Traditional Literature: Variations upon Stories From Around the World

and the Tradition of Storytelling

Folktales, myths, and legends help connect us to other stories, other cultures, and to ourselves. Today’s society continues to create and recreate many variations of these traditional tales and their characters as evidenced by popular television shows and movies such as Grimm, Once Upon a Time, Hoodwinked, The Brothers Grimm, etc. For this assignment, you are required to read, analyze, and present a VARIATIONof a traditional story to the class. This will require both individual and group work. It will also require that you understand both the cultureand the genre of your story. Further, your classmates will be responsible for knowing and understanding your story and its culture and you will be responsible for knowing and understanding theirs. Therefore, it is to both your benefit and the benefit of your classmates to make a clear, thorough, and memorable presentation of your story.

Assignment: Once you have been assigned a specific genre and cultural region, choose a story. You may find one on your own, such as a Grimm’s fairy tale, or choose a story that I have in class (“The Tiger’s Whisker,” “Dr.Faust,” “Prometheus the Fire-bringer,” “Kerta’s Sacrifice,” etc.). Keep in mind that you will need to present the story in its entirety while also presenting a variation. While the characters, settings, and basic plot elements may change, the main idea, the theme or lesson, and at least some of the motifs and genre traits should remain intact.

Complete the following individual work on the story in its ORIGINAL form. After you have completed the individual work, you and your group should create a *VARIATION* of the story to present to the class AND teach the class about the culture and the genre of the original tale. You should plan on approximately 10 minutes for the presentation of the story and 10 minutes for teaching the story (its genre and cultural background); this is a total of a 20 minute presentation! ALL members of the group must have a part BOTH in the story presentation AND in the teaching of the tale.

* The variation of the story is up to you. You may choose to modernize the story to make it more meaningful to today’s audience, or you might change some element of the story such as characters, setting, culturally specific items such as food, etc.

You will be graded according to the following:

Individual Work:

  1. A completed Traditional Literature Worksheet for your original story. Your characteristics, universal questions and examples from the story should be uniquely yours. NO multiple copies of the same Traditional Literature Worksheet. You will combine information when you create your visual aide for the class presentation. (20 points)
  1. A summary (1-2 pages, typed, double-spaced) of the original story in your own words. Your summary should be uniquely yours; NO multiple copies of the same summary will be accepted. A summary shows me that you understand the main ideas of the story. (25 points)
  1. A brief description of the culture. From the attached background and/or your own research, write 1-2 pages (typed, double-spaced) about the culture from which your story originates. Be sure your description includes things about the culture that relate to or are found within the story. (For example, what are the religious beliefs of the culture? Customs? Cuisine?) (30 points)
  1. Five original questions and answers. You will need to create at least five questions (based on the levels of thinking handout that will be provided) and answer those questions. These should later be used to create a handout for the class when you present the story. (20 points)
  1. Identification of plot elements within the story. List at least 10 of the “Fundamental Plot Elements” (CLASS NOTES) that are found within your story and provide specific examples from the story that show those plot elements. (20 points)
  1. Your individual contribution to the group presentation. If you are continually the "dead weight" in your group, you can expect your grade to be significantly lower than those of the working members in the group. (20 points)
  1. Evaluation: Completion of all evaluation forms for self and group members’ involvement upon

finishing the presentation. (20 points)

Total points for Individual Work: 155

Group Work:

Once you have all agreed upon a story, brainstorm the possibilities that exist for a variation. During the brainstorm stage, anything goes; don’t criticize or judge ideas that group members offer. Just get as many ideas down as possible. Consider which ideas offer the BEST possibilities. The complete the following GROUP work:

