Fairy Tale Literacy Narrative : The fairytale that affected me emotionally is Beauty.  In Giambattista Basile’s 1634 version, The Sun, the Moon, and Thalia (similarSleeping  to the popular versions by Charles Perrault and the Brothers Grimm), Thalia (the “Sleeping Beauty” version) sleeps with deep sleep after a prophecy about a doubt. When Ketan found her, he didn’t wake up to kiss her and put her to sleep. Later, Talia gave birth to twins when she didn’t know it, one of the babies sucked the cotton from her finger and woke up. The satisfaction and motivation of power This is often seen as a reflection of some of the historical attitudes towards women and their independence, although it is rarely discussed today. It touches my heart because it shows that my wife has to make a choice about who she wants to have children with. I feel emotional because I don’t want my daughter or a relative to be rejected. I don’t want anyone I love or care about to be hurt. The victim becomes suicidal and is affected mentally and spiritually. I felt sorry for the queen..The princess also ended up having twins. She also ended up having to marry the prince. I feel sorrow because she had no choice but to marry the King. The king was the same man that raped her in her sleep. She should have a choice on who she wants to be with and who she wants to marry. My teacher shared this tale with me. It plays into its significance because I did not know that this was a version of the tale. A version of raping and the princess having kids in her sleep. Sleeping beauty shapes my worldview. It shapes my worldview because it shows me that anything can happen to someone while they are unconscious. I drew moral lessons from Sleeping Beauty. One moral lesson is the inescablity of fate. As the story shows, tragedy cannot be avoided no matter how hard we try. Despite his best efforts to protect Thalia from the Flax Seed Vision, he still fails at it. It shows that no amount of planning and foresight can change things in the near future. The moral lesson is that fate and destiny are beyond human control, and attempts to avoid them are futile. People have to accept and adapt to the situations that life creates. Another moral lesson is forgiveness and redemption in love. Despite the king’s brutal actions, Thalia forgives him and eventually falls in love with him. Although this aspect of the story is problematic in modern interpretations (as it encourages or condones sexual violence), the original story may have tried to teach a lesson about forgiveness. sin and reconciliation. The king is also depicted as finally coming to “save” Thalia from her jealous husband, challenging the idea that love can save the misguided or violent. The story, in its original form, says that forgiveness and acceptance lead to salvation and happiness, even when it is done badly – even if this is viewed today. My final moral lesson is that actions pay off. A misdemeanor, even if not immediately punished, can have unexpected consequences for the offender. These moral lessons influence my view of love. I think that just because you have kids with someone doesn’t mean you have to get married. I would want to marry someone that I love and that I know wants to be with me until we get old and die. I don’t want to marry someone just because I have to. Sleeping Beauty uses a variety of literary devices. One literacy device that was used is personification. In the tale, the princess gets a spell cast on her. The spell put her to sleep for 100 years. The human characteristic is sleeping. The spell represents the attribution of something that is unhuman that gives the human quality of sleeping. Another literacy device that is used is symbolism. The sleeping curse acts as a symbolic interruption in life, symbolizing a time of waiting and change. In numerous perspectives, the princess’s slumber represents a shift from being a child to becoming an adult, and her awakening represents her preparedness for the duties of adulthood, marriage, and love. A key symbol in Sleeping Beauty is the spindle that the princess uses to prick her finger. This spindle symbolizes fate and the unavoidable nature of destiny. Although the king and queen tried to stop the curse, the spindle serves as a reminder that destiny cannot be changed. A third literacy device that is used is allusion. Sleeping Beauty incorporates elements and ideas from previous fairy tales, myths, and religious narratives, including the concept of a hero overcoming villainy and reviving a princess. These references link the narrative to a wider literary and cultural heritage. Sleeping Beauty is a fairytale that has a significant impact on my life. It will always have a strong personal connection with me.  

Researched Critical Analysis:

Racial passing or race switching is an act epitomizing the fluidity and complexity of racial identity; it brings to light stiffened social constructs while at the same time revealing deep-seated issues of privilege, discrimination, and cultural authenticity within historical and contemporary contexts. The first set of examples includes popular culture, where race-switching sometimes refers to identity performance—that is, when a person may adopt the outward markers of another race in a way that is usually superficial or commodified. This always touches on the question of cultural appropriation: the adoption of elements from a marginalized culture without a profound understanding of its meaning or history. Through the commodification of race, the lived experiences of the group in question may be diluted or distorted. Historically, there has been a lot of criticism leveled against Hollywood and other entertainment industries for racial non descriptiveness and casting white actors in roles originally written for people of color, or alternatively casting them in stereotypical roles, wherein white actors would play Asian or Indigenous characters. Said type of “race-switching” is also condemned for the erasure of racial and ethnic identities and further for perpetuating racial stereotypes.

