#ch: ubiquity

[dailymlgifs]

UBIQUITY

[vindelllas]

frivolous or fated: buddha and beauty 🧖🏽‍♀️🛀🏽

Disclaimer: this is only part one (my document was too long to include in one post). If you would like for me to post part two, please let me know!

🛁 The predominant attitude towards the beauty of things in the classical texts is one of suspicion and met with usual hostility. Physical beauty, especially that of women historically, is accused of causing attachment and craving. Beauty is deemed as “the nutriment for sensual desire” in mercurial principles and thereby being acclaimed as the source of greed, hate, and delusion too. Enjoyment of one’s beauty, and repulsion at another’s ugliness, is deemed as incompatible with the great virtue of equanimity that enjoins us to be mindful and attain enlightenment without the filtering usage of the prism of worldly subjection. Whereas, worldly beauty is demonized, as it is attributed to distracting the masses from the ubiquity of suffering in this earthly plane. This is why in many buddhist principles, the antithesis to beauty-based seduction is focusing oneself upon bringing awareness to the “ugly”, such as death. Yet in countries like Thailand, beauty is theorized to be rewarded to women who have lived without expressing aggression, perpetuating hatred, and experiencing feelings of resentment in a previous life. Focusing on an object such as a disc (or a yantra in vedic culture), is taking in great beauty and bestowing the onlooker with tranquil meditation abundance. In this post, I will be evaluating what true beauty means in various cultures and how we can incorporate these theories into nuanced conversations about self care and overall beautification of oneself. The following deep dive into primarily eastern literature and spiritual concepts does not mean that these are solely accurate opinions, but it is designed to expand one’s palette to spiritual beautification outside of western ideologies.

🛀🏽 There are several modes of beauty. However, the main three categories of beauty I have stumbled upon are inner beauty, wordly beauty, and physical beauty. Inner beauty is the beauty of one’s character, the beauty of the person’s spirit, or moral beauty. But this inner realm or entity is not exactly disjoined from bodily and physical existence. It is simply the beauty that belongs to a person in virtue of their character, moral qualities, understanding, and experience. In contrast with the beauty of things or the world, there is substantial evidence for the importance of inner beauty in Buddhist knowledge. In the Cakkavatti-Shanda sutta, buddha answers his own question, ‘What is beauty for a monk?’, with a list of qualities such as “right conduct, restraint, perfection in habit, and an awareness of danger in the slightest fault”. In the verses of the female ancestors, who repeatedly celebrate their emancipation from the desire to cultivate physical beauty, there is an interesting reference to one nun, Subh, who it is said “went forth full of faith, beautiful by reason of the true doctrine”. In the Abhidhamma, whole sections are devoted to defining the various forms of beautiful consciousness and beautiful mental factors: including compassion, non-delusion and mindfulness (some of which are present in all the beautiful states of consciousness).

🧼 However these references towards beauty have sparked much debate. The word “beauty” is used to talk about “the inner”, about character and virtues. Translators have begged the question why does Buddha not speak of the restrained, alert, right thinking monk as simply being “good” or “holy”? Why is he described as beautiful? And why was Subh deemed beautiful, rather than just virtuous, by reason of dharma? This literature is explicitly stating there is a lack of connection between inner beauty with the beauty of things as seen, heard or otherwise perceived through the ordinary senses, such as sight and hearing. It is, after all, the domain of sensory/what may be perceptually experienced. As children, we learn the use of words like “beautiful” via connecting the term with what is visible, audible or otherwise available to the senses.

🧴 Prominent aesthetic-based philosophers Immanuel Kant (ashwini surya and revati chandra), Alexander Baumgarten (pushya surya and hasta chandra), and Francis Hutcheson (ashlesha surya and uttara bhadrapada chandra) studied the primacy of the sensorial experience by defining beauty in terms of sensory experience. But it has long been recognized that sensorial beauty was a sign of a more elevated form of beauty. For example, Plato, in Phaedrus, states that true beauty is something that one on the earthly plane may only discern when “reminded by the sight of beauty on earth” and that beauty is apprehended through sight: “the keenest of our physical senses”. The journey towards this appreciation of “true beauty” prescribed to Socrates by Diotima in The Symposium, is through witnessing the sight of beautiful figures (bodies). For Kant and others, it was believed that it is the beauty of God that finally matters. As Abbé Suger stated: “the multi-coloured loveliness of gems has… [transported] me from material to immate- rial things, for our dull mind is incapable of rising to the truth except through that which is material”. According to these ideologies, it is in this manner too that one should interpret Suger’s succinct definition of beauty as what pleases through being seen. This is a concept explicitly explored in the rashi of virgo. In my previous notions on virgo nakshatras, I have stated that the journey through this rashi is the journey towards uncovering the jewels of chitra through the eroticism of uttara phalguni and abstinence of hasta, the material cravings of the flesh have become transmuted into the immaterial learnings all virgo natives crave.

🪒 In Buddhist ideologies of beauty, some writers have proposed certain analogies between inner beauty and that of objects of perceptual experience with the intention of justifying their references to inner beauty. For example, a beautiful mind has been compared to a beautiful garden due to neither being considered wild or disorderly. Additionally, similar to carefully crafted art pieces, the beautiful mind possesses balance, proportion, and rhythm. However, unless such analogies are developed and deepened, suspicion about the merely figurative use of beauty will continue to arise. The mind of a man (note this is only in reference to men and not women in this literature) is controlled via craving/delusion and may be disorderly. However, is this “disorder” comparable to that of an untended garden?

🖼️ Some ancient texts argue the causal connections between moral character and physical beauty, with the potential purpose of inviting a transfer of the vocabulary of beauty from the latter to the former. For example, think of the passages mentioned earlier where Buddha describes physical beauty as a future karmic reward for a virtuous life. However, causal connections like this are insufficient to warrant a transfer of terms from physical beauty to its correlation to a person’s character. If references to inner beauty are to be justified, more intimate connections than ones of analogy and cause and effect need to be established between the inner essence of a person and the primary domain of beauty, things as experienced through the ordinary senses. So let us explore further…

🎀 Philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein (ashwini surya, conjunct buddha to the exact degree, and uttara bhadrapada chandra) once spoke “the human body is the best picture of the human soul”. As a painting may express the feelings of an artist, so too the body, via gesture, comportment, facial expression, or demeanor, is an expression of a person’s inner reality, their character. Inferring only when the inner finds beautiful expression in the body, there is good reason to speak of inner beauty. Similar to when a person’s attitude is described as cheerful due to their cheerful smile and physical gestures that convey it to other people. In this case, the beautiful soul is “beautiful” because its bodily expression in the world is beautiful. Expression, therefore, is a kind of intimate connection required between the inner and the outer. The virtuous mind and/or character is only beautiful because it finds beautiful expression in and through the body. The idea that virtue, like courage, finds bodily expression is no more difficult and controversial than the idea of bodily expression of feelings, i.e. cheerfulness and sadness. A gesture, for example, is an expression of anger or courage when it is itself angry or courageous, and in a way that presents itself as having such a quality, at least to the mindful observer. So why should virtue find expression in beautiful gestures? Is this a matter of luck?

🧧 This connection is not at all a matter of luck. Beauty that is expressed bodily is the expression of virtue. We recognize and appreciate gestures, facial expressions and so on as beautiful precisely because we experience them as expressions of virtue. A woman’s smile, for example, is found to be beautiful because it is seen to express compassion. A monk’s comportment is deemed to be beautiful because it is experienced as an expression of humility. It may perhaps be that this expression of compassion or humility is faux. But that does not negate from the fact that our reasoning for finding the smile or comportment beautiful is the perception of it as an expression of virtue. Behavior that expresses anger may be feigned, that does not mean that the connection between angry behavior and an angry mood is merely contingent. Nor is the connection between beauty of expression and virtue. This is why bodily altercations for the purpose of increasing one’s beauty is not necessarily warranted for demonization.

🪭 This virtue-based attitude toward bodily beauty was personified by the words of Kant. Kant argues beauty belongs to the human body due to the body’s manifestation of moral virtues. There are similarities to this virtue emphasis in Buddhist texts too. For example, it is implied that it is appropriate to call Subh “beautiful by reason of dharma” because of the ways her holiness is manifested in her personal cleanliness and calm/grace of her comportment. Some testaments to Buddha’s physical beauty are centered around his sexual attractiveness to women who are “overpowered by passion” in his presence. Therefore, it is true that sometimes Buddha is found to be physically beautiful, even by people deemed to possess pure minds, as gentle dispositions are casual for other virtues such as fine countenance and posture to manifest. According to canonical texts, nearly all of which make for masculine physical beauty, include “the torso of a lion” and “straight limbs” of which are aspects of the Buddha’s comportment, such as effortless grace of movement, cleanliness, and calm that are expressions of his virtue. It is not only in Pali and Sanskrit literature that there is evidence of a virtue-based understanding of bodily beauty. In eastern asian Buddhist writings, there are similar understandings and underlying connections. For example, beauty is not merely of appearance, but of the spirit (suggesting both are intertwined). It is this inner quality that possesses beauty precisely because of the way it manifests itself outwards via grand gestures, glances and poise. Thus implying there is no warrant for referring to inner beauty as beautiful unless this beauty is expressed in and through the body.

📿 For a person’s character or inner reality to qualify as beautiful, it must possess magnetism. It must attract the heart. Whether this magnetism or attraction is thought of as a further condition of inner beauty, in addition to bodily expression, or as an aspect of this expression that deserves to be made salient in an account of inner beauty is up to one’s personal spiritual journey. Either way, it is through the body that a person exercises magnetism and attracts the hearts/adoration of others. This beauty must be magnetic and attractive via exerting radiance that draws people to it, is an idea found in the teachings of Plato, Plotinus and a minority of later Christian thinkers such as the pseudo-dionysius. It is this magnetism that distinguishes the beautiful from the good. Certain states of a person can be considered “beautiful” and this is due to the person who exemplifies such beauty embodying or mediating a certain concentration of energy. This energy sustains a certain demeanor and perspective and through this radiation and attraction. It is an energy that is aptly described as an object or form of eros (erotic love). For a person to count as beautiful, it is not enough that their virtue shows up in some way, such as solely via donations that one makes to charities or volunteer work. It must show up in an aesthetically charged way: via gestures, demeanor, style, and presence that draws others, sensitive to the energy being radiated, to the person. For just as there was recognition that inner beauty must be bodily expressed, so there is an acknowledgement in some Buddhist texts that inner beauty must attract.

🔮 Consider once more the texts that attest to Buddha’s personal beauty. Gotama was said to become radiant in the presence of Buddha’s beauty and seeing him there, standing in his beauty, men and women are drawn to devote themselves and offer reverence to him (similar to the powerful mahavidyas discussed in the vedic religion). Contrarily, consider the sequence of verses in the Dhammapada in which the search for perfection is compared to a bee’s search for a beautifully scented flower. In order to possess beauty, the words and actions of one must exude a perfume that attracts others. This perfume of virtue, one verse tells us, “gives joy to the soul”, as the light of wisdom is emitted by a truly enlightened follower of dharma. So too inner beauty exerts the same magnetism on the searcher for perfection as a flower’s scent attracts a bee. This theme of beauty’s magnetism is a persistent one. In the thirteenth century, Dogen observed that the body of a true follower of Buddhism feels at ease and “their actions take on grace”, so that this person’s “appearance attracts others”. In this text, Dogen is drawing upon not only Buddhist principles, but a Daoist and Confucian tradition in which the de (‘virtue’) of “the consummate person” or sage is conceived of in terms of charisma, of an inner goodness that is at power to influence and attract others.

🪔 Beauty’s magnetism is attested to by contemporary Buddhists as well. In “Attracting the Heart”, Samuels examines the aesthetics of the emotions in present day Sri Lankan religious life. Samuels’ research provides a source of Buddhist testimonies, mainly from monks and novices, in relation to the magnetic power of moral beauty. For example, he speaks of how they attempt to go beautifully in order to attract the people’s hearts via their dignified posture, speech, or cleanliness. Stating a monk must be “beautiful to the eye” or to the ear, when reciting verses in order make people feel longing for “the holy life”. As Samuels states, his research confirms that there is value in an aesthetic standard that informs Buddhist practice and invests into a quality of bodily movement, posture, speech, and action. Thus, inducing an aesthetically pleasing transformation. This attempted to justify the notion of inner beauty that several authors attribute to Buddhist thinking. Such a justification is at least intimated in Buddhist texts and testimony. Thus, virtue, in order to constitute beauty of character, must be beautifully expressed in and through the body, in a way moreover that exerts magnetism or attraction. Later on, I explore the possibility that a distinctively Buddhist understanding of beauty in art may be inspired by the Buddhist understanding of inner beauty. Earlier, I spoke of the assertion that awakened experience is an experience of beauty, but it may be right to suggest, immediately afterwards, that through the awareness sought by Buddhists, our appreciation of the arts is also enriched. If this is true, however, it will solely be attributed to the beauty appreciated in art as it is intimately related to the inner beauty previously discussed.

🧘🏽‍♀️ For some Buddhists, the most contrary feature to the religion of the ordinary discourse of beauty is its discrimination, on the basis of subjective experience, between beautiful and non-beautiful things. The “beauty” that simply stands opposed to ugliness is not true beauty… but deemed to be rather a dualistic idea according to Yanagi Soetsu (uttara bhadrapada surya and swati chandra). True beauty, Soetsu describes, is a state of mind, of “freedom from impediment and preoccupation”. For someone who achieves this state of mind, “everything is beautiful”, includ- ing all works of art. These remarks attempt to relate beauty in the world to an inner, ‘true’ beauty of the mind but not without nuance. Yanagi himself makes the very distinctions between beautiful and vulgar (or graceful and garish) artworks which can be contradictory. Whether or not an intelligible concept of beauty, according to which everything is beautiful, can be developed, it is clear that this would not be the ordinary, central concept of beauty. To be told that, in the Buddhist understanding of ‘true beauty’, all art is beautiful is, in effect, to be told that Buddhism has nothing to contribute to the aesthetics of beauty in art.

🎨 The challenge is to work outwards towards a notion of beauty in the world and in art, one that is compatible with discernment between the beautiful and the non-beautiful, from the notion of inner beauty previously spoken about. We have encountered, in effect, a clear-cut, paradigmatic, case of worldly beauty–in the gesture, demeanor, comportment or whatever bestows a beautiful expression to virtue of character, and thereby justifies reference to inner beauty. The body and its actions are in and of the world, their beauty is, in this sense at least, worldly beauty. Crucially, we have also encountered a case where beauty of bodily expression is at the same time a case of beauty in art. Zeami’s view that a certain kind of inner beauty manifests itself outwards in the gestures, glances and poise of an individual. But this individual is an actor, whose beautiful bodily expression therefore belongs to an art form. More generally, in an appropriate context bodily movements and activity may constitute artistic performance, such as a dance. In such contexts, there is no difficulty in seeing that art inherits, via the bodily activity that constitutes it, the inner beauty that it expresses.

🪻 This concept may be applicable to other arts and practices, including many of those that, in East Asia, are called “ways" (Japanese do, as in judo). Not all of these – swordsmanship, for example, or calligraphy (shodo), or the way of tea (chado) – are accepted by the standard Western connotations of ‘the arts’, and certainly not of ‘the fine arts’. But, in Asia, a distinction between arts and crafts, and between these and various other do, is not a definite one. Indeed, it is regarded as an artificial and potentially misleading dualism. Arts or ‘ways’ such as archery, the tea ceremony and gardening differ from dance and mime, typically, in having a practical purpose, such as hitting a target, making tea or creating a garden. That is one reason why these arts require the use of ‘instruments’--a sword, a tea whisk, a hoe–as well as bodily movement. But it is not unnatural to regard these instruments as extensions of the body, as specifically honorary parts of the body. For in none of these practices is the instrument deemed to be a mere tool, to be used in a way dictated solely by a goal. These instruments are to be used with respect and, like one’s hands, with expression. The gardener or tea master is not just clearing away weeds or brewing up a nice cup of tea. They are engaged in a practice that bodies forth the virtues, including compassion, humility, mindfulness, and friendship. In effect, they are concerned with practicing an art or following a way in a beautiful style. Like Zeami’s actor or a dancer in a Buddhist temple, the gardener and tea master via their own and their extended, ‘honorary’ body seek for beautiful physical expression of an inner beauty.

