How Lena Passed the Test
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| (Scholar. Source) |
One day, a studying Ph.D. student came to the professor's doorstep. He had heard about the difficulty of the tests and was very sure of himself in being able to accept the challenge. He offered Larry a participation fee.
"I will only accept your participation fee if you can answer these two questions before the rest of the test."
The Ph.D. student looked at the questions and could not figure out the answers so he left in frustration to see how he could figure them out.
Then a well-known scholar from a neighboring city came to the professor's house with his dog for the tests.
"May I take your tests, sir? I have come to see your handy work."
"You may only take my tests if you can answer the last question of each test first."
The scholar looked at the questions and could not figure them so he left in sadness back to his city. The dog did not follow though, he decided to make his master happy and stick around with the professor. The dog managed to overhear the professor say the answers of the two questions and he scampered off to find his master.
Halfway home the dog was very thirsty and stopped to drink from a puddle. After drinking, he could not remember the answer to the questions! So he turned around and went back to the professor's house.
Upon hearing the answers a second time, the dog headed home in determination. This time he made it to his master and told him the answers and the two of them set out for Larry's house to take the exams.
Half way back to the professor's, the two grew thirsty again and drank from a stream. After drinking they forgot the answers yet again.
The master sent his dog to Larry's house to get the answers one final time while he hid outside in the bushes. The dog returned to his master with the correct responses. This time, neither drank anything nor ate and were determined to take the tests. The two knocked on Larry's door.
The scholar successfully answered Larry's exam questions and was able to take the test. He was deemed the most brilliant scholar in the state and received a reward.
The Ph.D. student found out about this and declared hatred against the scholar. The scholar heard word of this and defeated the student with his history project and the Ph.D. student was never heard from again.
Author's Note: This story is from the Congo Unit and is based off of How Gazelle Got Married. A lot of these story units are based off of women getting married and husbands taking care of them, but I decided to make it more relate-able to us! School. Test. Professors. This is our lives everyday, so the parallel in this story to the unit story works pretty well in my opinion! I hope you enjoyed it!
Bibliography: Dennett, Richard. Notes on the Folklore of Fjort: How Gazelle Got Married. 1898.
I liked that the answers to the questions were questions themselves! That was a clever idea. I'm glad you made the story easier for college students to relate to. I read the Chinese unit this week, and I struggled to relate to those stories. So your story was a nice change of pace. I also liked how drinking of a stream or puddle made them forget the answers. To me, it seemed like maybe the professor had magical abilities and was wiping their memories. Nicely done!
ReplyDeleteHi again, Hannah! I loved your story for this week. I always love when Folktales are taken (especially those involving animals) are taken and given a modern day spin with something to which we can all relate! I think you captured the essence of college with your story, especially the secret (well sometimes secret) competitiveness we feel with other students and the jealousy we feel when we are out performed. Good job!
ReplyDeleteHey, Hannah!
ReplyDeleteYou did a really nice job taking your original story and not only making it your own, but also making it relatable to us college students! In my opinion, it is always easier and more enjoyable to read stories when you can picture yourself as a character in the story. I thought it was really interesting that the water made the scholar and his dog forget the answers to the test…I wonder if that’s eventually what is going to happen to me if I keep drinking Norman’s water! Ha!
I have not read this unit, but your version of the story is very interesting and relatable! At first, your story reminded me of a story in the Nigerian Unit. In the Nigerian story, God asks a dog to give a message to the villagers about the dead. On his way to the villages he grows hungry and forgets his message as he feasts on a bone he found. When your dog gets a drink from the puddle it reminded me of the Nigerian story. I think that it is very awesome that the professor defeated the Ph.D student with a history project, what a comical twist. Good job this week!
ReplyDeleteHannah,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading this. I did not read this unit but it is very clear. I think this version is definitely more relatable than marriage haha. And I was thinking the same thing as Liza! I read the Nigerian stories too and that's what I thought it was at first. I just wonder what the questions were ha.
Good job!
This was a very interesting story to read. I can relate to professors who are proud of how difficult their tests are, which can be very frustrating. It seems as if a test that is impossible to complete should be deemed a failure rather than a success. One lesson I took away was to stay focused on the end goal. Each time they stopped to take a break, they essentially had to restart and get the answers again. In order to accomplish a goal, sacrifices are often necessary. Good themes overall, great job!
ReplyDeleteWow, upon reading the ending, I feel a little bad for the Ph.D student. Perhaps it was bad for him to declare hatred, but it seems a little harsh that the scholar completely defeated the student. Like the other students before me mentioned, I like the cleverness of the professor's questions. In fact, reading this story makes me think you might have had a similar experience with a professor in the past. Who knows? Haha.
ReplyDeleteI think that was a very interesting story! The poor Ph.D. student made me feel bad! The dog seems like a sweet character and I was pleased that the scholar was able to answer the questions at the end. It was a little dramatic for the Ph.D. student to get so angry! I laughed when the story ended by the scholar defeating the student! Well written story and I really enjoyed reading it.
ReplyDeleteI really liked this story. It had me hooked from the beginning because I really wanted to know what the answers to the test were and how someone would actually figure them out. I would have never dreamed a dog would snoop around until he heard the answers. I thought that the original would probably be pretty good too even though I think I would like this one better because it is very relatable to us! Good job with your story and good luck with the rest of the semester. I hope to read more of your stories soon!
ReplyDelete