The article “I Don’t Want a Black Ariel. Why We Shouldn’t Be Satisfied With Race Switching” discusses the practice in Hollywood to change the race of already established characters—more notably, Halle Bailey being cast as Ariel in Disney’s The Little Mermaid. Such an approach often rings hollow as a solution to deeper representation issues rather than meaningful progress, the author suggests. Many of the race-swapping critics have pointed out that instead of making changes to iconic characters’ races, Hollywood should focus on coming up with new stories and characters that would authentically represent those diverse communities and their unique experiences. “Changing The race of Ariel is nothing but cheap, second-hand representation that I’m not backing. Ariel’s story is one that has already been told through Hans Christensen Andersen’s fairy-tale and the 1989 Disney  adaption and she’s been a little white mermaid. I don’t see why it’s time she is now black and why this had us as a race so happy”“I Don’t Want a Black Ariel.” — Why We Shouldn’t Be Satisfied With Race Switching. Peekay, July 2019 . Halle Berry made a cultural change for acting for blacks in Disney movies.

The “Three Black Princesses” is one of the lesser-known fairy tales collected by the Brothers Grimm. The story is rather mysterious and magical, containing themes typical for a fairy tale; it has, however, a rather dark and eerie tone, which is characteristic of many Grimm stories. They tell the boy that they can be freed only if he succeeds in remaining inside the castle for three nights without being overcome by fear. The boy bravely accepts, though each night, all that is terrifying within the castle becomes alive with supernatural events.Thus, lifting the curse, the three black princesses are set free from their enchanted condition. The story normally ends with some kind of reward or blessing for the boy but, like many fairy tales, it leaves a tinge of mystery about what happens to the boy and the princesses afterward. “Grimm, Jacob, The Three Black Princesses, November 25, 2020.

In Trading Races: Albescence Staining Xenoface and Other Race-Switching Practices in American Popular Culture” Baty explores how these race-switching behaviors reveal intricate social conflicts pertaining to privilege identity and power. Acts of racial impersonation according to the paper highlight ingrained racial stereotypes power dynamics and racialized cultural anxieties in the US. Even though these actions occasionally appear to investigate otherness or foster empathy they frequently serve to uphold rather than to question pre existing racial hierarchies. By thoroughly examining a number of instances including the use of blackface in the media and whitening or darkening cosmetic procedures Baty assesses how these practices commodify race and alter identity for purposes of aesthetics amusement or social advancement. In the end Trading Races makes the claim that race-switching is not a pointless activity but is instead closely related to concerns about privilege authenticity and social control. Instead of addressing the complex and real realities of race the work offers a critical lens on American cultures propensity to reduce it to a performative and consumable concept. Russell, J. G. (2018). Trading Races: Albescence, Staining, Xenoface, and Other Race‐Switching Practices in American Popular Culture. Journal of American Culture (Malden, Mass.), 41(3), 267–278. https://doi.org/10.1111/jacc.12935

Laura McKees collection of essays called  Sense of Regard explores the relationship between identity, race and poetry. Contributors—poets, critics and academics—talk about how poetic expression both betrays and reflects issues of race and racial identity. They also explore how poetry can be used to address issues of cultural diversity racial injustice and inequality. The essays explore how poets of various races address racial issues promoting conversation on subjects like social marginalization, historical trauma and cultural memory. In the same sentence authors explore how poetry serves as a vehicle for expressing and confronting racial experiences frequently creating new bonds where ones have been broken through empathy and understanding through in-depth readings and personal reflections. It also outlines the difficulties poets face when addressing racial issues including representational obligations and the function of privilege in the literary community. A Sense of Regard centers on the function of poetry which has been incredibly potent and nuanced in its own right in terms of making social commentary by capturing the political and personal aspects of race in both historical and modern contexts. The anthology emphasizes poetrys capacity to give voice to marginalized experiences and its ongoing significance in discussions of justice, race and identity. McCullough, L. (Ed.). (2015). A Sense of Regard Essays on Poetry and Race (1st ed.). University of Georgia Press.

Sophia Smith Galer discusses the controversy on Aladdin. The film-makers – including director Guy Ritchie – are on the hunt for leads who can live up to the animated film’s loveable street urchin Aladdin and Princess Jasmine. It’s been revealed that they’re struggling to wrap up their months-long search because of a difficulty in finding a singing, dancing actor who is Middle Eastern or Indian to play the title role. Disney have not commented on the search, and although it has been suggested that the lengthy casting process is due to the studio’s commitment to finding the right actors, some are critical of the studio’s struggle. The film was criticised for perpetuating Orientalist stereotypes of the Middle East and Asia. The American-Arab Anti Discrimination Committee saw light-skinned, Anglicised features in the heroes Aladdin and Jasmine that contrasted sharply with the swarthy, greedy street merchants who had Arabic accents and grotesque facial features. The disney character was used as a stereotype and is an example of race switching. Galer, Sophia Smith. The Aladdin Controversy Disney Can’t Escape. 24 Feb. 2022, www.bbc.com/culture/article/20170714-the-aladdin-controversy-disney-cant-escape.