🎭 Many of the Buddhist-inspired arts or ways, the sharp distinction familiar in Western discourse between practice and product, between artistry and artwork, is rejected. It may be an exaggeration to say that, for gardeners, caring for the garden is not a chore, but the very point of having a garden in the first place. But it not only conveys that gardening is not a mere means to an end, the garden itself, but it is a place that depends on a gardener’s continuing care, the garden is not a finished product distinct from the practice of making and maintaining it. To focus, therefore, on the beauty of a practice is not, in the case of many ‘ways’, to ignore the beauty of something, the work, that is separable from the practice. Additionally, even when a distinction is made between a bodily action and its artistic product, many Buddhist artists would refuse to accept that aesthetic attention should exclusively, or even primarily, be devoted to the latter. It is easy enough, of course, to distinguish a calligrapher’s action in drawing with a brush and ink from the characters that are the result of this action. But when it is said of Kobara Sensei, that he and his art “had become one”, the point is to emphasize that the products of an individual’s art are not to be appreciated in isolation from admiration for the individual themself, for the virtues, like kindness, enable their works to look the way they do.

🩰 Kobara’s virtue, his inner beauty, enables his works to look as they do in and through the bodily movements, the physical style, that at once express it and create the characters on the paper. This is an example of the general way in which, for Buddhists, artworks inherit the inner beauty of the people who make them. By giving a sense of the beautiful bodily engagement through which they came into existence, the works themselves body forth the inner beauty of the virtues. Interestingly in twentieth-century Western art criticism, there also developed an appreciation of works as expressive of the bodily activity responsible for them. A significant aspect, for example, of people’s enjoyment of works by Van Gogh, Rodin and Pollock is the palpable sense these works require a certain strength and energy that went into their making. The difference between this occurrence in Western art appreciation and the more abiding Asian tradition is the concern in the latter for the moral beauty that is expressed in an artist’s bodily practice. By extending to art the idea of the body as being beautiful in and through its magnetic expression of inner beauty, it is possible, then, to endorse Batchelor’s beliefs that Buddhism is not just inner experiences. It is known through buildings, gardens, sculptures, paintings, calligraphy, poetry and craftwork’ and “present in” the marks and gestures of artists and artisans.

💋 Please do let me know if I should post the second installment of this document! I have been candid to some about my current health struggles and taking a leave of absence from ballet. I am so incredibly touched with everyone’s kind words and appreciate the amount of kindness i have been met with during these vulnerable moments. I love each and everyone of you and am deeply praying for your successes and triumphs. While I spoke of Buddhism in this post, I will talk about Buddha (mercury) and certain nakshatras correlated to this theory soon…

xoxo,

angel 💋

[shourin]

universe abound

| ◆ ch.6 ⑊ omnipotent.

⬙⤠ masterlist ⤝⬙

◇ a/n ◇ this chapter was super fun to write, i hope yall are enjoying it as much as i did while writing it!!

you know the archons secretly wished for you to immediately make your way down unto the lands of teyvat right after your discussion, but you're thankful that they held their tongues when you expressed that you were exhausted and wanted to retire for the day. with forlorn looks, they bid you temporary farewells and bowed as you re-entered your mansion for your ‘rest’.

yeah, right. like hell you could sleep after all that revelation.

is it your fault? it has to be... right?

maybe if you hadn't abandoned the game for so long, seven nations would have still existed now instead of just three.

you think back to what you saw the last time you checked on the countries. suddenly it dawns upon you - all those people were talking about you.

the creator, whom they thought was harboring anger towards them. the creator, whom they prayed and sent offerings to, hoping that they'll be forgiven and hoping the 'calamities' will stop. the creator, whom they thought had abandoned them.

in your head, you see jean's withering look and hear xiao's bitter tone. your heart aches. tears spill from your eyes and you curl into yourself.

peaceful sleep eludes you that night, despite your stubbornness to lay on the silken bedsheets for hours upon hours. day turns into night and before you know it, birds are chirping out of your window. you suddenly wish you hadn't spent all those times catching the birds and timmy's pigeons with the omni-ubiquity nets. maybe then you can pretend that the dreaded morning never came.

reluctantly, you part from your beddings and trudge towards the mirror. strangely enough, despite your lack of sleep and your long crying session, you don't feel all that fatigued and you don't look like as haggard. your 'tiredness' seems to be affecting you mentally rather than your actual physical body.

the creator.

a divine being.

you... a deity? back on earth, you would have been called blasphemous, for calling yourself a god.

you trail your fingers under your eyes, turning your head this way and that. nothing special. you try to shed some tears by pinching your thighs, hard. clear, normal-looking drops of tears fall onto the dresser. inhaling deeply, you grab one of the quills laying around before lifting the sharp tip of a quill onto the tip of your finger.

steeling yourself, you prod the sharp nib into your skin until it draws blood.

you’re met with a small blob of red rising up onto your skin.

okay then. so no starry eyes, glowing tears, or golden blood.

why oh why did you read so many sagau fics in your younger days? now you're just making yourself more paranoid…...

you inhale deeply and inwardly slap yourself.

you've done everything you could have done for now. dwelling and moping about what-ifs aren't going to solve anything. besides, you do want to help. you just doubt that you can.

but since they want you to visit their nations, then so be it. maybe some sort of miracle will happen when you're there. maybe getting 'reacquainted' with teyvat will really bring out some hidden power in you or whatever.

with this newfound determination, you exit your mansion.

you expected to meet face to face with the three archons once more upon opening the door to your front yard, but to your surprise, you see no sights of any of them whatsoever under the pavilion. frowning, you take a few steps towards the garden, trying to spot at least one of the three. but you don't see any other living beings in the vicinity.

well, that was anticlimactic. so much for-

"my liege."

"HOLY JESUS!!!!"

a shriek erupts from your vocal chords as you jump away from the direction of the voice, which is right behind you. with wide eyes and heart beating a mile a second, you stare back at beelzebul's shocked expression, her hand outstretched forward and frozen in the air, as if she was about to touch your shoulder.

the girl blinks and asks with such genuine curiosity in each and every single one of her words, you have to prevent yourself from laughing out loud, "who is ‘jee-sus’, divine creator? why do you call them holy? is he an acolyte?"

"pff-ahem… f-forget it, you don't need to know."

"it must be an important friend of yours, then. seeing as i’ve heard their name leaving your lips several times as you guided me in the past."

that elicits a snort out of you. beelzebul watches in wonder as you giggle into your fist, the sight even more mesmerizing seen from behind her rose-tinted glasses. her creator is smiling and laughing because of her. most people find her a bore, too stiff and dry for their liking - and yet here you are laughing merrily only seconds upon encountering her this fine morning.

she feels exceptionally proud.

and so perhaps it’s that feeling that makes her bolder, that makes her bravely step closer to you and offer her hand for you to take.

"forgive me for being so direct… but would you like to visit inazuma for a walk? i- no, we… would be very overjoyed to welcome you. though we don't have much to offer at the moment."

you look around for one last time around the garden, "is that alright? what about the others?"

"if you worry about them that much, i can send a messenger to inform them of your whereabouts."

"oh. yeah, that works."

"then, shall we?"

her slender fingers wrap around yours gently as soon as you place your hands on top of her waiting palm. the edges of your vision suddenly blurs and distorts, before the sensation of being pulled into something grips your whole body-

-and then, the colors shift and realign, leaving you breathless as you stare at the scenery in front of you.

you recognize the view almost immediately. you recall spending some time getting to this exact same spot, cursing the level designers and model builders for making it so hard for the players to climb up.

the wind whips around you as you gaze down upon the whole narukami island. it's blanketed by a thin fog, the sky is gloomy and full of clouds despite the sun already starting to rise. you see the flooded plains, the barren trees, the way ritou's dock has been claimed by the sea, and you unconsciously bite the inside of your cheek. your companion senses your distress immediately, and she squeezes your hand to comfort you.

"i am sorry for letting this happen."

"why are you apologizing?" you laugh bitterly, "i… if i really were the creator then i caused this. don't ever apologize for a mistake that isn't yours, beelzebul."

she purses her lips and only allows herself to speak after a short, contemplative silence.

"the day you descended to teyvat…," she starts, voice thick with emotion, eyes closing in reminiscent of the events, "we all knew it was you. your star shone so brightly, a white light so prominent in the dark night sky, even through the rain and the clouds. i was so overwhelmed with awe and joy…"

"but before i could fully take it all in… all of a sudden, the light was gone. we saw you fall down. i feared for your safety and took off at once. i am ashamed to say that i was not the first to arrive, but we agreed to let you recuperate in your realm before parting ways."

beel's eyes shine when she re-opens them, and you're pulled in by the way she genuinely smiles. soft and gentle like the rays of sunlight slowly filtering through the fogs.

"and yet… the moment i returned to inazuma, the rain had already ceased. it hasn't done so for the past hundred years. the storms and thunders finally listened to my commands, and i was able to send them away. the remnants of electro energy are steadily rising back again, even to this day."

"your grace… even when you were unconscious, teyvat rejoices over your return and faithfully awaits your wishes. you have no need to worry. besides, you have always forgiven our countless mistakes in the past. no one should blame you for the perils that had spread throughout the land. all that matters is that you are back now, and that means things will steadily get better."

"....."

you offer the electro archon a smile and squeeze her hand in reply. she beams, and you know your unspoken gratitude reaches her heart. you don't think you'll ever be able to forgive yourself for this whole mess if it truly is your fault, but her words still bring a sense of comfort to you.

you can only hope that you'll be able to actively help to rectify this situation sooner rather than later.

"can i take a walk through the city? but i'd like to do it incognito."

the woman contemplates your request with a serious frown, before giving you a conclusive nod, "very well. but firstly, i believe it will be best if you change clothes, your grace. so you can blend in the crowd better."

a sound logic, you comment inwardly and express with a nod.

"also… most vision holders are familiar with your voice. so i believe it will be best if you do not talk to anyone. i can do the talking if it is needed."

"you're planning to go with me?"

"yes, of course. i must be there to protect you if anything unexpected happens," she pauses and gives you a pleading look, "you'll let me… won't you?"

you freeze as a nostalgic feeling washes over you. this exact moment feels like a deja vu, though you can't remember when exactly it happened before. an in-game event, perhaps? no, that's not it…

"my liege…?"

"sorry- i mean- yeah, er, sure. you can tag along… i can just pretend to be… your assistant or something."

"an assistant," she repeats scornfully, looking like she's going to cry, "how could i dare- my liege, you must punish me after this is all done."

"beel, it's fine, you're just acting and i really don't mind… look, if it bothers you too much, what about… yeah, just say that we're friends. that way you won't be lying and we're on the same level at least, right? okay?"

"oh… a… a friend. yes- if... if you're okay with it, then…"

"good. is that all?"

".... there is one more thing… your presence…," she looks conflicted, hesitates to say her next few words, and when she finally braves herself to speak she doesn't dare to meet your eyes, "forgive my impertinence when i say this, my liege - but…seeing as i am the electro archon, and that i rarely go out to interact with the mortals, we can perhaps mask it as my divine power, if anyone comments on it…"

"sounds good," you say lightly and realize something as you gaze at her, "hey, beel?"

"yes?"

"you'll have to stop calling me so formally, otherwise we'll get exposed right away," you sigh, "seriously, just start calling me by name. c'mon. repeat after me. [name]."

"ah- that's…," beel's lips tremble, her cheeks taking a pinkish hue, "..... [n-n-name]...."

"again."

"b-but my liege-"

"lalalalala-i'm sorry, who?"

"[n-name]!"

"keep at it, we're not stopping until you get used to it!"

it takes her a full fifteen minutes to finally be able to say your name in a normal voice level, a casual tone, and without stuttering. by the end of it, she looks as if she's just gone through a series of trials and tribulations severe enough to render an archon bedraggled. you would have laughed at her if you weren't in a similar state yourself - having to coax and cheer on her throughout the whole ordeal was no simple task, especially since beel is just so overly attached to her role as your disciple.

she then ushers you into tenshukaku after making sure no one is around to see her carry you down onto the building's balcony, as per your request. the shogun eagerly provides you with a change of clothes that's very inazuman style, and you gladly change into it, although you chose to leave a few accessories out of the ensemble, finding them too extravagant and nonfunctional. beel sulks a bit at your action but holds back her protest.

when you step out from tenshukaku's gates after walking down a shit ton of stairs (you wish you had a glider and can operate one - perhaps you should ask barbatos when you meet him), the sun is nearly high in the sky, but the obstructing fogginess still hangs over the city like a persistent ghost. you're slightly panting, and your legs are a little sore, but you stubbornly nod when beel asks whether you want to continue.

"would you like to have some food first, my-- f-friend?"

you shoot her a reminding glare and nod, already falling into your role as per agreement. she coolly waves towards the guards who bows and greets her, and ignoring their confused stare towards you, she leads you both towards a familiar looking establishment.

komore teahouse.

"will this suffice?"

you nod fervently.

the sliding door opens and you inwardly scream when you see taroumaru sitting on the welcoming counter, tongue lolling out and tail wagging. as soon as you make eye contact, the canine's tail wags wildly, and before you know it he's already at your feet, bumping his snout against your leg while barking excitedly. this seems to have caught someone else's attention, however.

"hey, what's wrong bud- t-t-the almighty s-shogun?!!"

green jade eyes flit between the purple-haired woman and you, a comically shocked expression permanent on the blond's face as he tries to recompose himself. thoma tries to speak, but he only manages to produce a weird gurgling sound before falling into an embarrassed silence.

"thoma? what's wrong, who is-" a gentle voice enters your ears and its owner steps out from the same room thoma just left from, "ah- the almighty shogun, what a pleasure to meet you here, of all places!"

although ayaka is clearly just as shaken, she manages to bow and mask the surprise in her expression. as expected as the shisaragi himegimi, you mentally praise her in your head. her elegance seems to be amplified by a hundred times now that you're seeing her face-to-face.

"hm. i believe you are… kamisato ayaka and her retainer. does that mean the yashiro commissioner is around too?"

just as beel finishes voicing her question, another figure passes through the door, and your eyes nearly bulge out from their socket, "oh, what a delightful surprise. good morning, shogun. what brings you here this fine morning?"

you resist the urge to scream, bang the floor, and rush to smooch bear-hug all three of them. pure dopamine is pumping within your veins, and you almost feel dizzy from the excitement.

two handsome men and two beautiful ladies. what an absolute treat. you won't be surprised if you end up fainting from all these beauties.

"i am accompanying a friend of mine sightseeing."

"ah. i see," ayato blinks and you feel three pairs of eyes staring at you, "... how curious. i don't think i've seen you before around the city. may i know your name, perha-"

"my companion is rather hungry," beel interjects, "if the teahouse is full, we shall look for another establishment to dine."

"full? oh, dear me, no," ayato flashes a polite smile, "our table has space for two extra people. we would be honored if the raiden shogun herself and her esteemed friend join us for a meal."

"yes, please do join us!" ayaka beams, hands clasped in front of her as a genuine smile spreads on her lips, "we were just celebrating over the end of the endless rain! the weather outside has become so lovely!"

beel shifts on her legs uneasily and glances at you. you understand her silent question instinctively and replies with a small nod.

"hm. very well. i suppose it is a cause of celebration."

"oh- then, i'll uh- order a new batch of hotpot then, heh," thoma springs into action immediately with a sheepish smile, darting towards the kitchen in a hurry after throwing one last glance towards you.

you just have to chuckle at that. were they about to play thoma's favorite game of hotpot again? what dorks…

"then, this way, if you would," ayato gestures towards the room at the very end of the corridor.

you follow him silently alongside beel, and the two siblings wait until their archon and you as her guest are settled comfortably on the empty cushions first before taking their own seats. right. inazuma natives mind their manners more than other nations. gotta remember that.

"so, what is your name, if i may ask?" ayaka stares at you expectantly from her place right across the table from you.

you gulp and turn towards beel, but she's already onto the case.

"their name is [name]."

"[name]? what an unique and beautiful name! you are not from inazuma, then, [name]?"

you shake your head.

