|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2009 8:36 pm
(I realize that this is probably in the wrong forum- but do you think you could refrain from moving it until Saturday? I'm afraid it will go unnoticed, and this is a time-sensitive subject.)
This Friday (27th March), the history teacher at my high school invited me to teach two 45 minute world history classes about the Victorian age, as I expressed concern over the fact that all they learned was a crash-course in period politics. The teacher knows me very well, and knew that I loved the time period enough to make it interesting. I'm terribly excited- I just don't want to miss anything.
I want to paint the age as steampunks see it- an age where it seemed as though anything was possible, on the brink of so many scientific discoveries, between the old world and new... I'll be giving them interesting facts, and my main texts are the two Horrible Histories books (by Terry Deary) I have on the period. (They tend to throw the era into a rather rotten light, so those will just be my fall-back points.) But these are rather good at making history accessible.
If you read nothing else (wall of text, I apologize) tell me this: What do you find so endearing about the era? What should I not exclude? (Keep in mind, these will be freshmen with the misconception that everything back then was polite, fancy, and boring.)
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2009 8:58 pm
it would be ironic of most of them where steampunks XDD
I think you can do it, sadly I have no helpful factoids ><
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2009 9:16 pm
Their fashion and art were some of my favorite parts of the era; while something else I found quite interesting was this was a point in time where the edges of the map were being filled in. Where discovery was encouraged, and other cultures were accepted to mix in with the european influence.
There's nothing that I'd discourage about the topic, but just to find some topics that sound interesting to you, and delve into them a bit. In due time, the class might begin to see where you're coming from, and desire to look more into what you're saying. Best of luck on your presentation. mrgreen
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2009 9:34 pm
This is a REAL tangent and not what you're asking, but...
To shed a different light, consider that Hawaii stopped being a sovereign nation around this time period(Liliuokalani was dethroned Jan 17th, 1893). But that's just my bitter bitter native opinion that the whole affair was pure evil and needs to be ratified NOW personal agenda.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2009 9:44 pm
I think it's a cool idea.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2009 10:09 pm
fickle lamia This is a REAL tangent and not what you're asking, but... To shed a different light, consider that Hawaii stopped being a sovereign nation around this time period(Liliuokalani was dethroned Jan 17th, 1893). But that's just my bitter bitter native opinion that the whole affair was pure evil and needs to be ratified NOW personal agenda.
I have to admit I agree with you. In fact, I ranted on about America's imperialistic agenda on Monday in my US history class, with a concentration on Hawaii and the Philippines.
But I doubt the freshies are prepared for my soapbox.
No, Amossk. Unfortunately, it being a small school, I can tell you in all certainty that NONE of them are steampunks, and if any have even heard of it, they immediately dismissed it as "weird." I was present for their reaction to the teacher's original presentation on the Victorian age.
And thank you. ^^
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2009 10:31 pm
Iseult Afire fickle lamia This is a REAL tangent and not what you're asking, but... To shed a different light, consider that Hawaii stopped being a sovereign nation around this time period(Liliuokalani was dethroned Jan 17th, 1893). But that's just my bitter bitter native opinion that the whole affair was pure evil and needs to be ratified NOW personal agenda.
I have to admit I agree with you. In fact, I ranted on about America's imperialistic agenda on Monday in my US history class, with a concentration on Hawaii and the Philippines.
But I doubt the freshies are prepared for my soapbox.
No, Amossk. Unfortunately, it being a small school, I can tell you in all certainty that NONE of them are steampunks, and if any have even heard of it, they immediately dismissed it as "weird." I was present for their reaction to the teacher's original presentation on the Victorian age.
And thank you. ^^
I saw nothing wrong with America attempting to conquer the world... Would've made things easier down the line... less wars and all that. Besides, If one group fails to put up a decent resistance to another, they should go under. That's how the world is supposed to work. I believe it's called Darwinism? Besides, if one nation conquered all, would there be war? I doubt it. a few militant rebellions, but not a war... Of course, I'm an idealist in such matters, and I'm no help on that matter. You could look up some of the literary works and poetry of that age, and how it could show the current mindset, but I believe that fasion and terms of beauty in that era should also be mentioned... As well as scientific minds.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2009 10:37 pm
fickle lamia This is a REAL tangent and not what you're asking, but... To shed a different light, consider that Hawaii stopped being a sovereign nation around this time period(Liliuokalani was dethroned Jan 17th, 1893). But that's just my bitter bitter native opinion that the whole affair was pure evil and needs to be ratified NOW personal agenda. rofl XD
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2009 10:53 pm
SPI -14 Iseult Afire fickle lamia This is a REAL tangent and not what you're asking, but... To shed a different light, consider that Hawaii stopped being a sovereign nation around this time period(Liliuokalani was dethroned Jan 17th, 1893). But that's just my bitter bitter native opinion that the whole affair was pure evil and needs to be ratified NOW personal agenda. I have to admit I agree with you. In fact, I ranted on about America's imperialistic agenda on Monday in my US history class, with a concentration on Hawaii and the Philippines.
