For this weeks reading, I found that there were more Christian themes and new interest for men. A lot of the stories we have read previously, where, somewhat putting women as mermaids in which they were sexualized, lusted, dangerous, but in this weeks, reading, we kind of continue that theme of the siren, where women now offer men knowledge. Some of the reading for me was a little bit difficult to understand, but what I picked up on from “The Legend of Melusina” and the other three versions of the same tale was sort of the curiosity of the unknown. This theme almost reminded me of somewhat the Christian sort of wanting the readers to fear this unknown or better yet stay true to their promises and have faith. The stories, in a way, reminded me of Adam and Eve, and not trusting that same serpent symbol. If Eve were to have simply listened to what God said, then there would be no trouble, and in this case, if the king were to have listened and not seen Melusina on Saturday, then all would have been well. It’s as if the church was trying to push the message that you need to have faith and discipline, regardless of your curiosity of the unknown; to essentially not be led into temptation. I just enjoyed how, in this case, the unknown was the sort of knowledge thing rather than the temptation of a woman’s body, or what women might dangerously do. This is the sort of spreading I was used to before coming into this class, rather than putting women into negative light in order to teach them and spread messages.
Week 5: Christian Themes and New Interest for Men
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