How the Dog Came to Live with Man
Many years ago, the forest was a peaceful place for all of the animals. The animals held many celebrations during this time of peace, however the biggest and most important of all was the "Ka lew Luri Lura" (The Fair of Luri Lura). Occurring every few years, every animal was forced to attend and to bring something to sell. In order to ensure every animal attended with something to sell, the tiger, U Khla was put in charge.
Although not very successful at the time, Man hunted the animals, therefore they were banned from these celebrations. The animals of the forest never dared to leave their home and touch the land of Man, for fear of certain death. This all changed when the dog decided to leave and serve Man.
U Ksew, the dog, was having no luck finding something to sell at the fair. He searched the entire forest, but could find nothing. The dog wanted nothing more than to find something worthy to sell at the fair, so he did the unthinkable and went to the village of Man.
The dog was different from the other animals, in that he was fluffy, loyal, loving, and pleasant-looking. Due to these qualities, the dog was approached and rubbed by multiple children upon entering the village. This was a delightful surprise for him, and found that he enjoyed the affection and attention. He was so happy that he had completely forgot why he was there, until he smelled the most intriguing odor.
Curious to know what was producing the peculiar smell, U Ksew followed the scent, bringing him to the home of Man and his family. Man quickly invited the dog inside to join them for dinner. Abiding, he entered the home.
Excited to see a dog in his house, Man asked, "What brings you to our village? I have never seen your kind out of the forest." The dog responded:
Curious to know what was producing the peculiar smell, U Ksew followed the scent, bringing him to the home of Man and his family. Man quickly invited the dog inside to join them for dinner. Abiding, he entered the home.
Excited to see a dog in his house, Man asked, "What brings you to our village? I have never seen your kind out of the forest." The dog responded:
"Fearing that I wouldn't have anything to sell for the upcoming festival, I had no other choice but to try my luck here. Just when I thought I would leave empty handed, I smelled something unique and followed it to your home. May I ask what it is?"
The scent was coming from fermented Khasi beans, otherwise known as ktung rymbai. Despite the smell, the man promised that it tasted wonderfully. U Ksew immediately fell in love with the taste and requested a jar to sell at the festival.
After receiving the jar of ktung rymbai, he headed back to the forest with a smile on his face. The dog made sure to get to the fair early and get a good spot because he was certain that his item would be the talk of the fair.
So the fair came and U Ksew could hardly contain his excitement. He told everyone how great his item was, consequently leading to all of the animals at the fair to gather around his table. They all wanted to know what was in the jar and demanded he show them. Breaking the seal, the dog opened the jar and out poured the concentrated stench of the fermented Khasi beans.
The animals were caught off guard by the different smell and shouted "Gross, close the jar before we all get sick and die!" U Khla, the tiger then proclaimed, "This is the worst item ever brought to the Ka lew Luri Lura and I ban you from ever attending this fair again!" U Ksew promised that the contents of the jar were the best tasting food he has ever tasted, but nobody would listen.
Now depressed, U Ksew thought of how he was treated by the people of the village. They kindly gave him food and displayed kindness, so he decided to go back to Man's home, forever. U Ksew had no allegiance to the animals of the forest after what had happened at the Luri Lura. He knew he could use his knowledge of the forest, speed, strength, and nose to help with the hunting troubles of Man. By offering his assistance, U Ksew could be fed and loved for the rest of his life.
Confident in his plan, the dog told Man his offer. Man was ecstatic and quickly accepted. Their mutually beneficial friendship was everything they could have hoped for. Man's hunting problems disappeared and the dog was happy for the rest of his life. That is the story of how the dog came to live with Man.
Author's Note
In the original version of the story, the dog is lazy and decides to look for something to sell in the village. There is no worry in the dog when he enters the village and openly talks to the people. After receiving the jar of ktung rymbai, the dog boasted and bragged about his item to all the animals at the fair. The dog cursed the animals and promised to make them pay after being humiliated. Once the dog arrived at the man's house, he was put to work with a pig. The dog was lazy and just ran back and forth all day, leaving all the work for the pig. Angry, the pig told the man. The man didn't believe the pig so he checked the pin in which they were put to work, and noticed all of the footprints of the dog. Convinced the pig was lying to him, the man brought the dog inside and sentenced the pig to live outside in filth. The main goal of my story was to make the dog seem better because I am a huge dog person. To do this, I eliminated the cursing of the animals and the story of the pig.
Bibliography
Book: Folk-Tales of the Khasis
Author: Mrs. Rafty
Year Published: 1920
Web Source: Mythology and Folklore Un-Textbook
The scent was coming from fermented Khasi beans, otherwise known as ktung rymbai. Despite the smell, the man promised that it tasted wonderfully. U Ksew immediately fell in love with the taste and requested a jar to sell at the festival.
