Thinking Curious Jessica Stearns

Who knew a conversation over a cup of coffee could percolate new ideas for a podcast? Stranger still, that the podcast would focus on fairy tales and short stories as sources for lessons in human nature, values, and virtues…
 
In this episode, we explore the importance of virtues in our lives and how cultivating them can lead to greater happiness and fulfillment. The discussion delves into the differences between virtues and values, and why the significance of virtues has diminished over time. We take a look back at the short stories and fairy tales we’ve discussed through the lens of virtuous (and not so virtuous) behavior. By revisiting short stories like The Gift of the Magi, Goldilocks, The Ugly Duckling, and others, we can recognize and discuss virtues such as compassion, courage, perseverance, and resilience, and their impact on personal growth and well-being.
Discussion Points:

A chat with a friend at the Toasted and Roasted coffee shop
Virtues vs. values
Ruminations on “virtues”….
Looking back at short stories in previous episodes for important virtues
Check out earlier episodes of Thinking Curious to hear in-depth discussions of the short stories and fairy tales I mentioned in this episode
Subscribe or Follow the podcast, and use the links below to access the Thinking Curious Project and The Thinking Curious Review for additional content

Resources: 
Thinking Curious Project
Thinking Curious Review 
Cognitive Development Coaching with Jessica   
Toasted & Roasted
Quote from Virtues and Psychology
Book: Virtue and Psychology: Pursuing Excellence in Ordinary Practices
Description of Virtues and Psychology
Virtues For Life  
The Book of Virtues 30th Anniversary Edition 
Resilience from a Virtue Perspective 
Perseverance 

"... my fairy-tales were just as much for adults as for children, who only understood the ornamental trappings, but only as mature adults can they see and perceive the contents. That the naive was only one part of my fairy-tales, that humour was the actual zest in them" - Hans Christian Andersen’s journal entry from June 4, 1875
The Ugly Duckling is not a simple fairytale. It appeals to children through animal characters, an exciting plot, and beautiful language, yet it also appeals to adults who can perceive the illuminating concepts and abstractions. In this episode, I dig deep into three distinct story elements that weave together to illustrate the complete transformation of our hero: Resilience, Self-Concept, and the Hero’s Journey - ending in peace and happiness for the Ugly Duckling. 
Discussion Points:

Hans Christian Andersen and his work
Three story strands that weave together - Resilience, Self-Concept, and a Hero’s Journey
Resilience - how is it illustrated?
Self-concept in the duck yard - rejection and abuse
The 3 stages of the ‘Hero’s Journey’
Andersen’s quote about the fairy tale
Rising above discouraging words and becoming himself
Encouraged by joy and hope
Rescued from the ice by a kind farmer
The ‘hero’s return’ and metamorphosis
A quote from the author 
Subscribe or Follow the podcast, and use the links below to access the Thinking Curious Project and The Thinking Curious Review for additional content

Resources: 
Thinking Curious Project
Thinking Curious Review 
Cognitive Development Coaching with Jessica   
Hans Christian Andersen's Biography   
Read The Ugly Duckling   
The Resilient Brain  
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The Little Red Hen is a fable with a moral that is helpful. However, the character of the Little Red Hen has been maligned and her story demoralized. In this episode, we are going to take a look at the author and her life, along with the moral and theme of this little fable, to see if we can set the record straight.
 
The Little Red Hen is an American fable first published by Mary Mapes Dodge in St. Nicholas Magazine in 1874. St. Nicholas was a popular monthly American children's magazine, founded by Scribner's in 1873. Dodge was the first editor of the magazine, and she continued her association with the magazine until her death in 1905.
 
The characters and structure of the story are meant to teach children that hard work and personal initiative are the foundation of success. The tale is based on a story Dodge was often told by her mother. Originally the other animals besides the hen consist of a rat, a cow, a cat, a dog, a duck, and a pig. Later adaptations, like the illustrated version by Florence White Henderson, often reduce the number of other animals to three- the cat, the rat, and the pig.
Discussion Points:

The Little Red Hen
Author Mary Elizabeth Mapes Dodge - her era and her life
Fables, morals, themes, and animal characters
Florence White Williams version of the story
An excerpt from The Little Red Hen
John Locke, personal property, and civil law 
The hen had a natural right to the bread she baked
Similarities between the author’s life and the hen’s characteristics
Subscribe or follow the podcast and use the link below to The Thinking Curious Review

