Week 10 Reading Feedback

I finally finished the Mahabharata movie by Peter Brook. I am both happy and sad to see it go. I really enjoyed watching it in terms of entertainment. However, in terms of having to watch it for class, it seemed like the further I went into the movie, the more lost I became. The reading guide (or should I say "watching guide") was really helpful to me. However, there was no such thing for the end section of the movie. I had to rewatch a couple of different scenes in order to remember exactly what was going on in the storyline and who it was happening too. I feel like it would have been a lot easier to understand if I had watched it all at once, rather than splitting it up and forgetting about who was who.

(Image Information: How I like to enjoy my movies. Source: Stircrazy)

Week 9 Reading Feedback

I am watching the Mahabharata by Peter Brook this week and next week. So far, it seems pretty good. However, it is so long! I am having trouble paying attention to everything going on. It is definitely something that you have to split up over time, but by doing so I am forgetting a lot of the stuff I watched the day before. I guess it should be my fault, maybe my notes are not good enough to help me jog my memory.

(Image Information: A TV to watch the movie on. Source: kiss1023)

Week 7 Reading Feedback

I really enjoyed Wilson's version of this epic. It was almost a "dumbed-down" story (for lack of a better word). It did not contain any magical aspects and it was a much more personal story. This would be a great review reading for anyone that wants to catch up on the story later on. I like how it is also split up into different sections to make it not seem overwhelming. I'm really glad I chose to read this piece!

(Image Information: Mahabharata Source: induslibrary)

Week 6 Reading Feedback

I chose the online version of reading these last two weeks because I actually enjoyed reading the Ramayana more online than I did in the textbook. So I decided I would enjoy doing the same with this epic! I gathered a lot of information for my storybook by reading this epic and I cannot wait to see what all I can come up with for this project. I actually find the reading guides really helpful, even though I read the online versions.

(Image Information: The Mahabharata. Source:Holy Books)

I read the PDE story by story, and afterward I read the Reading Guide in order to make sure I understood the overarching story. I didn't spend too long on the readings. They actually are going a lot faster now that I have a little bit of background on the types of stories I will be reading. The audio files are also a blessing.

Week 4: Reading Feedback

I chose to watch "Sita sings the Blues" for my assignment this week. I chose this piece because I actually had found this film about two weeks ago while I was doing some research. After reading a little bit about it and watching the trailer to the film (which is in my Curation post from Week 3), I was very excited to see this as a choice for the reading in week 4! I am very happy I went through with that choice.

I thought it was very refreshing being able to see how people who know the story by head understood the lessons and themes. There were moments in which the narrators pointed out things I never had even thought of. One example of this was their view on Ravana. They all had this understanding that he was actually in good moral character on everything except kidnapping Sita. He apparently prayed to all the right gods and was even said to be one of the most intelligent people in that time. However, from my point of view, I don't know who "the right gods to pray to" are or if Ravana had even prayed to them. 

I also enjoyed that they were not afraid to make fun of something so important to their culture. I really enjoyed the comic relief that they brought to the story. Not only was it fun to watch, but it also reinforced a lot of the storyline I may have been confused about. They basically went over every inch of the main plot so that anyone, even someone like me who does not have experience with ancient Indian Epics before this class, could understand. 

(Image Information: Nina reading the Ramayana with her cat. Source: Filmic-Literacy)

Week 2 Reading Feedback

I chose to do the online readings instead of my book because I got a little confused reading the book I bought and where it correlated to the readings you selected. I found the audio files you made to be very helpful. Some of the pieces were harder to read than others - in my case, these were the ones written in the form of a poem. When I came across these, I knew that your audio would help me understand it more. I did feel like the reading took a little bit longer than you estimated for us. Some stories I had to read more than once because I could not understand what was trying to be said. I did like that you let us chose between online or printed formats of the reading.

(Image Information: Rama and Sita being in love. Source: Gallery Nucleus)