tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4950999049789394042.post7936990524648208124..comments2024-03-27T06:42:26.250-07:00Comments on Seven Miles of Steel Thistles: "Jorinda and Joringel" - a new Fairytale ReflectionKatherine Langrishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12529700103932422873noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4950999049789394042.post-62632901502999689182013-02-17T03:38:35.628-08:002013-02-17T03:38:35.628-08:00That's a lovely interpretation, Ditto. Thanky...That's a lovely interpretation, Ditto. Thankyou! Katherine Langrishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12529700103932422873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4950999049789394042.post-86287558683864368402013-02-16T05:52:27.686-08:002013-02-16T05:52:27.686-08:00The flower symbolizes the proof of love, of coura...The flower symbolizes the proof of love, of courage, that impossible deed that needs to be done in order to show worthiness. The witch symbolizes both fear and circumstance, that one thing that keeps you away from your true love, distance, career, religion, disapproving parents, status, etc... If i bring this flower so unique, so rare, so unattainable, then i'll be so brave that no forest, no gate and no witch will keep me from my loveDittonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4950999049789394042.post-88695526150185402172012-03-30T03:56:24.314-07:002012-03-30T03:56:24.314-07:00Lovely, thought-provoking piece, as ever, Katherin...Lovely, thought-provoking piece, as ever, Katherine. What a strong image of the woman in the street too, sends a shiver. So often, though, older people (and especially women) are portrayed as bad/wicked in some of these stories and this can throw out negative ripples across the generations? Some years ago when working with reminiscence groups I wanted to find stories to tell that reflected a more positive view. The great Ben Haggarty related one called The Seventh Father of the House, which, since I was working with a group of women at the time, I adapted to The Seventh Mother. (Ben said it was Norwegian, I think.)Linda Sargentnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4950999049789394042.post-56120936404407214542012-03-30T03:18:45.848-07:002012-03-30T03:18:45.848-07:00I hadn't read this story before. It has a sta...I hadn't read this story before. It has a stark, bitter-sweet beauty that speaks to something in me in just the way some poetry does. <br /><br />You're absolutely right that one can enjoy these tales in the same way as one enjoys poetry - it connects with something deep and not always explicable within us. It is amazing how differently people can interpret these stories - as with poems. I think that's a huge part of their charm and importance - they shape-shift to suit the reader/listener. <br /><br />I'm dying to look it up - I must have it in a collection somewhere. Thanks for the introduction! <br /><br />Love the illustration you've paired with it.Lynnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01674923395134039554noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4950999049789394042.post-50501935695786991592012-03-30T02:48:53.547-07:002012-03-30T02:48:53.547-07:00I loved this tale when I was a child, but for year...I loved this tale when I was a child, but for years I haven't been able to remember their names only the haunting empty landscape, the twilit wood, the sorrow of the birds in the cages and of Joringel's bereftment - the ominous underlying sense of threat.<br />So thankyou for filling in the missing pieces! I was only thinking of it the other day in fact - how strange, but as soon as I began to read your post I could see again vividly the illustrations that I loved in the Grimms fairy tales book I had then. Wish I still had that book - I'm remembering some of the other tales in it now with all their illustrations...<br />Also I love that Arthur Rackham illustration of the owl!<br />Carrie... :)Windsongs and Wordhoardshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12211375575810428500noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4950999049789394042.post-14397259276385738502012-03-30T02:20:10.584-07:002012-03-30T02:20:10.584-07:00Thinking further about your comment, Sue - (though...Thinking further about your comment, Sue - (though darn it, I ought to go away and write!) - I do agree with what you wrote about the likely meanings behind the motifs in the story, YET the sort of intellectual satisfaction that explanation delivers - as if solving the puzzle of what the story's about - isn't enough for me. This tale packs a huge emotional punch, which parallels with Athena, or traditional customs of young brides 'mourning' their approaching change of status, just don't account for. The story's alive and it does something - and I'm fascinated by what!Katherine Langrishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12529700103932422873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4950999049789394042.post-54073195571587072652012-03-30T01:44:19.567-07:002012-03-30T01:44:19.567-07:00That's a brilliant analysis, Sue! And as you ...That's a brilliant analysis, Sue! And as you say, it shows how differently these tales can strike different people. Your interpretation makes great sense, but the wonder of fairytales is like that of poems, that they can be emotional amplifiers. These stories are bit like looking into old, dimly silvered mirrors and we see ourselves oddly changed in them. Perhaps one can interpret fairytales but not ultimately explain them? <br /><br />Cath, thankyou so much - what a lovely compliment! I'm heading for your blog now! :)Katherine Langrishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12529700103932422873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4950999049789394042.post-55879037927781033812012-03-30T01:29:20.561-07:002012-03-30T01:29:20.561-07:00Hi. I just wanted to pop in and tell you that I...Hi. I just wanted to pop in and tell you that I've just finished reading West of the Moon. It's no exaggeration to say that I adored it - the best YA fantasy I've read in a long time. I'm not great at reviews but what passes for one is up on my blog now. Thanks for writing such a brilliant book(s).Cathhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06371069000185280668noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4950999049789394042.post-37156839307147632522012-03-30T01:25:34.984-07:002012-03-30T01:25:34.984-07:00I'm not saying your interpretation is wrong, K...I'm not saying your interpretation is wrong, Kath - one of the wonders of these tales is that they're open to so many interpretations - but my impression is a little different.<br />For one, the old woman is associated with the owl, which associates her with Athena. She's also a huntress, who seems to prize and cage (or guard) unmarried girls, which associates her with Artemis. Both these goddesses had their darker, Death sides.<br />The youngsters are lost in a wood - wode within this wood. The forest has long been associated with the dangers and traps of life, some of them sexual - but mostly, I think, to do with 'losing one's way' or losing one's self. There's also a tradition of the girl about to be married mourning her single life her 'happy life at home with her parents'. She's about to launch onto adult life, with all its responsibility and cares.<br />The owl-woman snatches her away from all this and fastens her securely in a cage - but doesn't otherwise mistreat her. The old woman also frees the young man without harming him and tells him that if he does the right thing, he can free the girl.<br />I think the old woman is a kind of marriage counsellor!<br />And I got really easy Blogger words today!Susan Pricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07738737493756183909noreply@blogger.com