Reading Notes: Japanese Fairy Tales Part A

There were 6 fairy tales in Part A of this reading and one of them really stuck out to me for a possible storytelling idea. This is the story of the Stonecutter who is never satisfied with himself. First we becomes a rich man, then a prince, then the sun, then the clouds, and then the mountain. Finally, he revert back to a stone cutting man with whom he is satisfied. In this story he seems like a very selfish individual and always wants to be something else, never satisfied with what he has. I would like to change that in my rendition and provide a sense of humbleness for the stone cutter. In this story the stone cutter is transformed by the mountain spirit who he takes for granted. I would like for him to be a grateful person in the end. I want to also make a mountain spirit an actually person or animal because a spirit is hard to imagine. That way the reader can relate more to the mountain spirit and it will give it a sense of purpose and meaning. Everything else I would keep the same because I do enjoy what the stone cutter wants to become and in each succession. It makes sense in that order.

Japanese Fairy Tales by Andrew Lang, link to online reading

(Stonecutter, Source: The Henry Brothers)