Resources: 
Thinking Curious Project
Thinking Curious Review 
Cognitive Development Coaching with Jessica at Purposed Pathways 
The Little Red Hen Origin and Background
A Negative View of the Fable
Mary Mapes Dodge Profile
Mary Mapes Dodge Bio
St. Nicholas Children’s Magazine

Welcome to episode five of our short story series, continuing our analysis of “Goldilocks and the Three Bears.” In Part I, we focused on internal and external characteristics and the contrast of expected behaviors attributed to the little girl and the bears. Today, we’ll take a look at “nature vs. nurture” in humankind, through the lens of Goldilocks’ behavior.
The Story: It was first published anonymously as "The Story of the Three Bears" in an 1837 volume of Robert Southey’s writings called The Doctor. The story’s characters and plot morphed through the years, from an unpleasant old woman to a sweet little girl, and from three ‘bachelor bears’ or siblings, into Papa, Mama, and Baby Bear, but the dates of these changes are disputed. Goldilocks and the Three Bears is just an old English fairytale, short and simple. Or is it? 
Discussion Points:

Digging into nature vs. nurture
Kenan Malik and concepts of human consciousness and uniqueness
Harvard scientists and biologists and nature/nurture
Being “well brought up”
Purpose and Agency in humankind
Looking for “just right” is a statement of purpose
Security and love are critical for nurture
Neuroscience now sanctions “common sense”
Helping children learn skills that are “just right”
Subscribe or follow the Thinking Curious Review

Resources: 
Read the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears
Listen to Part I - Goldilocks and the Three Bears
Kenan Malik Article
Harvard Medical Article: Nature, Meet Nurture
APA’s Definition of Human Nature
Article: What Are Human Beings? Perspectives from Science and Scripture
Thinking Curious Project
Thinking Curious Review 

Welcome to episode four of our short story series. In this episode, we begin Part I of our look at the seemingly simple story of “Goldilocks and the Three Bears.” The story was first published anonymously as "The Story of the Three Bears" in an 1837 volume of Robert Southey’s writings called The Doctor. The story’s characters and plot morphed through the years, from an unpleasant old woman to a sweet little girl, and from three ‘bachelor bears’ or siblings, into Papa, Mama, and Baby Bear, but the dates of these changes are disputed. Goldilocks and the Three Bears is just an old English fairytale, short and simple. Or is it? You can’t judge a book, or story, by its cover.
Discussion Points:

Judging people by their external qualities- age, skin color, etc.
Childhood views of the story vs. today’s 
Irony is employed by flipping expectations of behaviors of bears vs. girls 
Re-read the story yourself with the link below and tune in for Part II

Resources: 
Read the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears
Cognitive Development Coaching with Jessica 

Welcome to episode three of our short story series. In this episode, we take a trip through the intense, gothic short story “The System of Doctor Tarr and Professor Fether” by Edgar Allan Poe. Published posthumously in 1856, the story prompts us to ask, “have we given away our responsibility to think for ourselves?” Poe’s protagonist, an unnamed “young man” traveling through France, experiences a confusing scenario in a private insane asylum seemingly headed up by a “Dr. Maillard.” Decades before the term gaslighting was ever used, Poe’s short story illustrated how someone could be manipulated into questioning their own senses, beliefs, and reality.
Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) was best known for macabre and mysterious short stories and poems. He was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic, widely regarded as a central figure of Romanticism in U.S. literature.
Discussion Points:

Jessica was not a big fan of Poe previously
Gaslighting – the word’s origins and meanings today
Poe’s gothic story setting – a private asylum in France in the 1800s
Treating ‘mania’ - Dr. Maillard’s protocol
Questioning Maillard and his gaslighting response
The increasingly alarming behaviors of the ‘staff’ at dinner
We should heed Poe’s message - judge for ourselves what’s going on in the world
Re-read the story yourself with the link below

Resources: 
Read the Story ‘The System of Doctor Tarr and Professor Fether
Gaslight - Story of the 1938 Play and subsequent productions
“Madding Crowd” Reference: Tréguer, Pascal. “Meaning and Origin of ‘Far From the Madding Crowd.’” Word Histories, 12 Sept. 2016, wordhistories.net/2016/09/12/far-from-the-madding-crowd
Cognitive Development Coaching with Jessica