The story of John Henry reaches us at many levels. It is the story of an African-American man, a former slave, whose actions have grown to mythic proportions. Just what is real and what is made up is the stuff that makes up legends and myths. John Henry's story was passed down from person to person in what is called an oral tradition. Oral traditions have been a part of our history as humans since we began. We told stories around campfires and in markets about things that were important or exciting to us. We told stories about the people and actions that we admired. The ancient Greeks spoke of told stories of the Odyssey, and in more recent modern times, especially in America, we created stories and legends about people here. Pecos Bill, Paul Bunyon, and Johnny Appleseed are all familiar stories in our lexicon. A story like John Henry's has grown over the years and mutated as it was passed from one storyteller to another. Different people had different views of what was important in the story, so that when they told their version of the story they would leave out some things or put some things in to make their point. What most can agree on was that John Henry worked on the railroad and was a powerful man. John Henry battled a steam-powered machine that was put in place to take him out of work and in winning the competition with the machine, John Henry died of a heart attack. Please review the material and the different sources. Look for similarities between the stories, see how the differences in how the story changed and see how when different artists interpret the idea of John Henry different aspects of the myth come to light. Then review the assignment page and complete the assignment. You can email your questions and papers directly to me.