  1. Group Questions: A typed copy of your group’s answers to the additional Group Questions you will be given about the story. These answers should be presented to the class during the teaching part of your group’s presentation. (25 points)
  1. Script: A typed copy of the script that includes the complete plot line, is appropriate for the audience, and clearly presents the entire story should be submitted at least one day prior to presentation. (45 points)
  1. Outline of Presentation: A typed outline of the entire presentation should be submitted prior to the presentation day. All parts of the presentation should be listed and all group members included. (Outline should include who will introduce the group and what each person will be doing, an introduction to the cultural background, a summary of the story, who will play each part in the story, who will teach genre traits, motifs, universal questions, etc.) (15 points)
  1. Performance of Story: A creative and dramatic performance of the story should be clear and memorable. Remember, you are Characters and script should engage the audience. Group members should participate equally in the performance. Story should include props, scenery, costumes, etc. to enhance the personalities of the characters and to make the presentation memorable. (Every character should have at least one item to enhance that character!)You should perform this story as though it has not yet been written down. How will you get your audience to know and remember the characters? Consider signs, symbols, masks, etc. Use dramatic, strong, and appropriate voice inflection. Consider how you might even INVOLVE the audience in the story. We should laugh, cry, and want to hear and see your story again and again!! (50 points)
  1. Visual Aides: Group should create handout(s), video, PowerPoint slides, Prezi presentation, Voice Thread, or other means of visuals to enhance your group’s clarification of the story and its meaning/lesson, genre characteristics, motifs, universal questions, and cultural significance. Your visuals must be submitted to the teacher prior to the day of presentation. I strongly suggest that you have the teacher check your work before creating final products of this information. (40 points)
  1. Teaching: Group should clearly teach the story’s genre traits, motifs, universal questions, cultural traits, lesson, plot elements, and significance of the story. Group should make use of visual aide(s) and consider class participation for this part of the presentation. The teaching should come AFTER the presentation of the story. The group should also explain what they changed from the original story. One handout MUST be a summary of the story for the class. (40 points)
  1. Explanation of Variation: The group should include a paragraph explaining what they changed aboutthe story and why. (30 points)
  1. Organization: Presentation should include an introduction that explains the cultural background to the story, introduce the characters and/or members of the group, and explain what the audience will learn or should look for in the performance. The entire presentation should be well organized and should flow-smoothly; group members should know what they are doing and when. (30 points)

Total points for group portion: 275

TOTAL PROJECT POINTS: 430

Performance Possibilities

Drama: Act out the story in a drama in which members of the group become the characters in a play.Characters should wear appropriate costumes or use props that draw attention to and emphasize the characters’ personalities. Actors should practice their lines andknow cues, where to stand, how touse props, when to makeentrances and exits, etc. Consider the need for “techies” who can hold props, move scenery, run lights, soundeffects, etc. as necessary. Creating a drama may require editing narration and adding more speaking lines. Drama could be done live or a video could be made as long as it is submitted prior to the day of presentation.

Pantomime: Similar to drama, but the actors silently act out the scenes as one or two narrators tell the story.

Costumes, props, scenery, etc. would still be used. You might also consider creating a “silent movie” for this option.

Reader’s Theater: A reader's theater is a dramatic reading of the story. To create a reader's theater, youwill need to carefully edit the story so that the most important scenes stand out. Reader’s Theater also requiresa great deal of voice inflection since it is primarily a narration of the story. Each “reader-actor” might be one ortwo different characters and would therefore need to use different voices for each character. Reader-actorsshould still wear the color or costume of their character or have aprop or sign identified with their character(s). You might consider creating an “old-fashioned radio drama” using this format. This could also be done via Voice Thread.

Puppet Show: Puppets have been used for storytelling for centuries and are NOT just for little kids! Peopleof all ages enjoy watching puppets. You might consider creating stick puppets, sock puppets, or being evenmore elaborate and purchasing or making stuffed puppets. Consider significant symbols in yourstory that might appear as pieces of "set" in your show. Again, puppet characters should have color or costume thatmatch the personality of the character. The puppet show could also be performed via video.

Rap/Song/Music Video: A very ancient and traditional storytelling technique was for the storyteller to put the story torhyme. This helped both the teller and the audience remember the story. Consider creating a rhymed version ofyour story and putting it to music, creating a rap, or creating a music-video. Each person should still be dressed in colors orcostumes that symbolize the characters and their personalities or have props that the characters would use.

Digital Storybook: Many ancient stories are found in the elaborate drawings and murals found in caves, tombs,cathedrals, and other sacred places of various people groups. If you feel it would be appropriate for the cultureof your story, you might consider creating original paintings or drawings of several scenes that would tell your story. Include symbolsthat could show things such as: actions, the passing of time, concepts, values, etc. Perhaps the audience couldbe involved in the “revealing” of the mural. Again, use colors and symbols that emphasize characters and theiractions. These drawings could then become part of a “digital storybook” that you use to present the story. There are several online programs that offer digital storytelling as a free software download.

ForALLperformances,consider:lighting,soundeffects,music,props,backgrounds,signs,symbols,andaudience interaction and participation. Remember, you want to DRAW YOUR AUDIENCE INTO the world ofyour story!!