"so then, how did you get to inazuma, [name]?" the other sibling inquires, and you think you see a mischievous glint in his soft colored eyes as he continues, "i am very curious about when you arrived and how it is that we haven't seen you around before."

is ayato suspecting your identity? you understand he's well-versed in the game of politics, and therefore he might be more cautious of others in retrospect. although it might have been just one's normal sense of wariness toward strangers, you can't help the nagging feeling that he somehow knows that you're hiding something. but how?

beel sees the way you wring your fingers together and the restless shifting of your legs, and she decides to take things into her own hands. sending a cold glare to the yashiro commisioner, she icily answers the open questions, "[name] is one of the survivors from the fallen nations."

"..... ah," ayato's smile immediately vanishes, and he retracts into a tense pose before regarding you with a solemn look instead, "i apologize. I must have made you uncomfortable. it must have been hard and traumatic… are you alone in inazuma?"

alone…

you nod and smile, to sign that you're not angry with them or anything like that.

ayaka sighs in relief before realizing something, "where are my manners? i am kamisato ayaka, and this is my brother, kamisato ayato. he is the head of the yashiro commision. if you need any help settling into inazuma, please don't hesitate and let us know!"

"indeed. a pleasure to meet you. as ayaka said, we would be more than happy to help you with anything to ensure you're comfortable staying in inazuma. now that the endless rain is no more, hopefully, the sakura trees will soon bloom again. i assure you the scenery will please your eyes."

my eyes are already pleased even now, though - you think in your head as your eyes sweep over ayato's visage. still, you nod with a grin to show your interest in seeing the sakura blooms. the city does look barren without the purplish-pink petals.

"sorry for the wait!" thoma enters the room with a new pot in his hands, and he skillfully swaps the one sitting on the table with the one he just carried into the room, "i'll take this back- does anyone want any additional toppings? oh, and what drinks would you like, almighty shogun and her esteemed guest?"

typical thoma, always so hospitable and attentive! you offer him a thankful smile and shrug when beel gives you a questioning look. she then orders two dango milk and a few desserts that the teahouse offers. you can see the amusement in the siblings' expressions, but they're polite enough to not comment on it.

while thoma is gone for the second time, ayato and ayaka flawlessly carry the interactions, smoothly jumping from one subject to another to keep the awkward silence away. you sit back and relax, listening and absorbing as much information as possible.

the conversation flows even smoother when the pyro wielder returns. he quickly picks up the cue about your 'inability' to talk somehow, and maneuvers around it without making you feel left out. you observe them in awe - even though their personalities remain the same as their in-game self, you can't help but feel like they've matured somehow… an effect from having to deal with the calamities, perhaps?

besides the good company, you're also blown away by the feast on your table. while your tongue is able to recognize some ingredients thrown into the boiling broth, you're also faced with things you've never tasted before. you eagerly munch on at least one bite of everything, wanting to know how they all taste, and while some don't suit your palate, you're fully enjoying the new culinary experience and that's more important to you.

a comfortable lull in conversation settles when all the plates are emptied. clearly, everyone is in some sort of a food coma, including yourself. ayaka notices this and clears her throat, before suggesting for everyone to take a walk to help their bodies digest the copious amount of food you've just devoured. your positive acknowledgment causes beel to agree to tag along, and so this time, you leave komore teahouse with three extra people compared to when you first entered.

naturally, this earns you even more curious onlookers. the raiden shogun herself, the yashiro commissioner, the shisaragi himegimi, her infamous retainer… and then, there's little ol' you. no doubt, to the locals, you're the one odd duckling here.

you try to ignore the weird looks given to you by listening intently to the words spoken by your companions instead.

"it would be lovely if the fog disperses soon, so that the city receives more sunlight."

"that would be nice, wouldn't it? i quite miss the sun. i don't even remember the last time we felt it warming our skin."

"milord, milady, i understand you'll want to bask under the sun the moment we can see it peek through the fog, but please don't forget that your skin burns easily…"

"i never thought i would ever say this but the idea of getting sunburnt sounds like an occasion to be celebrated, given our situation."

"oh dear… well, i warned you, milord…"

"i'm looking forward to when that day comes! oh, perhaps we should start to prepare a plan to reopen the port in ritou, almighty shogun?"

you can see beel pondering over the suggestion with a fleeting smile at the corner of her lips. Regardless of how she still finds change daunting at times, it seems like the idea brings her some sort of joy this time.

"hm. a good suggestion, however, i believe the flood has yet to subside?"

"yes… and it will take some time, i'm afraid," ayato hums, fiddling with the dimmed vision dangling from his waist, "though i still have yet to regain full control over my vision, i can still at least sense that the seawater has yet to abate." 

your eyebrows scrunch together in confusion. the hydro emblem is barely visible among the faint blue gem. upon closer inspection, the same phenomenon is present on thoma's pyro vision. and the last time you saw jean, you did notice that her anemo vision wasn't shining as bright, too…

huh. what's that about?

"i see. then, it might take several years until ritou can be opened up again. regrettably, we can only wait as nature heals and fixes itself…," beel momentarily glances downwards past the stairs in front of your group, to the edges of water that had taken claim over hanamizaka, "although, we can always start to plan on how we shall rebuild our city. let us discuss this topic at the next tri-commission meeting."

"as you command, shogun."

a pensive silence falls upon your group. a raven soars in the sky above, before settling on a nearby tree. it's a desolate sight - what should have been a blooming sakura tree reduced to empty branches and sickly-looking trunk of wood. the rain might have stopped overnight, but the disaster is far from over.

.....

you're not sure what possesses you when your legs move on their own accord to descend the stone stairs. beel's soft call of your name didn't reach your ears; your eyes are narrowed, focused on the seawater, and you swear you can see ripples forming on it, as if it's shivering with fear.

a step away from the water, you stop.

behind you, beel and the other allogenes watch in awe as the sigil she has ever only seen and described within books and ancient texts manifests behind you - a four-pointed star, cool blue merging with a delicate pinkish hue, sparkling with shimmering white light.

your voice is soft and calm, yet it pulses through the whole city, and carries throughout inazuma across the seas.

"recede."

the ripples stop abruptly. for a moment, everything is still…

... until all of a sudden, the water starts to move in waves, gently retreating back, moving away from the city.

following the sound of wings flapping, a nearby sakura tree suddenly erupts into full bloom, and a breeze of sakura petals burst forth, swirling around you as if asking for forgiveness. you squint from the sudden increase in brightness, and you watch in awe as the sun seems to shine brighter. overhead, the mist starts to disperse rapidly. surprised yells and cheers could be heard throughout the town. after a long period of seemingly ceaseless downpour, narukami island finally receives unhindered rays of sunlight.

footsteps stop right behind you, followed by beel's voice.

"see, your grace?"

you turn back to face the archon. she's looking up at you from her kneeling position with a hand over her chest, adoration in her purple eyes, crackling with electro energy. behind her, in the same position, you see the others mirroring the same stance and countenance, though they don't dare to meet your eyes - ayato with an all-knowing smile, and the other two looking more dazed.

"teyvat rejoices over your return and awaits your wishes."

from the shadows, you never did notice the darkened glares and scornful leers focused upon your form.

© shourin | 2022 ◆ no repost. reblogs much appreciated. feel free to reach out to submit suggestions, feedback, comments, or if you just want to talk!

◇ taglist ◇ @paintingsofdragonspine | @genshinparty | @abyssmal-skies | @hamdehlesmis

ps. if you want to be removed/added from the taglist, just send an ask or dm me!

[northwindow]

random acts

a chaotic, uncertain, and disorderly syllabus [x]

why fish don't exist & “the eleventh word” by lulu miller

book and essay by npr journalist lulu miller on the search for order in a world of chaos. miller was inspired by the story of naturalist david starr jordan, whose collection of carefully classified and labeled fish specimens was scrambled in an earthquake in 1906. while researching his quest to rebuild his life's work she discovers surprises about his life that yield insights about her own search for order and meaning. “the eleventh word” follows her family after the onset of the covid-19 pandemic and the publication of why fish don’t exist, when her young son learns the very word “fish” that she attempts to complicate in her book.

chaos: the making of a new science by james gleick

the first popular science book on chaos theory aimed at non-physicists and non-mathematicians, published in the 1980s by science reporter james gleick. presented chronologically, chaos begins with the story of meteorologist edward lorenz's experiments with a weather simulator and expands to cover the ubiquity of chaos in fields like astrophysics, ecology, economics, geometry, and biology; as well as the ways the study of chaos has altered scientific paradigms.

"the lava lamps that help keep the internet secure" by tom scott

video in which youtuber tom scott visits the web security company cloudflare, where a camera photographs the changing patterns in a row of lava lamps to generate unpredictable values for their cryptography. in another office, a receipt printer generates outputs such as magic 8-ball responses, mazes, and sudokus from their random data.

"just randomness" by michael marder

essay in real life magazine by philosopher michael marder about ethics and algorithmic decision-making, in which he argues that algorithms should not recuse us from making fundamental decisions about justice. by trying to use randomness to create fairer systems, marder writes that we are prone to the pitfalls of perceived randomness-- particularly at the hands of the learned gender, race, and class biases absorbed by artificial intelligence.

"what does chaos theory have to do with art?" by dean wilcox

paper by culture writer dean wilcox on the connections between chaos theory in physics and image/process-driven work in art. wilcox uses the plays of robert wilson and the films of david lynch, both of which eschew predetermined narrative structures, as artistic corollaries for chaos science. for an analysis on art and entropy focusing on the work of many 1960s artists and architects, see robert smithson's "the new monuments and entropy." (thank you to @vis-uh-vis for the suggestion!)

"divination and game theory" by john henrich

short section of evolutionary biologist john henrich's book the secret of our success, which as a whole explores various ways that cultural evolution may advantage the human species. he touches on several examples of how random divination techniques, such as augury or osteomancy, are an evolutionary boon in situations where random decisions are valuable. for more thoughts see "paul the octopus' death and other thoughts on animal oracles" by alice dos reis from the dutch socio-political research project, schemas of uncertainty (many other interesting pieces here too!)

"the elusive apple of my i," "consciousness = thinking", "a courteous crossing of words," & the final pages of i am a strange loop by douglas hofstadter

a selection from cognitive scientist douglas hofstader's book on consciousness, i am a strange loop. these parts are dedicated to pondering how our coherent sense of self is established in spite of the chaotic "mass of seething and churning” at the level of cellular structures or subatomic particles. (note: brief references are made to concepts from elsewhere in the book, notably epi from ch. 7 and careenium from ch. 3 in the full text. thanks to @calliopecantaloupes for pointing me to this!)

alan watts on the myopic view of the world

lecture by theological writer and speaker alan watts on the common western perception of the universe as chaotic, alien, and unsympathetic. he explains how we might expand our "myopic" view of life, which focuses on our individual egos and voluntary actions, to see a larger order of magnitude in which the self and environment depend harmoniously on each other.

[themythinglink]

Welcome Foolish Mortals!

With Halloween fast approaching, here's a special treat: the Haunted Mansion case study I wrote for my 2013 book, EVERY GUEST IS A HERO: Disney's Theme Parks and the Magic of Mythic Storytelling--available in both print and e-reader editions from Amazon.com. Enjoy!

Tomb It May Concern Haunted Mansion

by Adam M. Berger

Many Disney attractions deliver their thrills by pretending to put you in peril—either personally (as in Indiana Jones Adventure and Big Thunder Mountain) or vicariously (Pinocchio’s Daring Journey, Snow White’s Scary Adventures). But the Haunted Mansion is one of the few that purport to send you into the afterlife…or at least offer you a peek into the Great Beyond. Unless you count the “white room” scene near the end of “it’s a small world” (which some guests reportedly assume represents some sort of international “singing doll heaven,”) the remainder of the list is pretty much limited to the finale scene of Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride and the various iterations of Tower of Terror.

The Haunted Mansion’s ubiquity in the Magic Kingdom-class parks around the world testifies to the attraction’s inherent appeal. Each version is unique in its own ways, with some differences more significant than others. In Disneyland Paris for example, where the attraction is known as Phantom Manor, the sequence of scenes is notably different from its counterparts in the U.S. and Japan, as is the storyline’s emphasis (though the overall theme remains largely intact).[1] Only Hong Kong Disneyland, among the Magic Kingdom-class parks, is devoid of a version of the Haunted Mansion.[2] For the purposes of this case study, however, we’ll focus solely on the Magic Kingdom rendition.

Your first good view of the Haunted Mansion will typically be from the quaint colonial environs of Liberty Square—a Special World within the Special World of the Magic Kingdom (see Ch. 5: Please Stand Clear of the Doors), which, at the same time, represents the Ordinary World relative to the Special World of the Haunted Mansion. The Dutch-Gothic style manor house looms over Liberty Square—a foreboding presence atop a low hill, set apart from the other attractions yet impossible to ignore…especially with its frequent wolf howls serving as a chilling Call to Adventure that can be heard throughout the area and even from Tom Sawyer Island.

Of course no one can resist the enchanting strains of a nice, full-throated wolf howl. And so, accepting the Call, you follow your ears through the wrought-iron gate and onto the manor’s grounds. Traversing the neatly manicured entry drive, you pass a glossy black horse-drawn hearse, which appears to be hitched up to an invisible horse, the contours of its body discernable only by the shapes of its leather harness. Though you have barely crossed the First Threshold into the Special World of the Haunted Mansion, already you are finding that the rules are different here.

Soon, the queue leads you into the family cemetery, where the graves of various loved ones feature headstones playfully hinting at their less-than-virtuous lives and their not-so-dignified demises. But there’s something else that sets this cemetery apart from those of the Ordinary World. For here, the dearly departed refuse to entirely depart. Instead, several of them linger in our mortal realm well past their expiration dates—in spirit, at least—and are fond of making their presences known in whimsically macabre ways. Thus, the pipe organ-shaped tomb of a decomposing composer plays his favorite tune (“Grim Grinning Ghosts”) when you touch the sculpted stone keyboard, while the sepulcher of “Captain Culpepper Clyne,” (who was “allergic to dirt so he’s pickled in brine”) douses nearby mourners with a spritz of saltwater whenever its occupant sneezes. And so it appears that, by entering the domain of the dead, you are already beginning to display a nascent ability to interact with them.

Arriving at the Mansion’s imposing front door, you are soon greeted by a lugubrious-looking butler or maid, who dolefully bids you enter. This time your threshold crossing is a literal one, and it delivers you into a gloomy foyer, where a portrait of a dashing young man quickly ages—“Dorian Gray” style—until the subject is reduced to a putrefying corpse. This, it turns out, will be just one of many transformations you’ll be encountering in the course of your Journey. Meanwhile, speaking over the sound of a mournful organ arrangement of “Grim Grinning Ghosts,” the disembodied voice of the Ghost Host welcomes you and the other “foolish mortals” in your group. He then issues the Haunted Mansion’s first official Call to Adventure as he invites you to step into the Portrait Gallery. It seems that, simply by being here, you’ve already accepted the Call. For as your Ghost Host informs you with an audible smirk, “There’s no turning back now.”

Through much of your Journey, the Ghost Host will be not only be your tour guide, but will also fulfill the dual roles of herald and mentor, announcing each new threshold and explaining some of the paranormal activity you will encounter as you penetrate ever deeper into this supernatural realm. However, here in the Portrait Chamber, he is apparently getting a mischievous kick observing your “cadaverous pallor” as you begin to “…sense a disquieting metamorphosis.” But it’s not your imagination; the entire room really is stretching—including the paintings of several previous guests “…as they appeared in the their corruptible, mortal state.”

And now your Ghost Host is cheerfully pointing out that, “This chamber has no windows and no doors…which leaves you with this chilling challenge: to find a way out!” And so you are assigned your first test on the Road of Trials.

Before you can ponder your next move, the gargoyle lamps are suddenly extinguished as a flash of lightning reveals the gruesome sight of the Ghost Host’s decaying corpse hanging from the cupola rafters, which have suddenly become visible through the formerly opaque chamber ceiling. A clap of thunder and a bloodcurdling scream complete the effect. When the lights return a moment later, you notice that one of the walls has somehow vanished, allowing you and your fellow adventurers to exit the chamber.

