Microfiction: The Tortoise and its Shell
Story 1 || 6 words:
Always home, Tortoise never went out.
Story 2 || 50 words:
Jupiter threw a banquet with all the animals. All came except the Tortoise, for he never cared for going out and preferred to stay home. Annoyed, Jupiter decreed that the Tortoise shall carry his home upon his back, never being able to leave his home even if he so wished.
Author's Note: For this set of microfictions, I chose to write my own versions of How the Tortoise Got Its Shell. The original story tells of how Jupiter was about to marry a wife, and had a banquet for all the animals to come celebrate. Though, all came except the Tortoise, for he didn't care for going out and preferred to stay home. Jupiter was annoyed at this reply and decreed that the Tortoise shall carry his home upon his back, unable to leave away from his home even if he wished to. For my first microfiction of 6 words, much of the detail of Jupiter's banquet and decree was omitted. Readers can infer from their existing knowledge of the Tortoise and his shell that he can never leave his home behind. However, readers are left to wonder why his shell came to be. With this significant lack of detail, readers are left to wonder about how the shell of the Tortoise came to be, which invokes imaginative thinking. For the second microfiction of 50 words, I was able to add in many of the details of the original story, including the banquet of Jupiter and his decree that the Tortoise shall carry his home about with him. This version captures the essence of the original plot and describes the story of how the tortoise got its shell. I tried to ensure that this version conveyed enough detail and plot so that readers can easily follow along. Readers can readily acknowledge that the tortoise seldom leaves his home, and this story undoubtedly makes the most sense of the two microfictions.
Bibliography: How the Tortoise Got Its Shell from Aesop's Fables by V.S. Vernon-Jones (1912)
Always home, Tortoise never went out.
Story 2 || 50 words:
Jupiter threw a banquet with all the animals. All came except the Tortoise, for he never cared for going out and preferred to stay home. Annoyed, Jupiter decreed that the Tortoise shall carry his home upon his back, never being able to leave his home even if he so wished.
Tortoise and its Shell - Courtesy of Wikipedia
Author's Note: For this set of microfictions, I chose to write my own versions of How the Tortoise Got Its Shell. The original story tells of how Jupiter was about to marry a wife, and had a banquet for all the animals to come celebrate. Though, all came except the Tortoise, for he didn't care for going out and preferred to stay home. Jupiter was annoyed at this reply and decreed that the Tortoise shall carry his home upon his back, unable to leave away from his home even if he wished to. For my first microfiction of 6 words, much of the detail of Jupiter's banquet and decree was omitted. Readers can infer from their existing knowledge of the Tortoise and his shell that he can never leave his home behind. However, readers are left to wonder why his shell came to be. With this significant lack of detail, readers are left to wonder about how the shell of the Tortoise came to be, which invokes imaginative thinking. For the second microfiction of 50 words, I was able to add in many of the details of the original story, including the banquet of Jupiter and his decree that the Tortoise shall carry his home about with him. This version captures the essence of the original plot and describes the story of how the tortoise got its shell. I tried to ensure that this version conveyed enough detail and plot so that readers can easily follow along. Readers can readily acknowledge that the tortoise seldom leaves his home, and this story undoubtedly makes the most sense of the two microfictions.
Bibliography: How the Tortoise Got Its Shell from Aesop's Fables by V.S. Vernon-Jones (1912)
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