Week 10- Destruction Myth Sighting

I was scrolling through Netflix's "Watch Instantly" section, and I began to remember all of these movies that talked about the end of the world. I own three of them: The Day After Tomorrow (the world is being destroyed because of the melting polar ice caps that change the currents of the oceans causing huge and deadly storms), Independence Day (the world is being attacked by aliens), and The Mummy: The Dragon Emperor (the world will be taken over be an immortal chinese emperor and his army). There are numerous movies similar to those, such as 2012, Armageddon, The Core, Cloverfield, The Day the Earth Stood Still, I Am Legend, and Transformers.  All of these movies are centered around the world being attacked and/or destroyed by either extraterrestrial/divine/immortal beings, nature, or disease. However, what I did notice is that none of the movies I can think of end up with everyone and everything being completely destroyed. There is always a glimmer of hope that the human race will overcome the odds and survive. Maybe the screenwriters didn't want to depress people. But maybe it shows humans' innate will to survive, the extinct to fight and hopefully win. We don't want to be destroyed, and these movies raise our hopes that we ultimately won't.

Week 8 & 9- My classmates' blogs

I was looking through people's blogs today, and I thought that a lot of them were pretty cool. Some people had a very cool setup of their page, which made it a lot more interesting and fun to look through. I loved how people put up pictures in their blogs. I haven't done that yet, but I am thinking that I might start. It definitely adds a little something extra to each entry.

I liked how diverse everybody's interests and perspectives are. Especially the entries where it's not so much applying a specific analysis to a story or situation, but when it is more of a personal opinion, such as the ages of man in society or how we see mythology in politics or other modern lenses. I also think it is helpful to see what everyone is learning from the class and how they are applying it to the different prompts. I found it educational to read through classmates' entries for applying the Jungian analysis to a fairy tale or comparing a modern movie or story to the hero's journey. It is a good place to find some insight and to get the creative juices flowing for my own prompts.

Week Seven- Creation of USA

The nation of the United State of America was formed in 1776 when the thirteen colonies declared their independence from the British and won their independence after their victory in the Revolutionary War. The former of this new nation and its government was the Continental Congress, a convention of delegates from the thirteen colonies. The president of the Continental Congress was Peyton Randolph of Virginia, and then later John Hancock of Massachusetts.
 I do not think that the United States has yet to have the Golden Age. In large part because of my Christian faith, I don't believe that the Golden Age will come until Jesus comes back and the world is without sin.
The Silver Age I think was more when we first became a nation, declaring our independence and setting up a democratic system of government. It was a new way of living and thinking about how things should be run, just like how in Ovid's creation story he says that "men sought- for the first time- the shelter of a house."
 The Bronze Age could be seen as the Industrial Revolution, when our nation was prospering, which was from 1750 to 1850, but also held the time of Manifest Destiny in the 1840s, where the United States was prone to warfare with the Native Americans.
In all honesty, I think that we are always in the Iron Age. Human nature is greedy, warlike, and impious. Humans lie and are not always loyal. This age is one that we are constantly fighting against but can never quite escape.  

Week 4- Jungian Analysis of "Enchanted"

Dreamer #1: Giselle

Shadow: Queen Narissa, Nancy
Animus: Prince Edward, Robert Phillip
Self: Morgan, portal

1. Giselle is saved from the troll by Prince Edward (animus)
2. Queen Narissa (shadow) pushed her into the well/portal (self)
3. Giselle meets Robert (animus) and his daughter Morgan (self)
4. Giselle meets Robert's fiancé Nancy (shadow)
4. Giselle eats the apple given to her by Queen Narissa (shadow)
5. Robert (animus) kisses Giselle, waking her up
6. Queen Narissa (shadow) is defeated

Dreamer #2: Robert Philip

Shadow: Prince Edward
Anima: Giselle, Morgan, Nancy
Self: I couldn't figure out who the self was! None of the characters seemed to fit well, accept for maybe Prince Edward, but he was already the shadow.

