Week 3 Story: The Land of the Cyclopes
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| Cyclopes Shark |
You probably believe that the Cyclopes look similar to humans, but are much bigger and have a third eye in the middle of their forehead. However, you are very wrong to think this. In Cyclopes Island east of the candy cane forest and north of the rock candy mountains, there are many species of cyclopes. There are bird cyclopes, with there 3 eyes and gigantic size. Most notable would be the cyclopes raven, blessed with the ability of 2nd sight, he is able to out maneuver large predators and have easy access to the island abundant food source of cyclopes mice. The most fearsome predator that lives on this island, is by far the Cyclopes Shark. This beast has only one eye in the middle of its pointy, brutish face. This monstrosity feeds on any that dare to venture out into Cyclopes Loch and its adjacent pools.
The island flourishes year round as there is only one season. The stable weather is a blessing from the gods. Most importantly from Zeus, who has a special interest in the well fare of the species of Cyclopes residing on the island for frequently men are shipwrecked on the island by the cyclopes sharks, we pose as spontaneous rock formations on the sea near the island. Once ship wrecked on the island, Zeus call upon many of the larger cyclopes to retrieve the stranded men as they attempt to return to the Rock Candy Mountains from their travels, who are then converted to various species of cyclopes by the leader of the island. This leader is know as Apophis, a monstrous, scaly black cyclopes snake. Those stranded are devoured by the cyclopes snake and then converted to other species who will be useful in Zeus' service.
This tale is to warn, as well as educate future readers to the perils of the waters near the Cyclopes Island, as well as raising awareness that new species are being formed without the consent of those trapped on the island. Something must be done to release the servants from the bondage instilled by Zeus and his ilk.
Story Source: Story based off the translation of Homer's Odyssey into English by Tony Kline. 2004. Odyssey: The Land of the Cyclopes
Image source: Funny Cyclopes Pictures by Freaking news. 4 Sept. 2017. Cyclopes Shark
I like that you got really creative with this story and incorporated fantastical details. Also, you challenged your readers' idea of what is thought of as a Cyclops. Offering the reader a new look at what they thought they knew keeps their interest. Your story is a kind of overview of these islands that you have created. You could continue on with this idea to tell tales of specific inhabitants of the island, such as the cyclops shark.
ReplyDeleteI thought this was a creative reimagining of what we think Cyclops are — I'd never thought a Cyclops could be anything besides a one-eyed human-esque monster, but I like that you had birds and sharks as part of the way you reimagined them. Since this story was more of a warning and explanation of the dangers of the shark Cyclops, maybe you could bring back those characters in a future story!
ReplyDeleteThis is a delightful re-imagining of the cyclops mythology and their place in the world. You certainly aren't afraid to wander away from the source material, with Rock candy mountains and Cyclops sharks! It's great. I wish you could've expanded more on the last paragraph bit. Who is speaking this warning, and how do they intend on rescuing the trapped people of the island? Is there some kind of story about how the narrator learned this knowledge about the island, or maybe the actions he takes after this initial introduction?
ReplyDeleteThis was a pleasantly surprising way of telling this story. I thought it was very creative. The picture posted freaked me out bit, because I absolutely hate sharks, but I also thought it was so cool! I almost thought you photoshopped it yourself. This would be a good introduction story, and you could later re-introduce the different cyclops characters for each different story.
ReplyDeleteHi Matt! I like that you combined images and ideas from different stories to come up with new ways of thinking about cyclopses! For example, I've heard of the Rock Candy Mountains, but I wouldn't have imagined them next to a cyclops. It's interesting that there are so many types of cyclopses living in one place. I would enjoy hearing a back story about why or how all these different cyclops species ended up here!
ReplyDeleteHi Matt!
ReplyDeleteI very much enjoyed reading your story The Land of the Cyclopes. I thought it was really creative and I liked how you used places like the “candy cane forest” as settings for your story. I also think your image you included in your post was interesting and really caught my attention. Overall, I think you did a great job on this story!
Hey Matt!
ReplyDeleteI think this story is so interesting! It’s such a creative idea to have several species of cyclopes, and theres so much you could do with that! I also like how you kind of brought in a loch too. It’s very “loch ness monster”-esque. Overall, I really enjoyed this story and I liked the direction you took with it!