Notable Moment - The Amazing Maurice

"To be a leader you have to learn to shout! But after you've learned to shout, you have to learn not to!" - Terry Pratchett, The Amazing Maurice and His educated Rodents

This was probably my favorite scene of the book. It struck a chord with me. I have spent the last four years in Corps of Cadets here at A&M and have learned so much. This quote summarizes one of the most valuable lessons I have learned. There are so many people who try to lead through fear. Who think that just because they are the loudest, they are the most respected. That is not the case. As a freshmen, you are forced to yell and scream and learn how to project yourself. Sophomore year, you are the ones teaching how to yell by well, yelling. Then finally during your junior and senior year, you learn that you have to influence people through other avenues other than yelling. You have to inspire, not strike fear. I love this quote. The world needs leaders who know how to yell, but understand that it is not always the answer.

Throwback Thursday

Last week we spoke about fairy tales and their place in literature. We discussed whether or not they should be taken seriously as works that critique society and have more of a purpose than to entertain. In previous blog posts I discussed how I believed they did function in all of the roles aforementioned. This theme of social critique hit a chord with the books that were assigned this week. More accurately, it resonates with "The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents". This concept hit me when I read the following quote, "' Listen, Peaches, trickery is what humans are all about,' said the voice of Maurice. 'They're so keen on tricking one another all the time that they elect governments to do it for them.'" I also think this book is being used as a medium to critique society, because as we also discussed, children are able to relate to animals in literature. This is because of the similar power restraints they live under.

Wordless Wednesday - The Amazing Maurice

http://www.jackiemorris.co.uk/march2009.htm

Commonplace Quote - "The Selfish Giant"

This quote comes from Oscar Wilde's, "The Selfish Giant". "'It is your garden now, little children,' said the Giant and he took a great axe and knocked down the wall. And when the people were going to market at twelve o'clock they found the Giant playing with the children in the most beautiful garden they had ever seen."

This quote shows the transformative power of generosity and love.The Giant goes from being selfish and lonely to generous and happy. This quote suggests the Wilde is appealing the audience asking them to be more generous with their possessions and in turn they will be truly happy.

Commonplace Quote - "The Tale of Peter Rabbit"

"Peter never stopped running or looked behind him till he got home to the bit fir-tree"

This quote communicates the spirit of Peter Rabbit and the spirit of the book. This quote depicts the never give up attitude this book teaches its young readers. 

Notable Moment 2 - The Happy Prince

The best representation of the themes and functions of fairy tales can be seen in Oscar Wilde's, "The Happy Prince". This whole work is a critique on the greed and selfishness in the hierarchy of society and the redemptive qualities of love and selflessness. It is a perfect example of how fairy tales not only function as a source of entertainment, but as a a social criticism. The moment of the story that ties the story together and teaches the main lesson of love for all, is when God asks for the two most precious items in the town. The angel brings back the heart of the Happy Prince and the sparrow that labored tirelessly.

Throw Back Thursday - Fairy Tales

I don't think I fully appreciated the wide variety of fairy tales there actually are. Up until last week, I never thought of a fair tales as more than an unrealistic bed time story that really has no basis in reality. After this section however, I have realized that fairy tales have multiple functions. Some are used to inspire, some to entertain, and others to criticize certain aspects of their society. I am not sure if it was because of the minimal variety in the types of fairy tales I used to read that I didn't see the range of functionality or I was just to young to recognize their purpose. Either way, I am sorry I missed out. I would like to continue looking into the fairy tales that focus on raising awareness of social issues and critiquing them. More specifically, I will continue to look into the works of Oscar Wilde and Hans Christian Andersen.