1. Robert meets Giselle (anima) and lets her stay with him and his daughter (Morgan)
2. Robert meets Prince Edward (shadow) when he finds Giselle
3. Robert goes to the ball with Nancy (anima)
4. Robert kisses Giselle (anima) to wake her up

Dreamer #3: Prince Edward

Shadow: Nathaniel
Anima: Queen Narissa (negative anima), Giselle (positive anima), Nancy (positive anima)
Self: Chipmunk, portal

1. Prince Edward saves Giselle (anima) from the troll
2. Prince Edward and the chipmunk (self) go through the portal (self) to find Giselle
3. Nathaniel (shadow) finds Prince Edward in NYC and attempts to thwart his search for Giselle
4. Prince Edward finds Giselle (anima)
5. Prince Edward and Queen Narissa (anima) have a confrontation after she poisons Giselle
6. Prince Edward goes back through the portal (self) with Nancy (anima), where they get married

Week 6- Norse Mythology Today

Norse mythology, in my opinion, is the most popular and used mythology today. From mythology we get fairies, dwarves, giants, and elves. Some sitings of Norse mythology in the 21st century:

1) Harry Potter- Hagrid is half-giant, though his brother is full.  Harry also has to swim with mermaids for a challenge in the Triwizard Cup. Fenrir, who is one of the monsters born from Loki and the giantess Angrboda, is the name of an evil werewolf in the series. Harry also fights a troll in his first year at Hogwarts.

2) The Inheritance Trilogy- The main characters of this book series are elves, dwarves, and dragons (which are first seen in Greek mythology but are also present in Norse mythology).

3) Thor (the movie)- The entire movie is based on Norse gods and creatures, such as Thor and his hammer, Odin, Loki, Frigg (Frigga in the movie) and the Frost Giants.

4) My Word Search puzzle- In a word search puzzle that I was working on a couple of days ago, a ran across Thor as one of the words I had to find.

5) Everyday conversations- When someone is really tall or big, we often call them a "giant". If someone is really short or small, we sometimes call them a "dwarf".

6) Hairstyles!- Ladies can get a "pixie" haircut.

Week 5- Myths Present Today

For me personally, mythology is a way for me to realize or recognize my desire to be more than what I am. Though my world is boring a lot of the time, I like to imagine that I can have great adventures, or a hero's journey. I think that a lot of people feel the same way. I believe that this is why mythic-based movies and novels are so popular. Within the past couple of years, there has been Twilight (movies and books), The Green Lantern, Thor, Clash of the Titans, Underworld: Awakening, There Be Dragons, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and many more. We love the idea, like Otto Rank stated, that a hero has trials and overcomes them. They have adventures; good fights evil and prevails. Even though we do not experience the supernatural in that sense (we can't fly on dragons or marry vampires), but we can experience those things from movies or books. We can be invited into that world from the safety of our living rooms.

The whole idea of predator versus pray is seen a lot in world politics throughout history. I was watching a documentary in my International Relations class called Faces of the Enemy. It was all about how we dehumanize the enemy to justify killing others in war. It reminded me a lot about the book that we have looked at in class about how humans used to be prey and how that has affected mythology. In propaganda and editorial cartoons, the enemy was often portrayed as a monster of some sort: pointy teeth, crazy eyes, sharp claws. They were something to be feared. First feared, and then terminated. First they are the predator, and then they become the prey.

Noticing how mythology is present in our world today helps me to form more questions about mythology because it shows just how prevalent they are. That is because they are part of the human psyche; they are part of who we are as the human race. Mythology is the product of the social norms that have developed over time, our fears and dreams, and the complicated things of life that we are still trying to figure out. They are eternal.

A Hero's Journey- Star Trek

The Call to Adventure

At the bar, Jim Kirk is called to join Starfleet by Captain Pike. The challenge: “up” his father.

Refusal of the Call

Jim resists joining Starfleet, but eventually decides to take the challenge.

Supernatural Aide

“Bones” (aka Leonard McCoy) helps Jim get on to the Enterprise to help his fellow students respond to a distress signal. 

Crossing the First Threshold

Jim tries to beat a simulation. Spock challenges him with the idea of a “no win” situation and staying calm in the face of certain death. Jim does not believe in “no win” situations.

In the Belly of the Whale

Jim sneaks aboard the USS Enterprise for a mission by Bones giving him injections to make him sick.

The Road of Trials

Jim has to destroy the jamming signal on planet Vulkan.

Belly of the Whale

Jim gets banished to an Arctic planet/wasteland

Supernatural Aid

Jim is rescued from a wild beast by the future Spock

The Road of Trials

Jim and Scotty beam back to the USS Enterprise

Atonement with the Father

Jim stands up to Spock; becomes captain of the Enterprise

Crossing the Threshold

Jim and Spock beam aboard the Romulan ship

The Road of Trials

Jim and Spock rescue Captain Pike

The Ultimate Boon: Elixir Quest

Jim becomes the permanent captain of the USS Enterprise (in a sense steps into his father’s shoes)

Atonement with Father

Jim and Spock reconcile and become friends

The Return

Jim returns to Earth, but goes back out into space to have more adventures (aka exploring new worlds)