Week 6 Essay: Analyzing The Stonecutter

For my essay this week I decided to analyze and discuss one specific story in the Japanese Tales Unit (Lang). It was one that as I read it, I appreciated the story for the lesson it was teaching and how the story swings back full-circle to end where it started. The story is The Stonecutter.

            The story begins with a poor stonecutter whose art is being able to carve stone and pick out which types of stone are best for different purposes. He goes everyday to the mountain to cut the stone and has never seen Spirit of the Mountain who supposedly helped the men become rich and prosperous. The story introduces how the stonecutter did not believe in the spirit and then actually provides foreshadowing in the end of the second paragraph “But a time was coming when he learned to change his opinion.” This sets the stage for how the reader can see that the spirit of the mountain will probably come back into the story at some point.

            In the next paragraph, we see that the stonecutter’s luck begins to change as the spirit hears his request to be a rich man, and upon returning home, the stonecutter’s wooden hut has become a palace. His first wish had been granted. Later, the stonecutter sees a prince with a golden umbrella being used to hide the prince from the piercing sun coming down. The stonecutter, sweating from the intense heat, was jealous and wished he too could be a prince. He was envious.  He wished for what he didn’t have. The spirit heard his plea and turned him into a prince.

And here is where the big central message comes. He was rich and now a prince “But yet it was not enough.” It is a typical of the human nature. Many times when we want what we can’t have, as soon as we get it, we are not satisfied and want something else.

The stonecutter then goes one a power-craze. He wishes to be the sun, but then the clouds hide the sun. So he wishes to be a cloud, but then the stone withstands his rain. So he wishes to be a rock. “And the rock he was, and gloried in his power.” The stonecutter was finally content and proud that neither sun nor rain could overpower him. Until one day when a stonecutter came and begin chipping away at him. He cries out “'Is a mere child of earth mightier than a rock? Oh, if I were only a man!” And the last wish is granted as he is turned back into a man.

“His bed was hard and his food scanty, but he had learned to be satisfied with it and did not long to be something or somebody else. And as he never asked for things he had not got, or desired to be greater and mightier than other people, he was happy at last and heard the voice of the mountain spirit no longer.”

The last paragraph perfectly explains the story. The man learned that he could never be happy if he was always chasing something else. He could not find happiness in always yearning for more and never appreciating what he had and who he was at the moment. The spirit of the mountain represented his selfish hunger, and after he learned to be content and grateful, the voice went away. 

Man on Mountain, Image Source: Pixabay

Week 6 Storytelling: The Tale of Frank and George

The Tale of Frank and George 

Once upon a time there were two frogs who had lived in the same land their entire lives. They had never explored the neighboring land that lay just over the hill. It was not that they had no interest to go explore the great-unknown land, It was simply that neither had ever had the courage to leave.

            One of the frogs, named George, had lived in the same swamp since the day he was just a little tadpole. His mother had protected him and sheltered him in their swamp in the land of Panmith. His days were spent hopping around the grassy brush of their home, or swimming with his brothers and sisters. His brothers always teased George that he would not do anything adventurous. They would dare him to go touch the old rotting tree, which their mother had told them to never go to. When he refused to disobey his mother’s rules, his brothers and sisters called him cowardly and laughed at him. But George had had about all he could take. He wanted to show them he could be brave and adventurous. So he decided he would venture not just past the rotting tree, but all the way over the hill to the neighboring land of Swamith.

As George set out to climb the hill he was unsure if he had made the right decision. He was leaving behind his home; the only place he had ever known. His mother would be so angry with him. And what if Swamith was the exact same as Panmith? Would he regret his decision to leave? As he was contemplating these questions and planning to turn around and go home, George spotted an old grey owl in a big oak tree. The owl cooed:

If you never go

You will never see

What the other place could be

The owl’s words were exactly what George needed to hear to keep going on his adventure, and with the owl’s advice he decided to travel to Swamith and start a new adventure…

            In the land of Swamith lived another cowardly little frog named Frank. Frank was an only child frog. A human boy with a net had captured his siblings and mother. His father was so upset that since that day he had barely spoken a word to his son. Frank was lonely. He had always thought about leaving and going over the hill to see what the land of Panmith was like. Many of his friends had mentioned its beautiful swamps, and he always wanted to see it for himself. Frank hated to leave his father all alone, but he needed to be happy, and right now he was just sad. So he decided he would venture all the way over the hill to the neighboring land of Panmith.