Though you are only at the beginning of your Haunted Mansion tour, you are already becoming acquainted with some of the peculiarities of the otherworldly realm inside this place. First, you are beginning to realize that, in this Special World, things are seldom what they seem at first. Going forward, you can be sure that your expectations (based, reasonably enough, on your experiences in the Ordinary World) will be upended again and again. You are also starting to sense that this house possesses a personality of its own—one with a twisted sense of humor.

Now, as you emerge from the Portrait Chamber, you notice that the Ghost Host’s claim that “There’s no turning back now” is not quite true. For just outside the chamber is a doorway with a sign: “Full of fear? Exit here.” If you belatedly decide to refuse your Call to Adventure, this is your opportunity to make a last-minute escape back to the friendly, familiar environs of Liberty Square. But it’s going to take a lot more than a stretching room and a swinging corpse to discourage you from continuing your Journey. And so you bypass the “chicken exit” and instead follow your compatriots into a gloomy corridor where, in the words of the Ghost Host, “…a carriage approaches to carry you into the boundless realm of the supernatural.”

Your “carriage,” of course, turns out to be a Doom Buggy—a ride vehicle painted a fashionably funereal shade of black, matching the tone of the humor you’ll be encountering through the remainder of your Journey. Moments after you step aboard, you cross the first of several shadowy thresholds awaiting you beyond. This one leads to the Portrait Corridor, where flashes of lightning expose the secret monsters lurking within as an angelic young woman turns out to be a horrifying medusa, and a regal knight on a handsome steed is revealed to be a hideous ghoul astride a skeletal horse. It’s a continuation of the transformation theme that began in the foyer. But these portraits also hint at the idea that each of us has a private, hidden self, concealed behind the public selves we display to the world. Just as the well-manicured grounds and pristine exterior of the Haunted Mansion conceal a dark, sinister world within, many aspiring heroes must ultimately acknowledge and deal with the dark inner forces of their own self-doubt, guilt, anger, resentment, jealousy, hubris, or other negative emotions that hold them back and threaten to derail their quests.

Passing beneath an archway, you enter the Mansion’s dimly lit library, which the Ghost Host explains, “…is well-stocked with priceless first editions; only ghost stories, of course.” A bookcase ladder moves on its own while an apparently empty rocking chair rocks back and forth and books slide in and out of their places on the dusty bookshelves. Even the marble busts seem endowed with some sort of life force as they shift their gaze to follow your Doom Buggy’s motion from their bookcase perches.

It seems some of the Mansion’s resident spirits are present, yet you are unable to directly see them, as you are not yet attuned to the spiritual frequencies of this ghostly Special World. Your ever-helpful Ghost Host has a quick remedy however, explaining, “…we have 999 happy haunts here, but there's room for a thousand. Any volunteers, hmmm?” It is perhaps the strangest and most macabre Call to Adventure you will find anywhere in the Disney theme parks. And as if to assure you that he’s serious, the Ghost Host adds, “If you should decide to join us, final arrangements may be made at the end of the tour...” Nevertheless, this is one Call to Adventure you should probably pass up.

Next, you enter the Music Room where moonlight streaming through the large windows reveals the shadow of an otherwise invisible pianist, pounding out chords on a dusty old piano. This shadow, according to Imagineering sources, belongs to the Ghost Host, though it’s never stated anywhere in the attraction. In fact, this particular scene is presented without any narration at all. In any case, you can only perceive the figure’s ghostly presence implicitly as you are still developing the mental skills you will need to directly visualize the Mansion’s spectral inhabitants.

Leaving the music room, your Doom Buggy ascends through a chamber where staircases surround you at impossible angles while glowing green footprints appear on the steps. The deeper you penetrate into the mansion, the more you appreciate how far the rules of this Special World depart from those of the Ordinary World. The strange staircase drives home the extent to which your familiar sense of “reality” has been literally turned upside down.

Arriving at the top of the staircases, you notice malevolent-looking eyes scowling at you from the deep shadows. As you move into a gloomy corridor, the eyes eventually merge into the pattern of the creepy wallpaper. Next, you pass a parlor, where a suit of medieval armor and an easy chair decorated with a spooky, abstract face seem to be watching your every move. Nearby, a flickering candelabrum floats eerily in mid-air in a seemingly endless hallway. The candelabrum is not just another peculiar phenomenon; it’s also a signal, a beacon. Someone—or more likely something—is beckoning you to follow. For now, you decline this new Call to Adventure as your Doom Buggy carries you past the corridor and into the next room. Yet the floating candelabrum implies that, for the first time, one of the residents of this peculiar world (other than your Ghost Host) is making at least a token effort to reach out to you.

Now your Doom Buggy rotates around to face backward as you enter the Mansion’s conservatory, where dead flowers surround a coffin occupying the center of the room. A raven is perched atop a wreath featuring a banner that reads: “Farewell.” However, the eulogies may be premature, as the coffin’s occupant is desperately trying to pry the lid open from within, his gnarled hands illuminated by a sickly green light that spills out of the sarcophagus. “All our guests have been dying to meet you,” says the voice of the Ghost Host, dripping with sarcasm. “This one can hardly contain himself.”

Does the fact that you can clearly see the coffin’s occupant (or at least his hands) mean that you have suddenly graduated to the rank of “ghost whisperer” and are now able to visualize the Mansion’s spectral inhabitants? Sorry, not really. The hands are visible to you because this is not a spirit at all, but merely an “undead” corpse—or maybe even a still-living individual unwillingly awaiting a premature burial. But rest assured, you will be able to directly perceive the “happy haunts” with your own eyes…though you are not there yet.

And what of the raven on the wreath? As you may have already guessed, the dark, menacing creature is more than mere decoration. The raven, in fact, has a long mythological pedigree. In Norse mythology, the father god Odin has two ravens—Huginn and Muninn—that serve as feathered reconnaissance drones, relaying news to him of everything that happens in Midgard (Middle Earth, the human domain). In other words, Odin’s two ravens provide a means of communication between the mortal world and the supernatural realm of the Norse gods. The raven is also a major part of the creation myth of the indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast, who also consider the bird to be a trickster god. And most famously, the title figure of Edgar Alan Poe’s unnerving 1845 poem “The Raven” plays the role of a supernatural messenger, whose repeated utterance of a single enigmatic word—“Nevermore”—is laden with meaning for the poem’s narrator. And so, given its strong symbolic connection with the world beyond, it should hardly come as a surprise that you will be meeting the Mansion raven three more times before your Journey has ended.

The mystical forces flowing through the Mansion now propel your Doom Buggy into a corridor lined with heavy doors. And whoever—or whatever—is on the other side of those doors seems anxious to make a grand entrance on your side. Doorknobs twist and doorknockers pound while grunts, growls, and snarls issue from within. A pair of skeletal hands can even be seen pressing one door outward. Fortunately, as your Ghost Host remarks, “They all seem to be having trouble getting through.”

The Corridor of Doors (WDI’s internal name for this scene) might as well be known as the Corridor of Thresholds. Each one presumably leads into some other part of the Haunted Mansion’s Special World. But in this case, the beings on the other side would rather cross over to your side of the threshold. Which just goes to remind you that threshold crossings can work in both directions.

Just beyond the Corridor of Doors, you pass through the Clock Hall, which features a single grandfather clock. A pair of skeletal fingers that serve as the hour and minute hands rapidly spin counter-clockwise, striking the 13th hour every few seconds. At the same time, the shadow of a sinister claw sweeps across the clock’s demonic features. The creepy scene serves to reinforce the strangeness of this Special World, reminding you (as if you needed further prompting) that the rules of your familiar, Ordinary World do not apply in this ghostly place.

“Perhaps Madame Leota can establish contact,” suggests the Ghost Host as you enter the Séance Circle. “She has a remarkable head for materializing the disembodied.”  Indeed, you are fascinated by the sight of Madame Leota’s luminescent head inside a crystal ball, floating preternaturally above the séance table. The raven from the conservatory, meanwhile, now perches on the back of the chair behind the table, its presence here reinforcing its mythic reputation as a supernatural messenger.

You have caught Madame Leota in the midst of an incantation as she summons the spirits into the visible world, intoning, “Serpents and spiders, tail of a rat—call in the spirits, wherever they’re at!” Musical instruments float through the air, responding to her spell, while a formless green apparition traces a phosphorescent trail in the surrounding darkness.

As the medium that establishes contact between you and the spirit world, Madame Leota fulfills the herald archetype, beckoning the Mansion’s ghostly residents to reveal themselves. At the same time, she acts as a threshold guardian, essentially controlling the flow of spiritual energy between the dimensions. However, at this point in your Journey, you have undergone your own sensory transformation. Whether you are aware of it or not, the prior chambers you encountered during your tour, with their “wall-to-wall creeps, and hot and cold running chills,” were all tests along the mythic Road of Trials. The fact that you (presumably) endured the succession of frights without freaking out has proved your worthiness. And now you are about to collect your reward.

“The happy haunts have received your sympathetic vibrations and are beginning to materialize,” announces your Ghost Host as your Doom Buggy carries you into the Grand Hall, where the Mansion’s residents are “…assembling for a swinging wake…” This announcement marks a turning point in your relationship with the Mansion’s resident ghosts. They have obviously undergone a transformation, transitioning into a state visible to your mortal eyes. But that transition comes as the direct result of your own metamorphosis, which has enabled you to project your “sympathetic vibrations” into the abode of the dead.

The “swinging wake” proves to be just as rowdy as advertised, with dozens of translucent apparitions waltzing, cavorting drunkenly, swinging from the chandeliers, dueling, and partying themselves silly while even more spooks pour through the ballroom door—all to the tune of “Grim Grinning Ghosts” performed on a ghoulish pipe organ by an equally ghoulish organist. You can now say, with a straight face, “I see dead people.”

The festive mood takes a dark turn as your Doom Buggy is unceremoniously diverted to the attic, where a dirge-like piano version of Wagner’s Wedding March (AKA “Here Comes the Bride”) wafts through the space. “We have 999 happy haunts here,” your Ghost Host informs you. “But there’s room for a thousand. Any volunteers?”

Still in the attic, you pass a series of wedding portraits. Each one features the same bride but a different groom. And in each portrait, the groom’s head vanishes before your eyes. Soon you encounter the bride herself—a smiling, wraith-like presence. “I do,” she says repeatedly in a slow, menacing voice as a gleaming hatchet materializes in her clasped hands. The implication is clear: this is the girl your mother warned you about.

In mythic tales, a wedding generally signifies a major milestone in the hero’s Journey toward maturity. However, if the hero is not ready for the responsibilities of adulthood, tragedy can ensue—as appears to be the case here. Appropriately, the (literal) beating heart of that tragedy has been hidden away here in the attic, which turns out to be the Inmost Cave of your personal Hero’s Journey, and this encounter is your Supreme Ordeal. Moreover, though the Haunted Mansion storyline is deliberately vague on the subject, it’s entirely possible that the hatchet-wielding “black widow” bride may be the epicenter of all the supernatural activities that have taken over the Mansion, with her matrimonial murder spree providing the trigger event that attracted the 998 other happy haunts inhabiting this place. As such, the bride, despite her angelic glow, is actually the shadow archetype in your adventure—a literal femme fatale, as well as a shape-shifter and trickster.

As though sensing your unease in the murderous bride’s presence, your Doom Buggy hastily transports you out of her vicinity via the most direct means possible: by diving directly out the attic window…and into the Mansion’s very unusual graveyard. You are now commencing the Return movement of your Journey, and like many mythic heroes, you briefly “taste death” as your Doom Buggy descends in reverse, making it feel as though you are being laid to rest in an open grave. Meanwhile, the Mansion raven, with its glowing red eyes, watches attentively from the branch of a gnarled old tree.

Nearby, wispy ghosts fly up out of their graves and into the inky night sky, while the caretaker and his emaciated hound stand nearly petrified with fear in front of the cemetery gate. Do they share your newfound ability to visualize the Mansion’s happy haunts? Or is it the sudden sight of you that has them so terrified? It’s anyone’s guess. Meanwhile, an upbeat jazz-inflected rendition of "Grim Grinning Ghosts" lilts through the night air, performed by a graveyard ensemble, including a quintet of harmonizing headstones. Ghastly ghouls pop up on either side of your Doom Buggy, while a stout opera diva, a decapitated knight, a lively mummy, and an ethereal cast of other grim grinning ghosts have “…come out to socialize.”

The musical number serves as a cheekily cheery send-off as the Return movement continues and you approach a new threshold: a stone archway that leads to the Mansion’s shadowy stone crypt. The red-eyed raven joins you one last time, glaring down at you from its perch atop the arch. As the Mansion’s unofficial supernatural messenger, the raven’s appearance no doubt heralds a new development in your adventure. Perhaps the bird is here to remind you of the fact that the Return movement of the Hero’s Journey is often fraught with new perils for the hero.

But what is the nature of this latest menace? “There’s a little matter I forgot to mention,” offers the voice of the Ghost Host. “Beware of hitchhiking ghosts!” By this time, of course, it’s far too late for the warning to be of any value. In any case, the otherworldly forces that have been steering your Doom Buggy all along are still in control, leaving you no choice in your destiny. And so the three ghostly hitchhikers[3] now come into view—and they seem unlikely to take “no” for an answer.

Moments later, you are passing a long wall of mirrors, by which point one of the three hitchhikers has already joined you in your vehicle to fulfill its role as a certified trickster archetype. Catching your reflections, you watch with amused disbelief as the hitchhiker proceeds to interact with you in fiendishly silly ways—swapping your head with his own, popping your noggin like a balloon, and playing other literal head games with you. “They have selected you to fill our quota,” the Ghost Host informs you, “and they'll haunt you until you return!”

With this scene, your assimilation into the Special World of the Haunted Mansion is now complete. You are not only able to see the happy haunts; now you are actually, (meta)physically interacting with them…and vice-versa. But the hitchhiking ghosts serve another function. Mythic heroes often return from their Journeys in the Special World with a boon: a healing elixir, a magical ring, a miraculous sword, or some other souvenir of their adventures. Your token souvenir? A hitchhiking ghost. Mazel tov.

Finally, as your Doom Buggy nears the unload area, a miniature spirit nicknamed “Little Leota” bids you farewell from a shelf overlooking the ride path and urges you to “Hurry baaack. Be sure to bring your death certificate if you decide to join us.” You then exit your Doom Buggy onto a moving belt, which conveys you to the exit.

Yet your adventures in the Special World are not quite over yet. For you must now pass through the Mansion’s outdoor mausoleum, where you are serenaded by an a capella rendition of “Grim Grinning Ghosts” performed as a Gregorian chant. The inscriptions on the vaults continue in the style of the morbidly amusing epitaphs you viewed in the front cemetery, including several horrifying puns. Then, if you glance up at the hillside as you exit the mausoleum, you’ll even catch a glimpse of a fenced off pet cemetery. Finally, you again pass the black hearse with its invisible horse before you arrive back in the relative Ordinary World of Liberty Square.

The mausoleum experience is part of your transition back to that Ordinary World. Once you are beyond the mystical influence of the Haunted Mansion, you are no longer able to “see dead people.” That ability has vanished—at least until you “Hurry baaack,” (unless you count the residents of the nearby Hall of Presidents, most of whom long ago shuffled off their mortal coils). But your memory of the experience remains, and your assumptions about the spirit world may never be the same. After all, “There’s no turning back now!”

[1] The differences between the various Haunted Mansion attractions are spelled out in detail by Imagineer Jason Surrell in his book The Haunted Mansion: From the Magic Kingdom to the Movies (Disney Editions, 2003)

[2] Out of cultural considerations involving traditional Chinese sensitivities toward the subject of ghosts, that niche in the park’s attraction portfolio is occupied by Mystic Manor, a dark ride that immerses its guests in an all-new supernatural adventure.

[3] Affectionately nicknamed Phineas, Ezra, and Gus, the three hitchhiking ghosts have become the semi-official mascots of the Haunted Mansion.

[synchronousemma]

15th June: A strawberry-picking party is proposed

Read the post and comment on WordPress

Read: Vol. 3, ch. 6 [42], pp. 231–233 (“It was now the middle” to “‘the very thing to please me’”).

Context

A lame carriage-horse delays the exploring party to Box Hill. Mrs. Elton seizes at Mr. Knightley’s wry invitation to Donwell for a strawberry-picking party.

