Dragons Essay example -- Expository Animals History Essays

Dragons Whats the first thing people animadvert when they hear the word dragon? Most Americans and Europeans probably envision a huge scaly green beast, one that sits on a accumulate of golden treasures and breathes fire. Asians are more likely to think of a large-hearted snake-like creature, one that controls precipitates and rivers. And some people will think of the dragons in movies, or in books, which come in innumerable shapes, sizes, and dispositions. Practically every stopping point on Earth has dragons of some kind. The broadest way of categorizing dragons is into Western and Eastern dragons, though some of the dragons in the media know distinct characteristics as well. And then, of course, is the ultimate straits did they exist?Western dragons are the storybook monsters that most Americans recognize. The most common manikin have four legs, two bat-like wings, a long tail, and a plenteousness of teeth. They breathe fire, are covered in scales, hoard treasure, an d have wild claws. They vary in color, and can be any shade of the rainbow, white, black, or any of various metallic shades. They are usually fierce, and feast on young virgins or sheep sacrificed by nearby villagers in an attempt to tranquillize the beast (Blumberg 6-7, Lurie n.p, Walker, Tempest).The Eastern dragons, by contrast, are benevolent water spirits. They are long and sinuous, covered in scales, and wingless, though they have four legs. They have whiskers, horns and often a mane, and always have a pearl every under the chin, in the mouth, or in the claws. Eastern dragons govern rain and rivers, and breathe clouds rather than fire. They are fond of swallows meat, and frightened of centipedes. The Chinese and Japanese emperors were believed to be descended from dragons (Ayles... ...gons have over the human conception is as legendary as the great beasts themselves. Works CitedAylesworth, Thomas. The Story of Dragons and other Monsters. tonic York McGraw-Hill, 1980.Blu mberg, Rhoda. The Truth About Dragons. New York Four Winds Press, 1980.Dickinson, Peter. The Flight of Dragons. New York Harper and Row, 1979.Dragonheart. Dir. Rob Cohen. , 1996.Lurie, Alison. Fabulous Beasts. New York Rae Publishing Company, 1981.McCaffrey, Anne. Moreta Dragonlady of Pern. New York Ballantine Books, 1983.Mulan. Dir. Barry garble and Tony Bancroft. Disney, 1998.Petes Dragon. Dir. Don Chaffey. Disney, 1977.Tempest. Advanced Dragon Description. D.R.A.G.O.N.S. n.d. 14 May 2002. .Walker, Jennifer. Physiology of a Dragon. Here Be Dragons. n.d. 14 May 2002.