Rabbit
I really enjoyed the story of the "The Foolish, Timid Rabbit" because it was a familiar story, so it was nice to see where that story originated from. I thought it was interesting how no one questioned the rabbit’s reasoning in this story. In versions of this story that I have heard (specifically the movie version of Chicken Little), all of the characters around the rabbit's character are much crueler than these characters and make the rabbit seem very isolated and alone. I really liked that in this story, all of the other animals (for the most part) just kind of believed what the rabbit was saying…I thought that was a very interesting aspect of this story. I also liked that the lion in the story was representative of a good leader. When he saw chaos, he investigated what was going on. When he saw that the rabbit was the one that caused the chaos, he didn’t automatically assume the rabbit was wrong, but rather, he investigated to see why the rabbit thought what he thought. Even though the rabbit was wrong, the lion was not condescending to him. I really like a character that is a good leader. Not just a powerful one.
Below is a black and white image of the the Lion carrying the Rabbit to see why the rabbit thinks that "the earth is all breaking up."
The Cunning Crane and The Crab
I also really liked the story about the "The Cunning Crane and The Crab". I really enjoy tales where one character is clever, but the other is even more so. I thought it was interesting how the Crane, when he was trying to eat the fish, kept the first fish safe. This was very clever and incredibly cruel on his part, because he gained their trust. I think a lot of people, especially people in positions of power, function that way. They gain your trust, so that you believe the lies they tell you. The Crab was highly intelligent. I thought it was just delightful how he acted like he was afraid so that the Crane would believe him. Then, when the Crane started to be cruel, the Crab used what he had to protect himself and the future animals that the Crane might harm. I was a little surprised at the end when the Crab went ahead and killed the Crane…that was a little darker than I was expecting. That being said though, I don’t disagree with the Crabs actions in killing the Crane. I thought that was wise on the Crab's part, because it kept the Crane from coming back to get him in the future. I enjoy a character who is wise and knows when to use the upper hand and when not to.
Below is a black and white image of the Crane and Crab, in which we can see the Crab cleverly on the Crane's back, as opposed to by his mouth!
All information about theses stories was pulled form the Jatakas Anthology. The original story source of the "The Foolish Timid Rabbit" is the Jataka Tales by Ellen C. Babbit. The original story source of "The Cunning Crane and Crab" is The Giant Crab and Other Tales from Old India by W. H. D. Rouse.
Comments
Post a Comment