We know that this occurs in “the middle of June” (p. 231).

Readings and Interpretations

For Want of a Nail

Pat Rogers notes the importance of horses in Austen’s England, despite the inconvenience and expense occasioned by them causing water transport to be cheaper and quicker: “the horse served in the office of car, lorry, tractor, traction engine, moped, racing bike, pet and friend. It was employed by couriers, mailmen and highway robbers. As well as hauling barges, it bore hearses, ambulances, fire-engines, state coaches; and it carried its owner's hopes on the race course and in the hunting field” (p. 428). Horses’ ubiquity is reflected and sometimes played off of in Austen’s works: “We take little notice of the horses in Austen’s novels, but they are there, unobtrusive and essential, as they were in everyone’s lives. A lame carriage-horse delays the trip to Box Hill (E, 3:6), one of a number of strategic deferrals which build up expectations in this book” (ibid). Similarly, James Carson writes of this as the first in a series of examples of how, “[t]oward the end of the novel, Austen structures the very plot on the health and reliability of horses” (p. 176).

Making an Ass of U and Me

This section contains another example of the relationship between ideas and everyday practicalities in what Pam Morris terms “Mrs Elton’s Marie Antoinette posturing in wishing to ride to the strawberry-picking at Donwell on a donkey”:

Mrs Elton’s desire for a donkey as symbol of Arcadian simplicity provides a wonderfully comic image, yet it is typical of Austen’s materialist psychology. Idealist assertions of the mental realm as the primary reality are undercut in her novels as objects persistently point to the way things are required to give substance to the immaterial. Things, in Austen’s texts, demonstrate the necessary interdependence of the subjective and the objective, the idealist and the empirical. We know ourselves, even our interiority, through our interaction with things. […] In this way, Austen’s realism brings to notice a field of visibility—the materiality of human life […]. (p. 93)

Janet Todd points out that, in reality, the donkeys of Jane Austen’s day were “servicable beasts,” and her house in Chawton maintained two: Mrs. Elton’s donkeys, however, are “part of her pastoral kitsch. She has led up to them through her variety of props, her floppy hats, baskets and pink ribbons; the donkeys come in with the ‘caro sposo’” (p. 19). Mr. Knightley responds with the opinion that “‘[t]he nature and the simplicity of gentlemen and ladies, with their servants and furniture, I think is best observed by meals within doors’” (p. 232). But, though Mrs. Elton’s “play-acting in the strawberry beds, if it came off, would not be entirely genteel,” instead “partak[ing] of the anxiety, the uneasy make-believe of the tourist who is not at home in the real world of the country house” (pp. 19–20), Todd sees Knightley’s response as culpable as well:

The Englishman dislikes the pastoral, associated as it was with the doomed French Marie Antoinette and her play-acting as shepherdess at the Trianon hameau with her perfumed sheep […]. Mr. Knightley dislikes this frivolous, perhaps aristocratic, perhaps French falsity. He fears an outdoor lapse of civility if they move from the ordered space of the civilizing dining room with ladies, gentlemen and servants, to a less controlled but equally owned outside arena. But Mr. Knightley himself falls short of another standard, the gentlemanly civility of a less socially anxious age than his own. For in this scene, Mr. Knightley becomes just as rude as Mrs. Elton—and more intentionally so. Indeed it is a recurring aspect of this landowner’s character: he fails often to converse as he ought […]. In opposition to the French, the English liked to associate themselves, with bluff sincerity […]. Mrs. Elton calls Mr. Knightley a humorist; in fact, he is at times simply boorish and insularly proud of being so. (p. 20)

Devoney Looser places more emphasis on the humorousness of Mrs. Elton’s imagined scene:

In encouraging Mrs. Elton to follow her heart and arrive on a donkey—imagining that she will put Jane and Miss Bates on them, too—Mr. Knightley invites his other would-be guests (and Austen’s actual readers, of course) to a campy, circus-like show. Austen, through Knightley, compels us to entertain comic visions of Mrs. Elton’s excesses. […] His line, “I would wish every thing to be as much to your taste as possible,” seems designed for the observant reader’s laughter.

The wished-for donkey scene never materializes, but the conversation encourages readers to conjure up the image: Mrs. Elton, with her entourage, would ride in to the party on an ass, as her caro-sposo husband promenades beside her like a groom, twice over. The conjured scene mimics an arrival into Bethlehem, although Mr. and Mrs. Elton are no biblical Mary and Joseph. That Mrs. Elton would also put Jane and Miss Bates on donkeys offers up a further outlandish biblical approximation. It’s hardly Three Wise Women arriving to pay homage. The narrator suggests that, as much as Mrs. Elton’s ridiculous plan would annoy Mr. Knightley, it would also delight his dry, blunt sense of humor. So this conjured scene would—or should—both annoy and delight the astute reader of Austen. Mrs. Elton’s performing the role of a coddled, wealthy, fashionable Virgin Mary, with Mr. Elton as her sycophantic, accompanying spouse-groom (to an ass no less) is campy-priceless. (pp. 6–7)

Lady Patroness

David Monaghan, who argues that Emma dramatizes the proper assumption on the part of Emma and Mr. Knightley of social and moral authority, writes that “[t]he visit to Donwell marks a further stage in Emma’s reassessment of her role in the Highbury community”:

Like balls at the Crown, excursions to Donwell are not a part of the normal pattern of Highbury life. Mr Woodhouse has not been there for two years, and even the more energetic Emma has been absent for long enough to be ‘eager to refresh and correct her memory’ [vol. 3, ch. 6 [42]; p. 234]. Thus, although the gathering of a few friends to pick strawberries and eat lunch cannot match a ball for excitement, the mere fact that it does happen is an important sign that Highbury is becoming less set in its ways. Indeed, in at least one sense, the visit augurs even better than the ball for the future of the village because it offers clear evidence that Mr Knightley is prepared to take on fully the active moral role that he played briefly at the Crown.

Whereas he was most unwilling to participate in the ball, Mr Knightley now becomes an initiator of social activity. Mrs Elton’s reaction to the cancellation of her visit to Box Hill makes it obvious to Mr Knightley that she is likely to come up with an extremely improper scheme by way of compensation. To avoid this he offers her an alternative form of amusement in the shape of a strawberry-picking party in the grounds of his house, thereby ensuring that her restless energies will be placed under his personal control. The success of Mr Knightley’s manoeuvre is evident in the prompt and firm way he is able to check Mrs Elton’s attempts to be ‘Lady Patroness’: [quotes from “‘It is my party’” to “‘I will manage such matters myself,’” pp. 231–2]. (pp. 134–5)

For Monaghan, then, Mr. Knightley’s invitation is part of a deliberate plan.

Mrs. Elton’s insistence that she is “Lady Patroness” is, of course, just what we expect from her at this point. Morris writes:

The Woodhouses are ‘first in consequence’ in their community due to birthright. They represent neither new money nor new blood, Emma takes pride in thinking. What infuriates Emma is that Mrs Elton utterly refuses to give place or recognition to the old hierarchy of rank upon which Emma relies. ‘I am Lady Patroness, you know. It is my party’, Mrs Elton informs Mr Knightley in regard to the strawberry-gathering at Donwell [p. 231]. She graciously bestows her favour upon Mr Woodhouse, this ‘dear old beau of mine’, and Mrs Weston, ‘I was rather astonished to find her so very lady-like! But she is really quite the gentlewoman’ [vol. 2, ch. 17 [35], p. 197; ch. 14 [32], pp. 180]. By thus sweeping everyone in Highbury into her condescending bestowal of recognition, she magnifies her own imagined idea of self as measured by the extent of her social dominion. Mrs Elton is one of those many characters in Austen’s fiction whose representation seems strikingly to dramatise self as factitious; yet it is a performance driven by embodied needs and passions. Mrs Elton’s discourse resembles a torrent of egoistic energy that sweeps all topics into the vortex of her sense of self-importance. (p. 98)

There is an obvious satire against Mrs. Elton in the statement that her “resources were inadequate to such an attack” as a delay of her outing. Sara Bowen points out the irony:

Whatever his other foibles, Mr. Elton has warned Augusta Hawkins about her possible loneliness in Highbury. Augusta insists that “‘the world I could give up—parties, balls, plays—for I had no fear of retirement. Blessed with so many resources within myself, the world was not necessary to me’” [vol. 2, ch. 14 [32]; p. 179]. Mr. Elton is right in his assessment: Augusta is frantic for the Donwell outing because she “only wanted to be going somewhere” (354); she needs a donkey because “‘it is not possible for her to be always shut up at home’” [p. 233]. (p. 113)

A Real Prince

Colleen Sheehan argues that Emma contains “barbs and innuendoes aimed squarely at the irresistibly large target of the Prince [of Wales, George Augustus Frederick],” who had a reputation for profligacy, debauchery, and self-indulgence. The al fresco dining Mrs. Elton proposes in this section, to the subtle mockery of Mr. Knightley, is one such barb:

If Mrs. Elton, the self-proclaimed “Lady Patroness” of Highbury society, were to have her way, Mr. Knightley’s midsummer’s eve strawberry party, like the Box Hill outing the next day, would be entirely under her direction. In perfectly picturesque fashion, she would have them be a “‘sort of gipsy party,’” with the ladies wearing large bonnets and little baskets hanging on their arms, and everyone coming on donkeys to enjoy a picnic out of doors. Mrs. Elton’s scheme is very much like an actual party held in honor of the Prince Regent’s birthday on 12 August 1811, recorded in the Sussex Weekly Advertiser, replete with hats, baskets, a cold picnic, and donkeys. It too was “a gipsey party,” though it did not take place on Box Hill. Instead, it occurred at Bexhill: “The Prince Regent’s birth day was this year celebrated by the principal inhabitants of Bexhill, in rather a novel manner, by forming themselves into a GIPSEY PARTY. Early in the morning all was bustle—donkies, carts, old wigs, cloaks, hats, &c. &c. were put in requisition, and about eleven o’clock the party, (nearly all in some appropriate character) moved in procession, attended by a great concourse of spectators, to Coden Down, about three miles off, where tents were immediately pitched; an elegant cold PIC NIC collation, from the baskets of the party, was set forth on the grass, and very heartily partaken of. . . . [W]hen the whole party retired, very much gratified with the novel diversion, [they] unanimously agree[d that] the anniversary of their beloved Prince’s Birth-day shall be FOREVER celebrated at Bexhill, in a similar manner.” (n.p.)

Discussion Questions

What textual effects does the attribution of a plot-changing event to something as prosaic as an injured horse have? What might Austen’s motive have been for using this as a plot device?

Was Mr. Knightley in fact joking when he invited Mrs. Elton to Donwell?

Do you think Mrs. Elton’s vision for the Donwell party is likely to be an intentional dig at the Prince Regent?

Bibliography

Austen, Jane. Emma (Norton Critical Edition). 3rd ed. Ed. Stephen M. Parrish. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, [1815] 2000.

Bowen, Sara. “Fanny’s Future, Mary’s Nightmare: Jane Austen and the Clergyman’s Wife.” Persuasions 36 (2014), pp. 100–16.

Carson, James P. “‘One of Folly’s Puppies’: Austen and Animal Studies.” In Global Jane Austen: Pleasure, Passion, and Possessiveness in the Jane Austen Community, ed. Laurence Raw & Robert G. Dryden. New York: Palgrave Macmillan (2013), pp. 165–87.

Looser, Devoney. “Jane Austen Camp.” ABO: Interactive Journal for Women in the Arts, 1640–1830 9.1 (2019), pp. 1–15. DOI: 10.5038/2157-7129.9.1.1172.

Morris, Pam. “Emma: A Prospect of England.” In Jane Austen, Virginia Woolf and Worldly Realism. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press (2017), pp. 83–107.

Rogers, Pat. “Transport.” Jane Austen in Context, ed. Janet Todd. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press (2005), pp. 425–33.                           

Sheehan, Colleen A. “Jane Austen’s ‘Tribute’ to the Prince Regent: A Gentleman Riddled with Difficulty.” Persuasions On-Line 27.1 (Winter 2006).

Todd, Janet. “The Anxiety of Emma.” Persuasions 29 (2007), pp. 15–25.

[whatevergreen]

Ggreg Taylor (upper left), Dan Nicoletta (lower left) and pals at Club Uranus, San Francisco, 1994. photo: Polly Polaroid

Polly Polaroid?

"Polly Polaroid was a presence for around two decades (mid 70s-mid 90s) in the gay bars of San Francisco — and yet no one seemed to remember her story. She would make her rounds in the bars, saying "Photo to remember the evening?" to all patrons — and yet she disappeared and no one knew what happened.

When asking about her, friends would ask if I was talking about Mildred Gardiner, the famous "Millie" from North Beach, who likewise took photos for years. But no, Millie's beat was North Beach, whereas Polly was well known in Polk Gulch, South of Market and gay venues and events throughout the city. ..."

"... There are precious few mentions about her in the gay press. In Gay Times from 1986 Rick Mill spoke to both her ubiquity and anonymity in his column. The Piglet's Pen:

"Who is that lady called Polly Polaroid? No matter where I go, she's there. 'Photo to remember the evening?' she humbly inquires. That woman ought to go into the blackmail business, [with] some of the pictures she's taken of me. I mean, here I am on Ringold Alley; three in the morning…the rest is a blur. All I remember is seeing a flash and hearing a little voice saying, 'Photo to remember the evening?'"

She was, apparently, an inspiration to her subjects with her sense of humor as well. In his Bird Droppings column in a 1976 article in San Francisco's Rip Off Rag, the author, who went by the name of 'The Jailbird,' has this item: "The Bird's quote of the week: Polly Polaroid to a paying customer, 'If you want me to take a picture of Shane's manhood in the bathroom, you may have to spend another six dollars to have it enlarged.'"

A Polly Polaroid portrait at Jolly King Restaurant, circa 1976

From the Bay Area Reporter article: The Polly Polaroid Paradox: Tracking down the woman behind the legend

https://www.ebar.com/story.php?ch=bartab&sc=barchive&id=294763

[tarantula-hawk-wasp]

Til Death Do Us Part ch 1

This will end up on Ao3 eventually  Based on the @maulusque post (Which You Should Read Before Reading This) where Fox and Palpatine end up in a fake relationship and sham marriage because both thinks the other is sincere and that they are manipulating the other but Fox had one hell of a prenup and ends up cleaning house when he divorces Sheev and saves the galaxy 

This is not that story.  This is a failed version of that story I thought up because my two braincells were like Rey Palpatine? That makes Fox her step-grandpa??? and i wanted them to meet. It also is turning into a Sequels Fix It (disclaimer- I kind of take sequels canon about the sheev clones and mash it with my fist until juice comes out and make lemonade and do whatever i want bc they dont explain enough)

Summary:  Fox wakes up from cryo-stasis to a galaxy recovering from the fall of the Empire as the universe’s Bitterest Ex-Husband because he didn’t get to kill Palpatine himself. He’s not going to let some discount clone of sheev ruin things again either, and ends up with a surprise step-granddaughter along the way.  3k words chapter 1/?

Fox should have known better than to attempt out-manipulating the puppetmaster of a galactic war.  What really rankled was how close he had come, his fingers had metaphorically brushed the salvation of the Republic before it had been snatched away. 

The divorce had been more than halfway processed, and Palpatine had grown more and more panicked.  Under the scrutiny of every lawyer on Coruscant, the prenuptial agreement had been airtight, the political powers Fox tried to give himself in it were unlikely to be enforced, but the monetary and titular aspects were to the letter of the law.  

Of course the law only applied to citizens and sentients.  Palpatine cracked down hard against Clone Rights in those last months.  He himself did not publicly utter a biased word in either direction, only ever praising the effectiveness of the troops, but many of Palpatine’s close associates presented strong cases.  People that had been at their engagement party, people who had been roped by tradition into dancing with Fox’s brothers at the wedding, people who had looked him in the eye over an oiled banquet table and praised his wit, became the ones proclaiming that Fox and his brothers had no more inborn rights or legal merit than a droid or womprat. 

Palpatine drew the court case out in circular debates, and last minute rescheduling.  Fox was kept exhausted and worn to the bone between the ramped up tempo of the war, the grueling hours in court, and the new loathing facing him every second he spent at his job in the Coruscant Guard.  Palpatine had dropped any acts around Fox, no longer the doting grandfather of the republic, or enthusiastic geriatric spouse, but bitter and jilted and cruel-tongued.  Some days Fox feared for his life. 