But I doubt the freshies are prepared for my soapbox.
No, Amossk. Unfortunately, it being a small school, I can tell you in all certainty that NONE of them are steampunks, and if any have even heard of it, they immediately dismissed it as "weird." I was present for their reaction to the teacher's original presentation on the Victorian age.
And thank you. ^^ I saw nothing wrong with America attempting to conquer the world... Would've made things easier down the line... less wars and all that. Besides, If one group fails to put up a decent resistance to another, they should go under. That's how the world is supposed to work. I believe it's called Darwinism? Besides, if one nation conquered all, would there be war? I doubt it. a few militant rebellions, but not a war... Of course, I'm an idealist in such matters, and I'm no help on that matter. You could look up some of the literary works and poetry of that age, and how it could show the current mindset, but I believe that fasion and terms of beauty in that era should also be mentioned... As well as scientific minds. Good Lord, man... I can't bring myself to agree with you there. I suppose, by your logic, the same could apply to the holocaust? Since obviously the Jews didn't put up enough resistance, Hitler had every right... War to end all wars indeed. Bombing for peace/ ******** for virginity. Ugh.
But this wasn't intended to become a fiery debate. Thank you, science will be a focal point- and your Darwin, as well.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2009 11:02 pm
SPI -14 I saw nothing wrong with America attempting to conquer the world... Would've made things easier down the line... less wars and all that. Besides, If one group fails to put up a decent resistance to another, they should go under. That's how the world is supposed to work. I believe it's called Darwinism? Besides, if one nation conquered all, would there be war? I doubt it. a few militant rebellions, but not a war... Of course, I'm an idealist in such matters, and I'm no help on that matter. You could look up some of the literary works and poetry of that age, and how it could show the current mindset, but I believe that fasion and terms of beauty in that era should also be mentioned... As well as scientific minds. (trying to repress urge to lash out in hatred and flame...) Whoo, okay. Breathing again. This is another, further-from-topic rant... But hell, Ua Mau Ke Ea, right? Above all things I'll be rational and determined. So you get an application of all those "morality" classes in college! Yay, they have a use after all. Firstly, I'd like to open arguing that no, humans will NEVER stop warring. I just don't beleive it, don't think it's part of human nature. If you beleive in Social Darwinism, you imply the set of rules for human nature; that is, we function in a survival-of-the-fittest world. There's a bigger argument I could make here(and will, if anyone's interested) involving the plausibility of perfect capitalism, socialism, and the distribution of goods and how all these factors relate to human greed/desire, normal morals, and the net resources of an area. Suffice it to say; I beleive we'll always have war, from whatever source. Second argument; because you said it we'll work within the sphere of Darwinism. For Darwinism to work on a social level, we came up with the social contract, yes? Each person gives up certain rights in order to be guaranteed certain safeties. It's existed since the dawn of social living, first as taboo's then as laws. You kill a tribe member, you're out of the tribe; you kill a man, you're punished. It's how we manage to avoid complete anarchy. So when nations act as a single entity, the social contract also applies, although I admit the enforcement of rules is a bit harder to do. Still, Germany went all Nazi and killed folks, started war. So, the world came together as a whole to "punish" Germany. Today, the UN just yells at North Korea, the US, and Russia occasionally. They TRY to stop civil unrest in places like Africa, and when war happens they attempt to ensure it was just and fair. And, like the smaller version of the Social Contract, no one is exempt. As it applies to Hawaii... The US flagrantly broke the Social Contract. Worse yet they watched it being broken, did nothing, and then proceeded to break it themselves. We could say that perhaps there's nothing to be done about it this late in the game, but you have to accept that the US should be "punished" for their intrusion.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2009 11:10 pm
Okay, you probably saw it but I think "Fridtjof Nansen" (mentioned in a post on the forum main and a long time crush of mine[I don't care that he's dead, so's Brendan Lee]) might be a good side note.
