars. On September 19, 2013, I was invited to a reception (the ball) given by the Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust to welcome Cohort 13 and to wish farewell to the Scholars that will…
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Where’s the Magic? by Fran Morales
Through the years I have experienced the magic of books and of reading stories. Those stories took me to worlds unknown where I met mystical creatures and my imagination took flight. Little did I know that the same exact magic was happening in my household and everywhere I went when stories were being told to…
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Deep Thinking on Hansel and Gretel by Sally Borg
I had no idea that people put so much thought and analysis into folktales until I read the Hansel and Gretel chapter of New Tales for Old, by Gail deVos & Anna E. Altmann. My initial reaction is “These people have too much time on their hands!” But…
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Story and History by James Ashcroft
I was not at all familiar with the tale of the Wild Swans until became my focus for the Fall Semester in Multicultural Folktales II. As I read through the different variants of the tale what interested me was the different motifs that each variant uses: swans in one story, ravens in another, different numbers,…
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Facing the Future by Joan Misek
In Suddenly They Heard Footsteps, Dan Yashinsky wrote a paragraph which impressed me. "Our stories and sayings make a frame within which children make sense of their place in the world". I love to write personal stories to show my children and their children what it was like to live in the past. I think…
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Bil Lepp: A Great Liar by Dixie Walljasper
I attended the Timpanogos Storytelling Festival over Labor Day week-end in Orem Utah. It was a great week-end even though the temperature was record-breaking. The Tellers were mostly nationally or internationally known such as Donald Davis, Andy Offet-Irwin, Carmen Agra-Deedy, Liz Weir, Geraldine Buckley, Syd Lieberman, Bil Lepp and…
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“Remember How Aunt Sally Used to Tell Us Stories”? by Sally Borg
I’m taking Multicultural Folktales II for several reasons. One, it’s one of the required courses, so will be relevant toward one day getting the Storytelling Certificate. Two, because understanding folktales should give me greater understanding of story structure for personal stories, which happen to be my favorite. Three, I want to learn some folktales to…