It was that resignation that he would die that saved Fox’s life.  He updated his will -clones were at least allowed those for any non-GAR-issue items they had - and made sure copies were held by numerous offices, and even on other planets.  He appointed Cody and the Coruscant Guard as the main benefactors, Cody had the authority to divy resources up among the rest of the vode, and the Coruscant Guard were both his closest brothers and deserving of any boon he could grant them.  He left a hefty endowment for the cadets and tubies, to find either adoptive families or to raise them without the military training in the event of the War ending.  He left his half of the cultural artifacts that Palpatine had collected to the Jedi for them to distribute as they saw fit. 

Even if Palpatine managed to pierce holes through every line of the divorce documents, he could not deny Fox’s last will and testament.  Palpatine had to keep Fox alive, or else he would lose many of the assets he was trying to keep in his grasp. 

Fox had counted on more time to slip information to the GAR and the Jedi, he had counted on less supervision, and he had counted on Dooku and Grievous lasting for a few more months than they did.  

He failed to prevent Order 66, and as his brothers lost their free-will, he was abducted from 500 Republica.  A drugged dart jabbing through his blacks and unfamiliar hands hauling him onto a ship.  He was put into cryo-cycle stasis. That counted enough as keeping him alive that his will could not be enacted, but kept him and his insider knowledge from challenging Palpatine. 

Forty years later, a decade after the fledgling New Republic finally closed the buried account that dripped credits into the facility Fox’s stasis pod was in, the power couplings shorted out - whatever droid or employee was in charge of maintenance long departed for salaried work.  The pod had emergency protocols to thaw him out with the last of its energy reserves if the power was cut out. 

And so out he had staggered, head aching and bile rising.  His genetically wired resilience and discipline had carried him through the worst of the stasis sickness. 

The computer terminals were easy enough to slice.  Palpatine did not change his cybersecurity strategy over the decades, and Fox knew more than he wanted to of that man’s mind.  What he found was disturbing, but not surprising.  Weapons capable of destroying entire planets, the genocide of the Jedi, the suicidal brothers made into cyborg Dark Troopers, a Galactic Empire.  And cloning, an overwhelming amount of information on cloning. Not just familiar Kaminoan files, but resources from other cloning facilities, Strand-Casts, Splices, Stem-cells- every method explored and combined.  Palpatine had been seeking immortality.

Fox did not let himself think about what year it was, he did not think about the decades Palpatine had marred for the Galaxy, the vode all marching far away without him, the history ripped apart by waves of propaganda.  What he thought instead about was his own failure to sacrifice himself and put a blaster bolt through Palpatine’s wrinkled forehead so many years ago. It rankled quite a bit that Palpatine died while he was in stasis - the bitterness of unfulfilled hatred. But he could find new purpose. He would not let a false Palpatine return and inflict himself upon the healing Galaxy.  

After he left the lunar facility orbiting its dead planet in a nearly-corroded relic of an emergency escape ship, the first goal he achieved was programming a medical droid to excise the control chip from his brain.  Then he started slicing again.  There were still some accounts he had set up during his sham marriage with credits that had decades of interest.  His backup plan to that was selling the material assets he knew either he or Palpatine had stored away in scattered locations.  

Fox bought a ship, blasters, and assembled piecemeal a set of armor.  He bought bounty hunter credentials, keeping his helmet on always to hide any recognition his face might bring.  He stacked crates of rations in the empty bunks in his ship - a Skipray Blastboat - a vessel meant for four was a roomy choice to travel alone in, but still nearly invisible in its ubiquity.  And he went hunting. 

Palpatine’s clones were hard to find, a challenge Fox embraced for its distraction.  He found out some of the pseudonyms running the older facilities, the constructed identities for whatever apprentices, droids, or imperial loyalists were actually doing the work.  That was a mystery Fox was still investigating.  

Sometimes, to find a clone of Palpatine, Fox anonymously set the bounty himself, and then claimed it as well - getting the resources of the minor guild he worked with, as well as a tracking fob. 

Sometimes he killed them. Sometimes it was easy, the compulsions and the personality of Palpatine showing through, and that hated face looking back.  Sometimes they were worming their way into government positions to undermine the New Republic.  Sometimes it was harder, botched strand-casts that held only a passing resemblance to the man, and were without the force or any malignance.  Those, Fox judged on a case-by-case basis.  Were they in politics? How connected were they to any neo-imperialists? He judged each of them by their own actions, he knew the way a clone could be blamed for the actions of another.

He was not the only one after these clones, someone else was also hunting them - off of any official Bounty Hunting channels. And with the karked up Sith tradition of usurpers, Fox could not assume it was an ally. 

Fox’s unknown rival gradually became more than just a nuisance to compete against.  There had been a strand-cast clone of Palpatine’s that bore only a partial resemblance and had been actively undermining some of the networks Fox thought might be connected to the cloning facilities. Fox had been trying to track him down, to talk to someone who might be able to link him to the roots of this operation - he was even ready to offer personal protection - but his opponent had reached him first. 

The man was dead now. As was the woman he had been traveling with.  It was frustratingly suspicious, and Fox was out of other leads to investigate.  He spent a few months slicing and scouring for information about the strand-cast.  The man had boarded a ship from a large spaceport with a woman and a child, had transferred numerous times, and then, at the last port before his death, had only embarked with the woman.  The child had either died prior the the adults’ deaths, or was still alive.  And if the child was alive, they might know where their father had come from.

Shipyard security cameras and life/heat sensors could only tell him so much.  He looked into crew manifests, ration orders, and fuel receipts.  Between fuel logs and hyperspace maps, he created a list of planets between each refueling stop with more fuel purchased and time between than a direct route would necessitate and worked down that, checking for ships matching their vessel’s description docking with false credentials.  Planets with smaller populations were quicker to investigate so he looked there first.  It was a slow process over weeks. 

 Jakku had only a few scattered settlements, and while their ship monitoring was lacking, the local population was likely to have seen anyone who arrived or left. He landed outside of one of the larger trade centers. 

He disembarked his ship and walked towards the mass of tents and shabby buildings. He was wearing only a minimum of armor, and had left his helmet on the ship. His blaster was still displayed in its holster, a weight he felt pressed against his thigh with every step. He wasn’t here as a bounty hunter, but something closer to undercover instead, and if the kid was here he didn’t want to scare or threaten the child prematurely.  He would blend in more as just another spacer. 

He was met by a varied group of sun-beaten and skeptical beings. The welcoming committee seemed torn between distrust and hope for trade. 

“I’m here for information.” He began, showing a flash of credit chips when he pulled out his holoprojector. “About a year ago a ship of this type would have arrived and left a passenger behind.” 

“Lotta ships come in and out…” A thin Caskadag said unhelpfully.  But Fox could see poorly concealed recognition among some of the faces. He mentally debated who to bribe or how else to persuade the crowd. 

Out of sight, there was a shriek of conversation and then the frantic scuffle of running feet over sand.  A girl emerged from a clump of tents and stopped, almost breathless, staring at him. She was young, between six or eight, Fox struggled like most clones with approximating odd numbered years of natural borns, but she was small. 

“Did my parents send you!? Are they gonna come get me?” She asked with bright desperation. She was staring at the holoprojected ship in his hands.  Fox knew this was the strand-cast’s child. 

“I’m here because of your parents.” He said evenly.  He looked at the group of now unhappy onlookers, denied their chance to weasel credits out of him. “Is there somewhere less busy we can talk?” 

“Mmhmm.” She walked him between tents to a clearing edged with waste heaps. Fox opened his mouth and then stopped again, hesitant. 

“Why did my parents send you?” There was sensible caginess warring with hope in her voice.  She kept glancing back to the crowd they had just left. 

“I’m sorry, Rey,” He hoped that what the other workers had muttered at her had been her name, and dropped down to one knee to be on a level with her. “But your parents are dead.  I’m sorry, but they can’t come get you.” 

There was a watery vulnerability to her eyes.  Fox expected a denial, he hated being the one to deliver this news. It was partially his own failure.  

“So… So I’m just… I’m just going to stay here? And - and work for Mister Plutt forever?” She looked wetly at the pitiful tents around them, the sand, the beating sun, the scrap-sorting piles.  Fox looked at her, at the scabs and callouses on her tiny hands, at the stained clothing, at the bones of her arms, at the ring of faint green skin around her wrist.  Force, he had always been weak for the cadets. 

“No, if you want… If you want I can take you with me.”  It was an impulsive offer, but it felt right. 

“You’re not my dad.” She said sulkily. “I’m only supposed to leave if him or mum comes.” 

“No, I’m not.” Fox did some quick thinking about his relationship to Palpatine, his own apparent age, and the fact her father was a clone of Sheev. “But I am your father’s ex-husband.” 

He knew that she had no reason to trust him, and frankly if she had any sense to not get abducted, she wouldn’t.  Fox was ready to pull up a datapad with the copy of his marriage certificate, proof her father was a clone, and a discussion of family trees.  Instead of an argument, she looked intensely at him and he felt a warmth swell around him, like a summer breeze.  Of course the kriffing kid was force sensitive. 

It was pleasant, as far as being probed by the force ever was.  She was bright and gentle and washed over him, so unlike the cloying oil-slick that he had not realized choked his mind for years until he was finally free of Palpatine. He waited, keeping his thoughts on what he had just said, but not so intently as to raise her suspicion that he was hiding something. 

Eventually she nodded. “Okay.” 

“Okay?” 

“I know when people are lying.  And-” She hesitated, squirming a little. “And you feel nice.” 

Fox smiled. Nice was not the word that Fox would have picked to describe himself currently, considering he had spent a better part of the past year hunting down clones of his ex-husband and killing many of them with extreme prejudice. He wondered unhappily at what relative caliber for niceness she was comparing him to. He stood up and paused. 

“So you’ll come with me?” He asked again for clarity’s sake. 

“Mmhmm.” She confirmed, and stepped to his side, reaching up to worm her little hand into his. 

“Do you have stuff to get? People to say bye to?” He asked uncertainly.  He wasn’t sure how this was supposed to go, and right now it felt too easy.  She started tugging him towards the array of scrap-sorters.  

She went to a spot she had clearly hastily abandoned when he had arrived, and picked up a dingy canvas bag and slung it over her shoulder.  She walked back to him and put her hand back in his again.  

“Okay. Now we need to tell Mister Plutt.” She nodded towards a permanent structure at the edge of the scrapyard. 

“Rey, Rey, Who’s that man?” One of the women who had not been in the group that greeted him, skin toughened by sand and sun, rose up from the heaps of metal and brandished a staff at him.  Part of Fox was relieved that at least someone was stopping little girls from getting kidnapped.  The other part of him put on his most charming, non-threatening smile. 

“I’m her father’s ex-husband.  Her parents are dead and I only just found out…” 

The woman glared at him but shifted to look at Rey, softening her gaze. 

“He tellin’ the truth? Do you know this man?” 

“He’s not lying.” Rey said. “And Dad mentioned he had a complix-complexcated past.” 

“Her father and I may have split over our differences, but I’m not leaving his kid to grow up a scrapper beholden to quotas when I have the resources to raise her instead.”  Fox’s honest determination had the desired effect, the woman lowered her staff and nodded, still suspicious but relenting.  

“You’re going to have to pay Unkar for her.” 

Fox frowned and gestured towards his blaster on his hip. “Sure, I’ll pay.” 

“No. I mean it. You try any funny business and he’ll set the guild on you or worse.” The woman was very serious.  “You got enough to pay?” 

“If I have to, I will.” Fox said with finality.  He did not want to buy another being, but he also wanted Rey off of this planet as smoothly as possible. 

The questioning was repeated with Unkar Plutt, who glared with equal distrust to the people outside.  He took Rey aside into his office room, and Fox hoped it was to question her about his claims and if she actually wanted to leave with him.  Fox was concerned by how easy it was for someone to take a child off of Jakku like this, but also acknowledged that this was incredibly convenient for him. 

Plutt and Rey reemerged and Rey walked over and clung to his pant leg.  Fox brushed a hand over her hair. 

“I’m losing years of good labor.” Unkar said callously. “I expect to be compensated.” 

Fox told himself that the credits he handed over were a bribe. Fox swung Rey’s little bag over his shoulder and after a moment of consideration, hoisted Rey up to rest on his hip as well.  She was light and clung round his neck, giggling with surprise in his ear.  

Fox didn’t need to be force sensitive to know that this decision felt right. 

[treeofliferpg]

Consejos de escritura: Los nombres de los personajes

Recordamos que el siguiente texto no ha sido redactado por el staff de ToL, solo lo hemos traducido para que pueda llegar a más personas. La autoría pertenece a @justawritingaid. Podéis leer el post original en su tumblr así como en este mismo tumblr bajo la etiqueta “idioma original”.

A la hora de darles un nombre a nuestros personajes a veces le damos muchas vueltas porque sentimos que al nombrar a un personaje debemos hacerlo memorable bonito e increíble. Pero tampoco queremos irnos a un extremo y nombrar a nuestro personaje protagonista como algo único, extraño y arriesgado y desués tener un personaje llamado Juan a secas que nos puede hacer chirriar la historia. Así que aquí os dejamos algunos consejos que pueden ayudaros a darle un buen nombre a vuestros personajes sin iros a los extremos.

Para empezar, al dar nombres a personajes, no es necesario que sea memorable. He escuchado este "consejo" antes y tiende a surgir de la idea de cómo los personajes deberían ser especiales sin poner el trabajo real para hacerlos especiales (también conocido como buena creación y escritura de personajes). Eso no quiere decir que algunos personajes no puedan tener nombres geniales y memorables, ni que no puedas tener nombres que suenen agradables, pero los nombres únicos solo por el carácter único o el "estilo de personaje especial" no son buenos para construir personajes ni una buena escritura. Quién es un personaje y su papel en la historia es más importante que un nombre. Un nombre apropiado puede ayudar a reforzar quiénes son y su papel en la historia, pero eso no significa que tenga que ser especial o sobresalir, en todo caso,"Memorable" debería significar "el personaje hace que el nombre sea memorable" y no al revés.

Nombrar personajes tiene una serie de factores que afectan la unicidad y la combinación de nombres únicos y "normales":

El ajuste

Los nombres deben ser apropiados para el entorno en el que se desarrolla la historia. En un escenario de fantasía, ver nombres como "Maileé" no es extraño si otros personajes también tienen nombres apropiados para la fantasía, aunque algo como "Bob" no es intrínsecamente extraño siempre y cuando establezcas una mezcla de nombres para todos los personajes en lugar de solo tener algunos que se destaquen inexplicablemente. Curiosamente, en realidad hay un tropo sobre esta disonancia de los nombres entre los personajes: Aerith y Bob .

El uso de más nombres inspirados en fantasía y nombres más normales no es que no se puedan mezclar y más de qué tan bien se mezclan. El mundo en el que se encuentran tus personajes debe tener una forma de convención de nomenclatura y, a veces, los nombres normales pueden ajustarse a esas convenciones. "Bob" en sí mismo puede no ser el mejor para usar debido a su prevalencia en los chistes, pero hay muchos otros nombres que son opciones normales pero potenciales para la fantasía. La regla básica que me gusta usar es: si el nombre normal puede ajustarse a la configuración en función de tus convenciones de nomenclatura, entonces está bien usarlo. Los nombres con una larga historia tienden a encajar bien porque están establecidos como clásicos, pero mucho de eso también tiene que ver con cómo suena el nombre.

Cuando se mezclan nombres inventados y normales en un mundo, si la mezcla se realiza bien, los lectores llegarán a la conclusión de que así es como es el mundo. Si se logra mal, comenzarán a hacer preguntas que desestabilicen la integridad de la construcción del mundo (a veces esto se puede usar para hacer comedia). También hay una opción de término medio donde un nombre se pronuncia como un nombre normal pero se deletrea de manera un poco diferente para mostrar que proviene del lenguaje de fantasía. Aunque es posible llevar eso demasiado lejos y hacer que los lectores pongan los ojos en blanco ante lo que parece que el escritor se esfuerza demasiado, pero puedes encontrar fácilmente nombres como Kori (Corey) o Sera (Sara).

