Microfiction: The Wolf Warrior
Story 1 || 25 words:
To save his cubs, the Wolf Father sang. The man, fascinated by the creature, spared his cubs and took the Wolf Father's aid in war.
Story 2 || 280 characters:
Once upon a time, a man found a wolf den. He started digging in it to capture the cubs. Eventually, the Wolf Father appears and sings a beautiful song, begging the man to spare his precious cubs. The Wolf Father, grateful for the man sparing his cubs, promised to help in the man's pursuits of war. So, the wolf helped the man steal the horses.
Author's Note: For this set of microfictions, I opted to retell the story of Why the Wolves Help in War, a legend of the Dakota people on the Great Plains. For my first story of 25 words, I tried to capture the key aspects of the original story, such as how the Wolf Father sang to beg the man to spare his young cubs in his den and how he promised to assist the man when he chose to go to war thereafter. However, this story loses much of the finer details of the story, such as the magical abilities of the wolf and the wolf's actions following the encounter with the man. For the second story of 280 characters, I was able to capture more detail from the original story. This story elaborates on how the man found the wolf cubs and how the Wolf Father sang to beg for the saving of his cubs. It also tells of how the wolf helped the man steal the horses, following through on his sacred promise. I was able to capture more of the original story with the longer of the two microfictions; as such, the second story is able to illustrate a more detailed plot and rendition of the original story.
Bibliography: Why the Wolves Help in War from Myths and Legends of the Great Plains by Katharine Berry Judson (1913)
To save his cubs, the Wolf Father sang. The man, fascinated by the creature, spared his cubs and took the Wolf Father's aid in war.
Story 2 || 280 characters:
Once upon a time, a man found a wolf den. He started digging in it to capture the cubs. Eventually, the Wolf Father appears and sings a beautiful song, begging the man to spare his precious cubs. The Wolf Father, grateful for the man sparing his cubs, promised to help in the man's pursuits of war. So, the wolf helped the man steal the horses.
Wolf in the Wild - Courtesy of Duluth News Tribune
Author's Note: For this set of microfictions, I opted to retell the story of Why the Wolves Help in War, a legend of the Dakota people on the Great Plains. For my first story of 25 words, I tried to capture the key aspects of the original story, such as how the Wolf Father sang to beg the man to spare his young cubs in his den and how he promised to assist the man when he chose to go to war thereafter. However, this story loses much of the finer details of the story, such as the magical abilities of the wolf and the wolf's actions following the encounter with the man. For the second story of 280 characters, I was able to capture more detail from the original story. This story elaborates on how the man found the wolf cubs and how the Wolf Father sang to beg for the saving of his cubs. It also tells of how the wolf helped the man steal the horses, following through on his sacred promise. I was able to capture more of the original story with the longer of the two microfictions; as such, the second story is able to illustrate a more detailed plot and rendition of the original story.
Bibliography: Why the Wolves Help in War from Myths and Legends of the Great Plains by Katharine Berry Judson (1913)
Hey Jackie,
ReplyDeleteI have been interested to see examples of microfictions as this is something I have been considering for extra credit options. I can't seem to wrap my head around telling a story in so few words (I love a lot of detail). This was actually really helpful to see. You were able to get a plot across in as few as 25 words. While it lacks some of the original details and seemingly extra aspects, you get a sense of what the original story is about. Your microfictions also interested me into reading the original story. This concept may be a better idea to put on the back of books than a summary!
Jackie,
ReplyDeleteI like this version of this story. As a dog mom to huskies and german shepherds I understand this story quite well. I love how both breeds are very similar to wolfs in mindset. They are very loyal, but very hard to gain trust. Once you do they never leave your side. I can't go shower without my boys poking their head in because they don't want me out of their sight, I think it is simply because I give them food... Thank you for sharing your version of the story, I really enjoyed it.
Aspen