As they posted(thank Tsuchiya~Hisashi)
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2009/01/nansen/ousland-photography
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2009 11:41 pm
fickle lamia SPI -14 I saw nothing wrong with America attempting to conquer the world... Would've made things easier down the line... less wars and all that. Besides, If one group fails to put up a decent resistance to another, they should go under. That's how the world is supposed to work. I believe it's called Darwinism? Besides, if one nation conquered all, would there be war? I doubt it. a few militant rebellions, but not a war... Of course, I'm an idealist in such matters, and I'm no help on that matter. You could look up some of the literary works and poetry of that age, and how it could show the current mindset, but I believe that fasion and terms of beauty in that era should also be mentioned... As well as scientific minds. (trying to repress urge to lash out in hatred and flame...) Whoo, okay. Breathing again. This is another, further-from-topic rant... But hell, Ua Mau Ke Ea, right? Above all things I'll be rational and determined. So you get an application of all those "morality" classes in college! Yay, they have a use after all. Firstly, I'd like to open arguing that no, humans will NEVER stop warring. I just don't beleive it, don't think it's part of human nature. If you beleive in Social Darwinism, you imply the set of rules for human nature; that is, we function in a survival-of-the-fittest world. There's a bigger argument I could make here(and will, if anyone's interested) involving the plausibility of perfect capitalism, socialism, and the distribution of goods and how all these factors relate to human greed/desire, normal morals, and the net resources of an area. Suffice it to say; I beleive we'll always have war, from whatever source. Second argument; because you said it we'll work within the sphere of Darwinism. For Darwinism to work on a social level, we came up with the social contract, yes? Each person gives up certain rights in order to be guaranteed certain safeties. It's existed since the dawn of social living, first as taboo's then as laws. You kill a tribe member, you're out of the tribe; you kill a man, you're punished. It's how we manage to avoid complete anarchy. So when nations act as a single entity, the social contract also applies, although I admit the enforcement of rules is a bit harder to do. Still, Germany went all Nazi and killed folks, started war. So, the world came together as a whole to "punish" Germany. Today, the UN just yells at North Korea, the US, and Russia occasionally. They TRY to stop civil unrest in places like Africa, and when war happens they attempt to ensure it was just and fair. And, like the smaller version of the Social Contract, no one is exempt. As it applies to Hawaii... The US flagrantly broke the Social Contract. Worse yet they watched it being broken, did nothing, and then proceeded to break it themselves. We could say that perhaps there's nothing to be done about it this late in the game, but you have to accept that the US should be "punished" for their intrusion. ohh, very informative
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 26, 2009 4:23 am
If you had more time to teach these students, I'd suggest you let them watch a programme called The 1900 House. It's about a modern-day family who got to live the (late) Victorian lifestyle for 3 months, in a proper house and everything.
I love the fashion and the general eloquence of the era. Granted, not everything was peaches and cream, but in my opinion, people behaved better (or if not, they were dealt with swiftly). However, no society is problem-free...
I wish I had factoids to share, but I don't. My apologies~
Well, I have just thought of something: you could talk about mourning garb and jewelry. I'm a bit morbid anyway, so I found that pretty interesting when I was going through my studying of Victorian history phase.
Here is an article on it. I don't know if you are allowed to use the internet as a source, but I'm sure books on the subject can be found at the library. I wish I could remember what I read so long ago.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 26, 2009 5:37 am
Oh goodness, I love that show! I watched it when I was 13 or so, and have been looking for it ever since.
And yes, I was going to make that a main subject. Momento Mori, and an exploration of why the age was so fixated on death. (Something to do with Victoria's loss, perhaps?)
I have complete freedom on this topic- no rules apply (excepting the basic school guidelines... So unfortunately I can't sacrifice someone in a demonstration).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 26, 2009 5:58 am
fickle lamia Okay, you probably saw it but I think "Fridtjof Nansen" (mentioned in a post on the forum main and a long time crush of mine[I don't care that he's dead, so's Brendan Lee]) might be a good side note. As they posted(thank Tsuchiya~Hisashi) http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2009/01/nansen/ousland-photography Ah, Brandon Lee... His loss was a blow to females (and homosexual males, I'm sure) everywhere.
Thanks much. I'm going to try and print that picture off to pass around. :]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