Las convenciones de nomenclatura

Como se mencionó anteriormente, las convenciones de nomenclatura son las reglas de configuración de cómo funcionan los nombres. Suele haber tres niveles:

Reglas genéricas del mundo. Parte de estas ya están establecidas por el idioma en el que estás escribiendo la historia; el alfabeto lo restringe al tipo de nombres y pronunciaciones que puedes incluir. La otra parte está más relacionada con el origen de los nombres del mundo (inspiración de la vida real) y cómo aparecen en la historia. Por ejemplo, de El señor de los anillos– Tolkien "traduce" los nombres de su personaje a otros que funcionan mejor en inglés. El idioma Westron (habla común) se traduce a nombres en inglés, los humanos obtienen nombres en inglés antiguo, mientras que los enanos obtienen nombres nórdicos. (A veces hay que tener cuidado con esto... las personas pueden ser culturalmente insensibles y les gusta dar nombres culturalmente inapropiados a sus personajes. Cosas como nombrar a un personaje blanco como un nombre japonés solo porque suena genial para un hablante no japonés).

Reglas culturales. A veces las historias tienen múltiples culturas que aparecen en ellas y los nombres tienden a ser una gran parte de cualquier cultura. Tal vez una cultura tiene el sonido "ch" que aparece en muchos nombres, mientras que a otra le gustan los nombres que terminan en "a". Los nombres de la misma cultura pueden tener un sonido similar general u otras reglas que ayudan a agruparlos, por lo que los nombres "normales" que se ajustan a los criterios pueden combinarse mucho mejor cuando los patrones son claros.

Reglas personales (AKA, los antecedentes del personaje). No literalmente "personal" como que el personaje se nombra a sí mismo (aunque en algunos casos pueden hacerlo), sino los efectos directos en el individuo, como las preferencias de apellido, si se gana un nombre, personalidad, etc. Si bien hay algunas ideas de personajes que simplemente aparecen con un nombre y solo un nombre, la mayoría de las veces sabemos algo sobre los personajes que estamos nombrando. Puede ser una buena idea crear un nombre basado en lo que parece que debería tener un personaje, dentro de lo razonable, sujeto a las reglas culturales y mundiales.

¿Dónde está el término medio?

Honestamente, depende de tu historia y del mundo en el que la ubiques. Algunas historias pueden funcionar con una gran variedad de nombres, mientras que otras es mejor que se queden con un determinado conjunto de nombres. Por lo general, aquí se trata menos de líneas rígidas y más sobre qué tan bien puedes trabajar con una combinación de fantasía y nombres normales dentro de tu historia específica. Ten en cuenta las convenciones de nomenclatura, los sonidos generales de los nombres y los propósitos pueden ayudarte a encontrar el punto ideal para tu historia. Único no significa necesariamente "extraño", pero también debes tener en cuenta que "único" depende de la configuración. "Maileé" solo se destacará tanto como lo dejes tú destacar.

También hay momentos en los que un nombre destacado tiene sentido, ya sea de fantasía o muy normal. A veces, los personajes provienen de un lugar con un idioma y / o cultura diferente de donde están actualmente. En ese caso, su nombre puede destacarse como "extraño" porque no es un nombre "normal" en el lugar en el que se encuentran dentro de la historia.

Además, está bien querer asegurarte de que tus personajes tengan nombres que suenen bien. Ya sabes, nombres completos que no suenan como si los hubieras juntado en el último minuto, sonidos agradables en los nombres y otras cosas que pueden hacer que un nombre sea un poco más genial que en la vida real. Ese tipo de cosas no es lo mismo que "un nombre súper único solo para hacer que mi personaje suene 10 veces más genial de lo que realmente es". Se permite que la ficción sea más genial que la realidad, simplemente no deberías confiar en un nombre para que un personaje sea memorable. El personaje, independientemente de su nombre, debe ser memorable.

¡Buena suerte con tus nombres!

————————

¿Pensando en hacer una pregunta? Lee las Reglas y consideraciones para asegurarte de que soy el recurso correcto y verifique la Lista de etiquetas para ver si tu pregunta ya ha sido formulada. Si puedes devolver algo, considera apoyarme en Ko-fi o mediante el nombre de usuario de Venmo: JustAWritingAid

[callumhumphreys]

INTERVIEW: BRYAN SHUTMAAT FOR TRESPASSER

Callum Humphreys: Hi Bryan, firstly, thanks for taking the time to speak with me. Can you start by giving anyone who’s reading an overview of Trespasser?

Bryan Schutmaat: Trespasser is a small, independent art book publisher based in Austin, Texas that was founded in 2017 by Matthew Genitempo, Cody Haltom, and me, Bryan Schutmaat.

CH: What inspired you to start Trespasser?

BS: Before launching Trespasser, Matthew and I had talked for a couple years about starting an imprint together. He and I have really similar taste and passions, and we wanted to see books made that might have less of a chance to be made with established art book publishers. When the opportunity arose to publish my short book, Good Goddamn, we decided to make the imprint a reality, and we recruited Cody Haltom, a brilliant designer, to join us on the endeavour.

CH: I come from a graphic design background and one thing that instantly jumps out to me is the construction of your books. They mix DIY / zine elements like staple binding, with high-end offset printing and foil stamping. Do you think these design decisions enrich the experience or enhance the books narrative?

BS: Yes, that’s our hope. The design, materials, and all further considerations put into our books are meant to reflect the narrative, meaning, and emotional atmospheres within. As objects, we think photobooks need to honor the images and the stories we’re telling as best as possible. Regarding some of the stylistic choices you mention, Matthew and I grew up skating and listening to punk, which might account for the DIY/zine elements - maybe an outlook and aesthetic that stayed with us after youth Cody compliments that with what he brings forth in terms of layout, typography, an acute attention to detail, and so on. I think it amounts to books that feel somewhat against the grain yet don’t sacrifice great printing and overall quality.

CH: Congratulations on your newest publication ‘Polar Night’ (Mark Mahaney 2019) it seems to have been met with universal praise. Polar night, similar to many books in your back catalogue seems to touch upon themes of isolation, anxiety and the interaction we have within our landscape. This type of ‘documentary’ photography has almost become a genre in itself. Is this the kind of work you are actively seeking to publish through Trespasser?

BS: I don’t think we’re trying to push that kind of work necessarily. We’ve only collaborated with close friends on our projects so far, and perhaps the themes you notice might just be shared interests among a small friend/artist group. I like that all of our publications up to now have a sense of cohesion, but we’re also eager to branch out and tell different stories.

CH: In an age where sharing work, ideas and opinion is instantaneous, what role do you think the photobook plays in modern photography?

BS: I have a bit of spiel about this. I think photobooks are the saviours of photographic meaning in an era when we are constantly bombarded by the ubiquity of images and digital media. There’s a torrent of content everywhere we look, and most of it adds no significance or benefit to our lives, aside from being momentarily stimulating. They quickly disintegrate into the abyss. But a good photobook can transcend this meaninglessness and function like work of literature. A book is physical and lasting. It slows you down. It can convey profound concepts, engaging narratives, and unique points of view.

CH: Can narratives or ideas be shared in the same way on social media as they can in photobooks?

BS: No, I don’t think so. On this topic, I often reference a great video of David Lynch, which can be found on Youtube, talking about how sad it is that people think they’ve seen a film when they’ve watched it on an iPhone. “You'll think you have experienced it, but you'll be cheated,” he says, “It's such a sadness that you think you've seen a film on your fucking telephone. Get real.” I think it’s the same with photobooks. There’s no way the attributes of photobooks - their tactile characteristics, mechanics, poetic nature, etc - can be equalled on a computer screen, especially a tiny mobile device with a three-inch screen. There are some interesting ways media is evolving on bigger screens - desk/lap tops and iPads, etc - but I still think books win out every time.

CH: Do you think the resurgence in the popularity of film, and its tactile nature, has played a role in keeping physical prints and books alive?

BS: I think it goes hand in hand to some degree. These days, people spend so much of their lives in a digital world -- working, communicating, shopping, banking, etc -- that I think a part of us yearns for something tangible. To me, this explains why photographic film is resurging, as well as music on vinyl, photobooks, and other things analog. Digital tech has conquered a lot of our lives, but for some people, maintaining a relationship with physical objects has value.

CH: Is there any advice you can give to someone who is interested in publishing a long-term body of work in book form - For example, knowing when to draw a line in the sand and consider it ‘finished’ (if there is such a thing)?

BS: It’s important to keep in mind that great photos are what make great photobooks, so it’s crucial for photographers to put their energy into their body of work foremost. The photobook is the reward for the work after completion.

The question about when to consider a project finished was recently asked of me in the recent released Aperture book, Photo Work, edited by Sasha Wolf. I hope you won’t mind if I recycle that answer: “What’s the cliché? A work of art is never finished, only abandoned. With the kind of work I do, I could shoot forever, trying to improve the photos or tweak the edit or just fuck with things endlessly. But life is short, and at some point you have to say, ‘Ok, this is enough.’ If you feel the subject matter isn’t thoroughly explored after the completion of a project, then you can always go shoot the same kind of stuff in the future.”

CH: Do you have 3 book recommendations that helped shape you as a photographer, whether classics or more recent works.

BS: It’s so obvious, but The Americans by Robert Frank is the godfather of photobooks and sort of touches everything that comes after it, so it has shaped me without question. Truck Stop by Marc F Wise is a much lesser known book, but I came across early on and it helped to ignited my interest in everyday America and the subject matter I came to shoot. Laura McPhee’s River of No Return is a book I fell in love with early on as well, and it probably shaped my vision in untold ways in terms of its content and the sensitive, poetic way she conveys her subjects.

That said, I like these books because of the astonishing photos inside, not necessarily because of what the books are themselves as aesthetic objects. I think a new standard has been set in recent years in regard to design and physical characteristics of photobooks, so if I were to choose books that have shaped me as a publisher, it would be a different selection.

CH: Thanks for taking the time to speak with me, is there anything else you would like the readers to know about Trespasser?

BS: We don’t do a newsletter at this time or have much of an online presence outside Instagram, so that’s the best way to keep up with us, @trespasserbooks. 

See more of trespassers work here:https://www.instagram.com/trespasserbooks/

Bryan Shutmaat here: https://www.instagram.com/bryanschutmaat/?hl=en

[areablog769]

Juniper Usb To Serial Driver

Juniper Usb To Serial Driver Windows 7

Usb To Serial Driver

USB Driver v4.16 Installation Instructions

Nov 30, 2009 USB-to-Serial Adapter for use on Field PC 30 Nov 2009. Note: This information is provided as a reference and does not imply that Juniper Systems will provide full support for the use of any specific third-party hardware or software with a Juniper Systems product.

(A USB to RS232 Adapter & a DB9 to RJ45 Cable). One cable provides the USB to Serial & the Console/Rollover Cable and is 1.8meters (+/- 0.2m) in length. This USB-Serial RJ45 Cable can also be extended using a USB extension cables up to a maximum of 5 meters or even further if using a USB repeater/extending device.

Hi, anyone in here who knows which (Windows) driver there should be installed to use the USB serial console port on the new SRX300 gateways? I'm not able to find information about which chipset that has been used and cannot find any relevant download on juniper.net (neither for SRX300, SRX340, SRX345 or SRX1500 which I expect uses the same chipset). Juniper Usb To Serial Driver. Connecting an EX Series Switch to a Management Console by Using the Mini-USB Type-B Console Port You can configure and manage EX2200-C, EX2300, EX3400, EX4300, and EX4550 switches by using the RJ-45 console port or the Mini-USB Type-B console port. Download the driver USB Console Cable, BENFEI 6 ft USB to RJ45 Cable Essential Accesory Compatible with Cisco, NETGEAR, Ubiquity, LINKSYS, TP-Link Routers/Switches for Laptops in Windows, Mac, Linux - FTDI Chip Replaces RS232 (DB-25/DB-9) serial port perfectly, connects to any laptop/PC's USB port directly to a console port like a charm.

System Requirements

Windows 98 / 2000 / Me / XP / Vista (32-bit)? / 7 (32-bit)? / 8 (32-bit)?

For 64-bit Windows, click here.

Administrative privileges on your computer (please consult your system administrator for details)

CH Instruments Software version 12.03 or older (Help > About)

If you are using a newer version of our software, click here.

Driver Installation

Note

: the screenshots below were obtained in Windows XP; certain system prompts may differ in other versions of Windows, but the overall procedure will be the same.

Download and run (double-click) the file 'CP2101.exe' from the link above:

Step 1: Unpack files.

Click Unzip to copy files to an extraction directory (default c:cp2101).

Connect the instrument to a USB port on your computer and turn the instrument on. Ignore and close any windows that appear automatically.

Open Device Manager (right-click on (My) Computer on the Desktop or Start Menu and select Manage; then click on Device Manager). Find a device marked with a exclamation mark and named 'CP2101 USB to UART Bridge Controller' or similarly, as shown below. (This should be located under the category 'Other devices' or 'Universal Serial Bus controllers'; in Windows 98, the device may be named 'Cygnal USB Composite Device' instead).

Step 3: Device Manager.

Double-click on the 'CP2101 USB to UART Bridge Controller' (or similarly named) device, click on the Driver tab, and click the Update Driver button shown below.

Step 4: Update Driver.

When asked, do not search for software online, and instead choose 'Install from a list or specific location'.

Step 5: Install from a specific location.

Have the system search the extraction directory from Step (1) (default c:cp2101) for the driver files to install. Click Finish when prompted. You may need to override warnings about unsigned drivers, especially in Vista/7.

Step 6: Have the system search the directory from Step 1.

Repeat Steps 4-6 until the 'CP2101 USB to UART Bridge Controller' device no longer shows up with an exclamation mark. Upon successful installation, you should have two CP2101 drivers installed as shown below.

Step 7: Driver installation complete.

Instrument Installation

First complete the USB Driver installation procedure above.

Disconnect the instrument from your PC, if applicable.

Connect the instrument to your PC and turn the power on.

Wait for any automatic system installation tasks to complete.

Open Device Manager (right-click (My) Computer > Manage > Device Manager).

Double-click the category 'Ports (COM & LPT)' to display:

Locate 'CP210x USB to UART Bridge Controller' or a similarly named device to verify successful installation.

This completes instrument installation.

Take note of the COM port number (COM5 in the example above). Assign this number in your instrument software, using the System command under the Setup menu, and then run the Hardware Test command under the Setup menu to confirm that the instrument and computer are communicating properly.

Driver Uninstallation

To uninstall any previously installed drivers, right-click on the device in Device Manager and click Uninstall. You may need to do this not only for the COM Port, but also a USB Composite Device.

Right-click on the CP210x COM device in Device Manager and click Uninstall (check 'Delete the software driver for this device' when prompted).

If present, you will also need to do this for a 'Cygnal USB Composite Device' or 'CP210x USB Composite Device' under the Universal Serial Bus Controllers category as shown here.

To confirm that the USB driver is fully uninstalled, disconnect and reconnect the instrument to your computer and make sure that the CP210x device is now listed under Other devices as shown here. The Cygnal or CP210x composite device should also no longer be installed.

If at this point a COM port is still assigned, you may also need to uninstall the driver from Control Panel > Programs and Features and repeat the procedure above.

Rebooting your computer immediately after uninstalling drivers may also help, especially in Windows XP and earlier.

Notes

To use USB, the white switch on the instrument rear panel must be flipped toward the USB port. For older models without this switch, you may need to change a jumper setting instead.

The USB driver needs to be installed only once on your computer. Multiple instruments can be connected to the same computer, and Windows automatically assign them to different COM ports.

The COM port number assigned to your instrument may vary from computer to computer, or even on the same computer (rarely).

You can double-click on the 'CP210x USB to UART Bridge Controller' item in Device Manager to display various status information: driver version number, whether the driver is functioning correctly, etc.

USB communication is achieved using a USB-serial port converter chip built into the instrument; the driver for this chip, courtesy of Silicon Labs, is what is installed in this section.

As a result, the instrument software will behave as if this device is connected to a serial port, even though the physical connection is by USB. Thus, you need to use Device Manager as described above to determine what serial port number is assigned to this device.