After receiving the jar of ktung rymbai, he headed back to the forest with a smile on his face. The dog made sure to get to the fair early and get a good spot because he was certain that his item would be the talk of the fair.
So the fair came and U Ksew could hardly contain his excitement. He told everyone how great his item was, consequently leading to all of the animals at the fair to gather around his table. They all wanted to know what was in the jar and demanded he show them. Breaking the seal, the dog opened the jar and out poured the concentrated stench of the fermented Khasi beans.
The animals were caught off guard by the different smell and shouted "Gross, close the jar before we all get sick and die!" U Khla, the tiger then proclaimed, "This is the worst item ever brought to the Ka lew Luri Lura and I ban you from ever attending this fair again!" U Ksew promised that the contents of the jar were the best tasting food he has ever tasted, but nobody would listen.
Now depressed, U Ksew thought of how he was treated by the people of the village. They kindly gave him food and displayed kindness, so he decided to go back to Man's home, forever. U Ksew had no allegiance to the animals of the forest after what had happened at the Luri Lura. He knew he could use his knowledge of the forest, speed, strength, and nose to help with the hunting troubles of Man. By offering his assistance, U Ksew could be fed and loved for the rest of his life.
Confident in his plan, the dog told Man his offer. Man was ecstatic and quickly accepted. Their mutually beneficial friendship was everything they could have hoped for. Man's hunting problems disappeared and the dog was happy for the rest of his life. That is the story of how the dog came to live with Man.
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| (Evolution of Man and Dog) |
Author's Note
In the original version of the story, the dog is lazy and decides to look for something to sell in the village. There is no worry in the dog when he enters the village and openly talks to the people. After receiving the jar of ktung rymbai, the dog boasted and bragged about his item to all the animals at the fair. The dog cursed the animals and promised to make them pay after being humiliated. Once the dog arrived at the man's house, he was put to work with a pig. The dog was lazy and just ran back and forth all day, leaving all the work for the pig. Angry, the pig told the man. The man didn't believe the pig so he checked the pin in which they were put to work, and noticed all of the footprints of the dog. Convinced the pig was lying to him, the man brought the dog inside and sentenced the pig to live outside in filth. The main goal of my story was to make the dog seem better because I am a huge dog person. To do this, I eliminated the cursing of the animals and the story of the pig.
Bibliography
Book: Folk-Tales of the Khasis
Author: Mrs. Rafty
Year Published: 1920
Web Source: Mythology and Folklore Un-Textbook
It was really interesting how you rewrote this story to favor the dog more than the original did. I am a huge dog person too, so I’m glad you rewrote it to make the dog seem less lazy. In your story, the interaction the dog has with the other animals at the fair is totally believable and really well-written. I can totally understand why he would ditch the animals for the humans. Good job!
ReplyDeleteI really liked your version of the story. I liked how you made the dog into a better animal than the original made it. You stuck to the theme really well and I found your story to be easy to read. The author's note was very informative and gave me the background information that I needed in order to know what you changed in the story and what you decided to keep the same. The fact that you changed the characteristics of the dog made for a better story I think. I wouldn't like if the dog benefited so much without actually doing any work for it. I liked the white color of the text on the gray background. It wasn't hard to be able to read the actual story. The picture is a good example for this story too. I like how it starts with the dog all by himself and then has him develop right along side man. Overall, good job with this storytelling post.
ReplyDeleteI liked your version of the story better. Most of the dogs I've owned would actually definitely be the type to run around and leave all the work to the pig, but I still like the idea of the dog nobly coming into life with humans instead of through trickery. Given that dogs are man's best friend, your story seems much more appropriate.
ReplyDeleteMichael,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your version of the story. I didn’t get to read the original one, but based off of your author’s note, your version is much more interesting. I really like dogs, so I like that you made this story more in favor of the dog than the original.. I also thought you did a great job in your author’s note of explaining what happened in the story and why you did what you did.
I like that you changed the story to reflect better on dogs. I am a huge animal-lover too, although my preferences lean towards cats. I also like that you added how the dog was at first nervous to interact with humans and was not quite sure what to expect. I’m glad that the human man welcomed the dog with open arms and recognized the mutually beneficial relationship that was possible. I also love the picture you chose!
ReplyDeleteMichael. I like that you brought in more details than the original provided to enhance the friendship and bond between dog and man. I thought it was awesome that you chose this topic to write your storytelling post about. First off, I like that you used background details and included them in the story. For example, you use Khasi beans and call them "Ktung Rymbai." This brought a cultural personality into the story that helped give me a sense of where I could be within the world. I thought the ending was great and fit perfectly with the mood. Overall, Great job!
ReplyDelete