As Frank started his adventure he began to question his choice to leave. He was leaving his father, who had already endured so much heartache, all-alone. And what if Swamith was the exact same as Panmith? Would he regret his decision to leave? As he was contemplating these questions and planning to turn around and go home, Frank spotted an old grey owl in a big oak tree. The owl cooed:

If you never go

You will never see

What th other place could be

             The owl’s words were exactly what Frank needed to hear to keep going on his adventure, and with the owl’s advice he decided to travel to Panmith and start a new adventure…

Green Swamp Frog, Source: Pixabay

Author's Note: This is a retelling of an original tale from the Japanese Tales (Lang) unit called The Two Frogs. In the original tale, two frogs go on top of a hill to see the other's land and decide if they want to go visit the other side. When the frogs climb on each others' backs, they have their noses facing the new land but their eyes (on the back of their head) face their land they just came from. They see, what they think is the unexplored land, looks the same as theirs and decide to turn around and go back home. In my story, I wanted them to go to the unexplored land because I think being adventurous and traveling is so important in life.

Bibliography: The Two Frogs. The Violet Fairy Book by Andrew Lang and illustrated by H. J. Ford (1901).

Week 6 Reading Diary: Japanese Fairy Tales

The Two Frogs: The introduction reminded me of The Parent Trap, where the two twins do not know about each other before meeting at camp and then they both wanted to explore the life of the other to see what their other parent was like. When the frogs forget their eyes are in the back of their heads, and think where they came from is the unexplored town, I gave a little giggle. This story was funny and you almost feel bad for the poor little frogs that they will never know that the other town actually is completely different and they will never explore it.

The Stonecutter: I think this story provides a good message, that even when the stonecutter got what he wanted, he always ended up discontent. It was never enough for him. Many people find this problem when they turn to fulfillment through material things. The ending explains this perfectly: “he had learned to be satisfied with it and did not long to be something or somebody else. And as he never asked for things he had not got, or desired to be greater and mightier than other people, he was happy at last and heard the voice of the mountain spirit no longer.” It is so important that we be happy with who we are and what we have. That is when we will find we are our happiest selves.

The Maiden and the Wooden Helmet: This story included an idea that beauty should be hidden. In many Japanese stories and movies I have read or seen, it seems like this is a common idea. The story ends as a typical Fairy Tale I think of would, with a woman and man living happily ever after with children and were famous for their beauty and goodness.

**** After reading these first three stories, I wanted to note how vastly different these Fairy Tales are than the fairy tales of the unit I read last week: Persian Tales. It is black and white with the two focusing on happiness and important life lessons vs tales of death and horrible incidents. ***

The Sparrow and the Slit Tongue: This story was very interesting and I actually enjoyed it a lot. The woman got what she had coming for her, after she treated the sparrow so horribly for no reason. The husband was rewarded for his faithfulness and his lack of greed in taking the small box, which happened to be filled with jewels. The woman let her eyes deceive her and her greed take over, as she expected the big box be filled with even greater jewels. She got what she deserved though, when serpents attacked her. I enjoyed the connection of the serpents with “forky tongues” to the sparrow whose tongue was slit.

The Cat's Elopement: Cupid made an appearance in this story, which I was intrigued by as Cupid is a Greek mythology character. It shows how universal Greek mythology is that it shows up in a Japanese fairy tale. I also drew the connection to Romeo and Juliette of “unrequited love.” This is another story that ends with a “happily ever after.”

Schippeitaro: This story mentions the Spirit of the Mountain again. I think it might be interesting to research the significance of the Spirit of the Mountain in Japanese culture. This was more of a whimsical story with the cats being evil and the black cat being the Spirit of the Mountain. But the ending still ends happily with the maidens living safely and a feast each year in the brave boy’s honor.

The Crab and the Monkey: Most of the stories so far have included animals taking on seemingly human characteristics. All the lessons that could be explained with humans, instead use animals in the Japanese Fairy tales. The crab was “a very good housewife” which is not something we would normally attribute with a crab. I especially enjoyed the image attached with the story.

How the Wicked Tanuuki was Punished: This story started out so happy and I thought the fox and tanuki were such clever little animals, but I was not expecting the tanuki to betray his wife like that. I actually had to read that paragraph twice to make sure I had read right that he told the buyer she was not dead. The little boy was actually the clever one, and of course, he ended up living happily after he avenged his mothers death.

The Slaying of the Tanuki: I felt bad for the poor woman in this story that the Tanuki tricked into letting her go. It plays on the idea that women always find the best in people and believe they will help them. The offer to help her pound the rice “melted the good woman” and I think this is a character statement about women as well because a man would not be so easily to melt at the offer of help. From this story I am able to see that the Tanuki is an evil little trickster and the people and forest animals do not like his cunning ways. I felt so bad for the poor man who ended up eating his wife due to the evil deed of the Tanuki. This story also mentions how greed is not a good quality, because the Tanuki chooses the large boat thinking he will get more fish, only to come to his death.