Blog Entry 1

The main purpose of selecting this class, Once Upon a Time - Folk and Fairy Tales Around the World, was to expand my knowledge base. Being a senior having majors in the economic department, I have rarely ventured into any classroom where math was not the dominant focus of the curriculum. Furthermore, most of my new learning over the last four years rarely included anything outside of the western hemisphere. I will admit at times I learned about famous philosophers from the other part of the world and their economic doctrines; however most of that work just reinforced the western philosophers' works. While searching for classes on archway, I saw that this particular class could afford me the opportunity to expand my understanding outside of my major. Expanding my understanding of the world is my main goal for this class. I hope that by the end of the final exam I will meet this goal.

Growing up I was a typical kid who enjoyed the “classic” Disney movies. I loved Peter Pan, Aladdin, and Toy Story. These movies intrigued my younger mind with their fantastical worlds and adventurous plot lines. As I grew up I began to like more mature fairy tales. My favorite fairy tale of all time is the Lord of the Rings (LOTR) trilogy. This trilogy captured my attention through the same mechanisms as the previous three mentioned. LOTR was a land where elves, dwarfs, trolls, men, and many more races of humanoids coexisted and battled for good and evil. I am not entirely sure why these common characteristics have and will continue to intrigue me, but I know that going forward I will favor movies and literature of this type.