The following
questions are here to help guide you through Wednesday's reading, but are
mandatory for the "Revenge" Group to answer. Their members are: Liv
C, Marissa M, Tara S, Jordan H, Kele P, Cody T, Estelle L, Anthony Y, Casi B,
Zach W, Brookelyn L
READ the following
stories: The Story of Mimi-Nashi-Hoichi, Oshidori, The Story of O-Tei,
Ubazakura, and Diplomacy.
Answer TWO of the
following:
Q1: In the story,
"Diplomacy," the narrator writes that "if any person be killed
while feeling strong resentment, the ghost of that person will be able to take
vengeance upon the killer" (29). Why might a culture believe that dying a
'good death' is more important than how (or when) you die? Do other stories
comment on this as well?
Q2: What sense of
good and evil (or justice) do these stories offer? Do they follow an obvious
sense of right and wrong, or are people punished or rewarded in a less obvious
way? Is there a story that seems to offer a clear, recognizable moral; or does
a specific story stand out for being more arbitrary in its 'happy ending'?
Q3: Throughout the
stories, Hearn (an American by way of England) struggles to translate the
culture and customs of Japan through these colorful, exotic stories. One
of the most significant ideas is found in the story “Of a Mirror and a Bell,”
when he explains the concept known as “nazoraëru.” What does this word
mean, and how might it capture something of the Japanese perspective on the
invisible powers that shape the world? Do we have something similar to
this in Western/American culture?
Q4: What do these
stories have in common with Western (or American) ghost stories such as
something by Poe, or Dracula, or even horror movies like The Exorcist
or The Haunting? Are these stories equally concerned with being
'scary' or shocking? Or is this supernatural element more superficial, and more
of a "finger" than a "moon"? Use a specific story to
support your response.
No comments:
Post a Comment