USB communication therefore provides no specific advantages over a native serial port besides the difference in physical connectivity; if you have a free serial port available on your PC, we recommend its use over a USB port.

We include USB support because most computers sold today lack an onboard serial port, and it may be impractical or impossible to add a serial port card.

Silicon Labs' old 32-bit drivers from 2003 (version 4.16) have been thoroughly tested with our instruments and have been found to be very reliable. However, they are not compatible with 64-bit versions of Windows.

Silicon Labs' newer drivers (version 6.x) are 64-bit compatible, but unfortunately these newer drivers have been found to be unreliable on both 32-bit and 64-bit operating systems when using slow baud rates (19.2K and lower). Whether they will work correctly on your computer will depend on your particular hardware. These are closed-source third-party drivers, over which CH Instruments, Inc. has no control. We apologize for any inconvenience and strongly recommend the use of driver version 4.16 on any 32-bit version of Windows, including Windows 7.

More recently, we have posted Silicon Labs' USB driver version 4.4 as an interim measure. Version 4.4 is compatible with 64-bit Windows, and does not seem to suffer from the slow baud rate problem mentioned above. However, we have only tested version 4.4 briefly, and we are unsure whether it is more reliable than 4.16 (which is 32-bit only). We do not intend version 4.4 to be a permanent replacement for version 6.x; Silicon Labs is aware of the 6.x issue and is working to resolve it.

Microsoft has only started requiring signed drivers in 64-bit Windows. Contrary to popular belief, however, 64-bit Windows only requires that a driver is signed with a verified certificate, which is not the same as having it vetted by Microsoft's WHQL program. Thus, the driver signing requirement does not necessarily increase stability or security, which is all we end users really care about. Case in point: Silicon Labs' driver 6.0 is WHQL-certified and thus does not elicit any 'untrusted publisher' warnings when installed; however, this driver is known to suffer from serious stability issues (BSOD on surprise removal). On the other hand, we signed Silicon Labs' version 4.4 with a simple (verified) Authenticode code signing certificate, bypassing WHQL entirely (but of course forfeiting any hope of obtaining the coveted 'Certified for Windows' logo). What this all means is that 64-bit Windows will allow you to install a driver if and only if somebody vouches for it, nothing more and nothing less. If you have any questions or corrections, please contact us.

I’ve been evaluating the new Juniper SRX300 range of Firewalls, specifically the SRX300 and the SRX340.

In addition to the usual RJ45 serial console port, these devices also feature a mini-USB console port, which is basically just a SiLabs USB->RS232 interface. Unfortunately, Juniper decided to use a custom USB VID:PID coding in the firmware, so the standard SiLabs driver won’t work.

To make matters worse, Juniper didn’t sign their custom driver that they provide. The result is that you can’t install their driver in a Windows OS that requires driver signing (such as Windows 10) without compromising your client OS by disabling that requirement.

My solution was to purchase a code signing certificate and sign the driver myself. Since this was at some personal cost to myself, I’m making it available for others in a similar situation, so they don’t have to purchase their own certificate. I did this after contacting Juniper and not receiving a prompt response.

Juniper Usb To Serial Driver Windows 7

Usb To Serial Driver

If this driver has been useful to you, please let me know.

[beyondtheboxset]

In this week’s podcast, we discuss Jack Nicholson’s entry into the three-time Oscar winner’s club in the hit 90s comedy AS GOOD AS IT GETS. Tune in to hear our thoughts on dog therapy, gay 90s movie character syndrome, the brief but weird ubiquity of Helen Hunt and much more! Link in bio or search Beyond The Box Set on your preferred podcatcher. #asgoodasitgets #jacknicholson #helenhunt #greggkinnear #cubagoodingjr #90s #90smovies #oscar #oscars #beyondtheboxset #podcast #moviepodcast #comedypodcast #sequel https://www.instagram.com/p/CH-WkBPprHF/?igshid=1trsh34ekt0hz

[honeydewusa]

Helped by the ubiquity of children design, the worldwide wholesale clothes showcase piled on sales. When discussing the popularity, the consistent ascent of different social media platforms and celebrities utilizing them to post pictures has given rise to 'children road style'. This motivates the parents to spruce up their children according to the most recent trends.

[evoldir]

Fwd: Graduate position: CharlesU_Prague.2.PlantEvolution

Begin forwarded message: > From: evoldir@evol.biology.mcmaster.ca > Subject: Graduate position: CharlesU_Prague.2.PlantEvolution > Date: 14 February 2020 at 07:29:38 GMT > To: rdmpage@gmail.com > > > ***ERC-funded PhD Position in Adaptive value of Polyploidy > > Group of Ecological Genomics (Filip Kolรกล™) > Department of Botany, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic > https://ift.tt/2Q9L8z8 > > Whole genome duplication (WGD, polyploidization) is a dramatic genome-wide > mutation whose ubiquity across eukaryotes suggests an adaptive benefit, > although underlying mechanism remains unknown. In the project, the > successful applicant will test if WGD promotes adaptation in natural plant > populations and aim to uncover the mechanism. To move beyond correlative > studies, the work will combine transplant experiments and population > genomics. We will build on our previous research in Arabidopsis arenosa > model that demonstrated that WGD can increase the capacity of natural > populations to accumulate adaptive variation. This project will extend to > additional plant species in order to discern generality. > > The successful applicant will join a multidisciplinary team of Ecological > Genomics lead by Filip Kolรกล™ and will interact with international > collaborators Prof. Christian Parisod (Univ. Bern, CH) and Prof. Levi Yant > (Univ. Nottingham, UK). The position will be funded by a new ERC Starting > Grant DOUBLE ADAPT. > > **The potential range of methodologies will be > - fieldwork in natural populations and ploidy screening using flow cytometry > - transplant experiments addressing adaptive response towards model stress > environment (challenging soil) > - experiments with experimentally synthesized polyploid lineages to isolate > the net effect of WGD > - inference of selection in genomes of natural and experimental populations > > **We offer > - creative and supporting atmosphere in international team of Ecological > Genomics > - monthly salary of ~1000 EUR net, competitive within the city of Prague > (with subsequent rise with the progress of the study duties) > - additional experience through international collaboration > - work in the historical centre of a vibrant cultural Prague city > > **We require > - strong motivation for interdisciplinary research at the border of > ecology, evolutionary biology and population genetics > - a MSc degree in Biology or related fields (in summer 2020 at the latest) > > **Desirable but not required > - experience with design and evaluation of ecological experiments > - background in population genetics/experience with processing > high-throughput sequence data > - experience with fieldwork and flow cytometric analyses > > Please send your CV, contact details for two referees and a half-page > motivation letter to Filip Kolรกล™ (filip.kolar@natur.cuni.cz). Review of the > applications will begin on February 28th 2020 and will continue until the > position has been filled. The exact start date is negotiable. > > -- > Filip Kolรกล™ > Department of Botany > Faculty of Science, Charles University > Benatska 2, CZ - 128 01, Prague, Czech Republic > *https://ift.tt/2Q5PmI9 > > > > > ----- > > > > > ***PhD Position in Polyploid speciation in plants > > Group of Ecological Genomics (Filip Kolaล) > Department of Botany, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic > https://ift.tt/2Q9L8z8 > > Genome duplication is a dominant force in sympatric speciation but our > recent investigations demonstrated that the barrier posed by doubled genome > is leaky. Yet mechanisms allowing genome permeability between individuals > of different ploidy and its evolutionary consequences remain elusive. In > this project, we aim at dissecting mechanism of ploidy-related crossing > barrier, testing its conservation across different flowering plant species > and inferring role of selection in shaping inter-ploidy gene flow in > natural populations. The results can shift our perception of polyploidy > towards speciation-with-gene-flow scenaria. > > The successful applicant will join the multidisciplinary team of Ecological > Genomics at Charles University in Prague lead by Filip Kolaล. The work will > be done in close collaboration with Clement Lafon Placette (Charles Univ., > https://ift.tt/2SImIyb) and Mario Vallejo Marin > (University of Stirling, UK, https://ift.tt/2SoAOFU). > > **The main focus of the work will be > - fieldwork in natural populations and ploidy screening using flow cytometry > - crossing experiment addressing range of barriers against gene flow > between individuals of different ploidy > - addressing parallelism in the mechanism of triploid block using > transcriptomic analysis (RNAseq) and confocal microscopy of seeds > - population genomic investigations of gene flow in natural populations > (analysis of genome-wide variation by genome resequencing) > > **We offer > - creative and supporting atmosphere in closely interacting Ecological > Genomics  and Plant Reproduction Evolution Labs > - monthly salary of ca 1000 EUR net, competitive within the city of Prague > (with subsequent rise with the progress of the study duties) > - additional experience through international collaboration > - work in the historical centre of a vibrant cultural Prague city > > **We require > - strong motivation for interdisciplinary research at the border of > ecology, evolutionary biology and population genetics > - a MSc degree in Biology or related fields (in summer 2020 at the latest) > > **Desirable but not required > - experience with design and evaluation of ecological experiments > - good background in population genetics/experience with processing > high-thoughput sequence data > - experience with fieldwork and flow cytometric analyses > - background in developmental/molecular biology > > Please send your CV, contact details for two referees and a half-page > motivation letter to Filip Kolaล (filip.kolar@natur.cuni.cz). Review of the > applications will begin on February 28th 2020 and will continue until the > position has been filled. The start date is negotiable. > > -- > Filip Kolaล > Department of Botany > Faculty of Science, Charles University > Benatska 2, CZ - 128 01, Prague, Czech Republic > *https://ift.tt/2Q5PmI9 > > > Filip Kolar > via IFTTT

[codebaseag-blog]

How To Make Secure Data Exchange Successful?

A large amount of data belonging to individuals and companies is presently stored in the cloud in the encrypted figure by reliable service providers which include Google, Microsoft and Amazon. Unluckily, one and only method for the cloud to use the data in computations is to first decrypt it, then calculate on it, and lastly re-encrypt it, ending in a problematic trade-off in the middle of the security and value/utility. At a better level, the goal is the document is to show a normal and practical cryptography answer to the problem.

Quite clearly, we explain a condition that we call Secure Data Exchange, where different data owners are storing data of private encrypted in a non-colluding cloud, semi-honest, and an evaluator desires to engage in a safe function assessment on the data belonging to some separation of the owners of the data.

We need that none of the parties engaged in learning something beyond what they previously recognize and what is disclosed by the function, even when the parties are active hateful. We also distinguish the ubiquity of conditions where the lack of a resourceful SDE protocol prevents for example transaction of the business, research collaborations, or mutually helpful computations on collective private data from happening and discussing the condition comprehensively.

Quicker plans for Online File Transfer Service have saved a number of companies during the financial hardships. These mergers and contracts have allowed hundreds to maintain their jobs. Moreover, a number of companies have not had to close their doors at the same time. The plans need online negotiation and online due to attentiveness. The online secure data room gives fast response times for the business. Quick response time services online cooperation of contracts.

Clients have checked the control access of a secure data room. Firms that host safe document exchange give reports of the usage. The reports of client tell who is using secure document exchange. You can look ahead with timely reports and show how long people access the data. The reports made of document exchange are offered to the clients on regular basis. The details can be requested at any point in time if a client wishes.

Document exchange companies revolutionize how a business runs today. The virtual data rooms provided help improve business exchanges. This expedites business in a reliable secure manner for clients. The online web portal of the companies can share additional information. Information about the virtual of data rooms and security is available online.

Switzerland Office

Codebase AG

Haldenstrasse 5 CH-6006, Luzern, Switzerland.

+41 41 312 13 91

contact@getbackyourprivacy.com

India Office

Codebase Technologies Private Limited

427 First floor, Udyog Vihar Phase 3, Gurgaon, Haryana, India

+91 124 4203552

contact@codebase.co.in

[rationalkuroshitsuji]

Ch 128 review: bathtubs and blood transfusions

This is going to take some weird turns. Please stick with me though. I promise it ends in an interesting place.

So, while taking notes on chapter 128, I noticed that while they're searching the house, there's this panel of a bathtub with a hose attachment.

(ch 128 pg 13 - source)

My first thought was, Aha! There's an anachronism! What a super Japanese tub design! They didn't have hose attachments like that 1889, and even if they did, hoses like that are way more ubiquitous in Japan than in England.

Boy was I wrong...

At least I’m not wrong about the ubiquity of shower hoses in Japan, because I've stayed in about 8 different apartments and a handful of hotels now, and they all had bathrooms like this, with a shower hose and a hook to hang it on the wall if you want. (You wash yourself outside the tub, and then soak in clean hot water in the tub if you want. Japanese people commonly do this seated on a little plastic stool.)

But then I thought, that's not very much like Toboso-Sensei, to get a detail about decor wrong. This is the same manga author who went to the trouble of drawing plants in the fireplaces when the weather is warm, because the Victorians abhorred empty space.* It would be very surprising if she drew the bathtub anachronistically. She would probably gleefully research it first.

So was *I* wrong to assume a showerhead on a hose is anachronistic? 

So then I googled "Victorian bathtub," and lo and behold this image (and many like it) are in the first page of image results. It's exactly the same faucet.

So you definitely find bathtubs like this when you do research on "Victorian bathtub," and I think if a Japanese person was doing this research, it would seem totally normal for bathrooms to have a faucet on a hose.

But as I kept looking through the pictures, I noticed something: all the tubs with this "telephone cradle" style are modern photographs. I couldn't find any images of tubs that were definitely from the Victorian period. I could only find tubs for sale that were marketed as "Victorian style."

So the question still remained: did they have bathtub faucet handsets like that in 1889, or are they a modern addition to a Victorian style bathroom?

My next thought was, maybe I can figure it out from the hose, because what would the hose have been made of in 1889?! It can't have been plastic, because the earliest plastics wouldn't have been invented yet. It could have been rubber, but rubber hose doesn't look very nice (it has a distinctly medical look to me, at least), so I can't see the Victorians adorning their fancy bathrooms with rubber.

Could it have been a metal hose? Those were in use much earlier, and all the hoses in the bathtub pictures (that aren't plastic) look like metal hoses. The wikipedia page for "metal hose" says the first patent on a metal hose was in France in 1885, so that part is plausible at least. I can't tell from the page whether they would have actually been used in fancy bathrooms or only in industrial applications, because all the page citations are in German history books.**

So then I started searching through patents for hoses and tubes and things, trying to find anything with a date where a metal hose was used in a bathroom context.***

(At this point, I realized I'd spent way too much time researching a question about a particularly insignificant panel of this Kuroshitsuji chapter.)

I never found anything that proves or disproves the idea that the telephone style bathtub faucet cradle was actually in use in 1889.

HOWEVER, searching for patents before 1900 that contain the word "hose" did unearth something much more interesting and relevant to the current story arc: a patent from the US from 1881 filed by Eugene E. Allan for "Instrument for transfusion of blood," with a fascinating introduction:

Transfusion of blood has not as yet been successfully practiced as a method of treatment for disease,from the fact that the operation has hitherto been attended with great daugcr to life from the imperfect-methods employed, whereby air and coagulated blood have been introduced into the veins of the patient, either of which causes death. Until means are provided by which danger from these causes is entirely removed the practice cannot meet with favor, or even be properly tested.

Believing that transfusion of blood, when fully understood and properly conducted, will be successfully employed in the treatment of a large class of cases, my attention has been directed to the invention or discovery of methods and means whereby the operation might be performed with safety to the patient, and the result of my endeavors in this direction has been the production of the within-described apparatus.

The morals of the story:

I have no idea whether that bathtub panel is anachronistic.

Othello must not have visited America if he finds the blood transfusion machines abnormally advanced in 1889.

If we meet a new character in the next couple chapters named Eugene or Allan, THAT'S THE BAD GUY.****

*I'm 90% sure I read this in one of the author's notes in the back of a manga volume, but I can't remember which one. If anyone can supply the citation or a correction, I'll update the post.

** First world problems: can't immediately look up wikipedia citations in books.

*** This is something I've learned from working in software: the trick to getting a patent is to take something that already exists and use it successfully in a different context, citing the existing usage as prior art. It's much easier than actually inventing something.

**** I started cackling when I read the inventor’s name, because of course my first thought was that the Undertaker’s real name is Eugene in “The Sum of our Parts” by @chocolatemoosey and @cheshirecity.