Andie Korage discusses the Halle Berry controversy surrounding the Little Mermaid. Ariel, in the 2023 film “The Little Mermaid,” was played by Halle Bailey, a Black actress. When Disney announced this casting, people took to the internet to insult Bailey and push for a white Ariel. The hashtag “NotMyAriel” began trending and slogans like “Make the Little Mermaid Great Again” were used to support the childish cries of those who opposed her casting. Many claimed that the reason they were so against Bailey playing the role was because Ariel was a redhead. They argued that redheads were often made fun of, and that Ariel made them feel beautiful and seen. No matter how sweet a sentiment that might be, there are two other redheaded princesses, Merida and Anna, in addition to Ariel. Americans could not accept the fact that the Disney princess was acted by a black woman. It shows that Americans prefer Whites to act in the movies they watch.  Korenge, Andie. “[Opinion] the Public’s Outrage Over Race-swapping Disney Princesses in Live-action Films Is Unreasonable.” Eagle Eye News, eagleeye.news/30241/opinion/off-campus-opinion-story/opinion-the-publics-outrage-over-race-swapping-disney-princesses-in-live-action-films-is-unreasonable.

Self Assessment : In this course I have explored and analyzed, in writing and reading, a variety of genres and rhetorical situations. I have written multiple essays and analyzed multiple readings, and it has helped me become a better reader and writer. In the course we used rhetorical situations and critical analysis for our essays. We used articles as primary sources to identify what we were reading and writing about. I feel I achieved the learning course outcome to the extent of learning how to identify the rhetorical situation of an article. It took me a while to fully understand how the CLOS and rhetorical situations came together to create a flow of information communicated. I have been assigned a variety of genres and I have written good examples of the literacy narrative and argumentative essay.

I have developed strategies for reading, drafting, collaborating, revising and editing. We would use peer editing to help us with our assignments. Usually, we would get worksheets and explain to our peers what they can do to make their writing more comprehensive and understanding to the reader. We also used color coding in our writings as well. We used color coding as a template to highlight the changes in our writings from our first draft to our second draft. Multimodal elements were also used to help the readers understand better what they are reading about. The multimodal elements are different types of communications to help show the reader what your writing about. For example, if I was writing an essay on sleeping beauty, I would attach pictures from the Internet to the essay and use the images as my multimodal elements. They also include books, websites, films, advertisements and videos. The feedback I received from my professor and peers has helped me become a better reader and writer.  I feel I achieved this CLO.

I had trouble with implementing rhetorical terms in my writing. I had a hard time putting the terms in my essays. In some cases, I felt it didn’t make any sense to include rhetorical terms in my writing. My confusion with the rhetorical terms is putting it within the body of my essay. The rhetorical terms and strategies were easier to understand with reflection pages. For one assignment I had gotten a 0 for not following the grading checklist. In this course we used the rhetorical devices ethos, pathos and logos in writing prompts. Ethos being an appeal to the speaker’s authority or credibility. Pathos is an appeal to the audience’s emotions. Finally, Logos is an  appeal to the audience’s logic or reason. When a writer identifies whether the reading is ethos pathos or logos it shows that they can identify the rhetorical term of the story. It also gives the reader a better understanding of the tone of the story. I feel I did not achieve this CLO to the best of my ability. 

In this CLO, I have understood and used print and digital technologies to address a range in audiences. In this course, we used wordpress site links to show our writings in a separate website. I made a digital portfolio for the site. I made a domain name and site title that reflects our course. When I use my portfolio I attach my essays and use color-coding and multimodal elements to express the dialogues. The portfolio also includes earlier drafts, revision strategies, peer reviews, in class reflections and annotations of course texts and homework. The portfolio helps me stay organized and use digital and print technologies has helped me improve as a writer. I feel that I have achieved this CLO to my best ability. In this course I feel that I composed texts that integrate a stance with appropriate sources, using strategies such as summary, analysis, synthesis, and argumentation. Using cited pages helped with organizing and supporting my sources. The cited pages help support the evidence that I implement in my essays and writing prompts. In this course we used researched critical analysis worksheets to brainstorm and identify what we wanted to write. For this assignment we had to  analyze and/or compare one (or more) fairy tales based on a theme, pattern, idea or topic that you noticed about the tale/s.Include a comprehensive thesis that sets a path for the whole essay.

 Your thesis should form a specific argument that you will develop with research.  We had to use scholarly sources to support and/or contradict your analysis. We also had to use a synthesis sheet to organize and summarize our sources. We used four sentences to summarize the sentences to complete the worksheet and include it in the researched critical analysis paper. I feel that I achieved this CLO and my writing has improved because of it. In this course, I have achieved  course learning outcomes. The learning outcomes have helped me become a better reader and writer in the long run. Every strategy that I learned in this course helped  best  to improve my literacy skills.