(Jacks mother, Jane, is talking to a good friend of hers, Martha, about Jack's recent antics with a cow and a couple of magic beans...)
Jane: I mean can you believe it?! Magic Beans for my precious cow!
Martha: Yeah, and we all know how much you loved that cow...
Jane: Arghh. I just don't even know what to say, it's not even the bloody magic beans that gets me, it's the sheer stupidity, you know? Look at them.
(Jane walks over to her table to pick up the magic beans. As she does so, she shoots Jack a look that says 'You Idiot'.)
Martha: Ohhh so that's them then? The beans that you gave a COW away for? Now I know what you mean Jane I mean only a fool would do such a thing.
Jane: You see? It's unbelievable, you know what, I don't even know why I still HAVE these stupid beans in my house!
(Jane throws the beans out of her window, vigorously. Looking out the window, she peers up at the clouds in the sky, which are completely grey.)
Jane: Martha, is it supposed to rain today?
Martha: Yes, well according to GMTV it is. Why?
Jane: (Walking over to sit down) Oh, just asking because the sky is ever so grey.
(Just as she says this, it starts to rain.)
Martha: Wow. So GMTV were right then.
(The rain waters the magic beans, and they all look in awe out of the window as they watch a huge beanstalk grow up to the clouds)
Jack: See! That's the beans! I knew they were special!
Jane and Martha: Your not such a jackass after all then.
looool Jack reminds me of Harry lol! It's a really good modern take on Jack and the beanstalk using modern day things such as GMTV (television) just adds to the contrast between the original story and your take. WELL DONE DARLIN'!!! xx
ReplyDeleteHello there,
ReplyDeleteThis is well written. I particularly like the chatty dialogue between Jane and Martha. I agree with jaffacake about the contemporary references, too. They work very nicely, and you could liven the piece up by including more of this sort of humour.
I don't see how this story really subverts the fairy tale archetypes, though. As I recall, Jack's mother was pretty narked in the original, and Jack was eventually proved right. This is a good retelling, but you could have gone further with it.
Helen
Hey there
ReplyDeleteYou really capture the pace and style of real speech well! I agree with Helen, the you need to go further with the subversion... maybe change some elements completely. Does the cow have to remain a cow? Could Jack have traded his annoying little brother for the beans, making mummy even more crazed :) Does Jack climb up the beanstalk, what's up there? Contemporary references really work, as Helen says include more.
Good luck
Dani
A fun modernisation - and I like the GMTV reference - but, as the other moderators say, you don't really take any risks with the archetypes, thereby achieving limited subversion. More fun could have been had with this, I feel...
ReplyDelete