Rache Writes

How to Provide Great Feedback When You're Not In Charge  I really liked separating feedback into three distinct categories. A lot of my professors exclusively use evaluation, but even when someone combines it with appreciation and advice I'm definitely prone to hear the evaluation most prominently. It's really good to see this laid out and to think about how I receive different feedback so that it's easier to give constructive feedback to someone else. How to Give Bad Feedback Without Being a Jerk This article was also really helpful, especially when it pointed out that the compliment sandwich helps the giver but not the receiver. I also really loved the point about asking someone if they want feedback. I know that's less applicable for this class, but I think in my life a great way to start hard conversations is to make sure they're open to it first. I think overall both the articles helped me shift my mindset from what makes me feel best giving feedback ...

After some more research and hearing Laura's feedback, I've decided to focus on the Hindu goddess Kali. I really love the dual understanding of her nature and the recent feminist retellings. As I've said before in one of my blog posts, I really love origin stories. It just so happens that Kali has three different origin stories, so I decided to research those as a starting point. 1.  In the first version, the goddess Durga was in a battle and became so angry that her rage burst Kali forth from her forehead. Once on the battlefield, Kali ate all the demons she encountered, stringing their heads on a chain that became her famous and horrifying necklace. This is also the story where the famous image of Kali stepping on Shiva comes from, as his putting himself in his path is the only thing that stops her rampage. 2. There's a couple of versions where Parvati becomes Kali, but the one I'm most interested in is when the gods were trying to defeat Daruka, who could onl...

Thousands and thousands of years ago, a princess was born. And as she grew, her mother told her lots of stories. Stories about riches and kings and wars. One night, she told the princess a new story: a legend that there exists a secret, unspeakable name that has the power to create life. The princess was curious and asked her mother if she could find it and create friends for herself. Her mother chuckled and reminded her it was only a legend. When her mother died years later, the princess became queen. Although she enjoyed the crown, she found many parts of her job tedious and unimportant. One day, during a particularly boring meeting, the queen was on the verge of falling asleep when one of her advisors mentioned a piece of paper with a single word. It had been found in a tomb miles away and the discoverers tried with all their might to speak the word with no luck. The princess demanded that it be brought to her. The queen remembered the childhood story of the unspeakable name and...

My favorite story from this half of the week's reading unit is The Rabbi's Bogey-Man from Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends by Gertrude Landa. At first I thought Rabbi Lion was an actual lion, so I was picturing the story wrong through half of it. He is a "magician," or in reality a chemist. He first created a woman servant who burned herself alive, so then he created a man. I liked the device of creation, self-destruction, and then improved creation with the stories of the golems. The ending speaks to the power-hungry nature of man; the desire to overtake the forces that dictate your life. (The bogey-man attempting to get into the cathedral. Source .)

Here are notes from two of the stories that stood out to me today: The Beggar King from Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends by Gertrude Landa This story reminded me a lot of Beauty and the Beast. The overall message was pretty generic–don't be heretical and don't be rude. However, I thought the genie taking his place was an interesting device. I think it's interesting that the holy priest who was originally slighted was not mentioned at the end of the story when the king is redeemed. It seems he never rectified that relationship but instead focused on the relationship between the king and the beggars. The Water-Babe from Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends by Gertrude Landa I thought this story was a lot of fun. It assumes prior knowledge of Moses's story. The foreshadowing of Moses defeating Pharaoh was very blatant, but it was interesting to read about the relationship between these two future foes. I also thought it was interesting that this story set up both the power...