Ms. Gokturk

Mythology

Ancestors’ Creation Story Project (100 pts)

YOUR TASK: Using the ancestral creation myth you selected and researched, choose one of the options from below to modernize and illustrate it. Choose an option that works best with your brain. Teach the class and have fun!

OPTIONS:

1. First Person Short Story. Choose one of the characters from your myth and write the story from that perspective using “I.” Use dialogue, sensory imagery, and include a clear setting. (This is an extension of one of your HW questions.) Aim for about 800-1000 words. Be accurate to the story, but fill in the missing pieces to humanize the story. Please single space, give your story a title, and include a byline. After you have submitted your story to turnitin.com, please change the format to landscape and two columns, please. Be sure to include the cultural and scientific truths are taught by this story. Be sure to create a strong voice!
2. Children’s Book. Write the story in a way that would be suitable for children (at least in format – the subject matter may be, well, um, not so child-friendly at times). Illustrate each page. Your story should be educational. Be sure to include the cultural and scientific truths are taught by this story. You may create your illustrations by hand or on computer. You may opt for either first or third person for this narration. While there is no word count minimum, you should be sure to cover the tale with enough detail.
3. A Play. Write your myth in a play script format. You will rely only on dialogue to drive your play forward, not narration. Be sure to include the cultural and scientific truths are taught by this story. Aim for about 800-1000 words. Please single space, give your play a title, and include a byline. After you have submitted your play to turnitin.com, please change the format to landscape and two columns, please.
4. Essay. Write a critical essay that analyzes the myth as a tool to understand the world from which it originates. Consider how this myth speaks to our “collective unconscious” – in other words, what universal truths/archetypes do you see? Aim for about 800-1000 words. Please single space, give your essay a title (which reveals your thesis), and include a byline. After you have submitted your essay to turnitin.com, please change the format to landscape and two columns, please. This is a scholarly essay and should have a formal tone. Cite any outside sources you consult/quote.

Presenting

• Short stories, essays, and plays will be compiled into a Creation Myth Anthology (Xerox) and shared with the class. Children’s books will be read to the class in a story time format.
• All projects will be presented.
• First tell the class what myth you adapted. Provide a summary of the myth to the class.
• Describe what type (of the five types of creation myths) it is and how.
• Explain how/where it is etiological. What scientific, human, cultural, etc. truths does it reveal?
• Explain what you did in your project and why/how.
• Share project excerpts (longer works) or read entire children’s book.