History - Blog Posts
Idk what the writers had in their tea that morning that made them think “lets give Mary Tudor and Edward Seymour intense sexual tension for no fucking reason” but I’m so grateful for it
Their relationship in this show kills me. It’s just sooooo sad.
John references knowing Edward for 40 years. They have been to war together. They have been consistent and dependable for each-other in a vitriolic, deceitful, unstable world. They have been partners, a two-man team, a package deal.
Its kind of funny the way they stick to each-other’s sides like two school boys who have handshakes and secret code names and shit. Its starkly contrasted with the other dynamics between the politicians, which are all so stale and fragile (as you would expect from colleagues in a workplace where you kind of always have to be prepared for someone to betray you or for you to have to betray them).
Which emphasises the purity and innocence in their initial relationship, its very naive, especially from Edward’s side.
Edward refers to John as “like a brother” a very intimate and vulnerable admission especially from a man so often cold and aloof. John’s response is to remind him of his relationship with his actual brother and how he doesn’t want his and Edward’s relationship to be compared to Edward and Thomas’s. This is obviously deeply ironic, as their relationship ends up just like Edward and his brother’s. One feels like the other has backed themself into a corner which they cannot get out of and they prioritise their career, their family and ambitions over the other (bit more complex for Edward and Thomas but thats not what this post is about lol).
John’s desperation for him and Edward to still have a relationship after his betrayal is such a childish little hope, so immature and stary-eyed for a rat in the belly of the beast.
I wonder how different it would have been had they not had that argument on the staircase. I think John felt repeatedly ignored and belittled by Edward and this was his last straw.
John is a very emotional and arrogant character. He is hotheaded and I think if his ego hadn’t been affected he wouldn’t have done what he did, regardless of his opinions on Edward’s skill at the job.
Moreover, I think its interesting they share the same flaws in many ways: they both believe that they have the abilities and vision that others lack and that only they should have the top position, they are both very prideful and oblivious to the things around them (Edward to the threat of Thomas and John to the threat that he is encouraging in Mary).
The familiarity with which they speak to each other even when enemies is so poignant. They know each other so well. They are each other’s oldest friends.
I think their relationship is a representative of a theme most clearly demonstrated through Edward Tudor’s character: the death of innocence and truth at the hands of power.
And of course they both go down the same way. Of course they are reduced to squabbling children fighting over the shiniest toy. Of course they become what they have resented in each other because they have always been the same really. Edward stabs John in the back for position. John ignores Edward’s advice and the evidence around him of his own failure and plows relentlessly forward as Edward has always done. Of course this is what kills them both.
John killed Edward. Edward tried to kill John. They both are executed as traitors. All of their scrambling and scheming comes to nothing. The snake eats its own tail. The beast is doomed to consume itself in its entirety ect. ect.
Interesting Fact #1
Novels were forbidden in the Spanish colonies by the Inquisition. The literary genre of novels was seen as dangerous. Reading a novel could warrant one jail time and humiliation. Novels weren't published until after independence at the beginning if the 19th century. This ban on fiction was part of the inquisitions goal to rid the "fictional disease" that plagued them.
Information from Latin America: Fiction and Reality by Mario Vargas Llosa.
If you any more information related to the fact, or you have corrections, Please share! I would love to hear!
i have a teacher kinda like this and i feel like she’s under appreciated
To the hero professors
So, I’m taking U.S. History one and two over the summer at my community college, and the professor is this older white man. Naturally, this is history, and my first assumption walking in to the class is that I’m gonna be stuck listening to this guy drone on for two months of boredom. Great.
Within the first five minutes I knew I was wrong. So, so wrong.
“I don’t want you to be stuck memorizing dates,” he says. “I want you to know the story, the people, the conditions and reactions so that maybe we can all learn from past mistakes.” I was baffled. A history class that doesn’t require you to be able to rattle off dates? Not only that, there’s no homework and we don’t have to read the text book. The only things that are going to be on the test are things that come straight out of his mouth during class. He introduces himself, and proceeds to go around the room and greets every person one at a time. He will do this every day for the rest of the summer one and two semesters.
Then the lecture begins. I say lecture, but it feels more like story time in kindergarten. He begins to speak with such prose and personality that I forget this is a college course. He’s taken something that has so much potential to be mundane and turned it in to a book that I can’t put down. You bibliophiles know what I’m talking about. And then this glorious fucker ends the class in a mid-sentence cliffhanger.
Every class he carries on this way. It feels as if I’m there. Signing the Declaration, fighting against brothers in the Civil War, listening to FDR’s fireside chats, storming the beaches of Normandy… And he remains unbiased. He wants to make sure we see there’s two sides to every story; understand the conditions that lead to those reactions.
We took a test today, a week from our final exam. He goes around the room in his usual affable fashion, but rather than just ask how we’re doing, today he asks if there’s anything he can do for us. Most folks like myself say something along the lines of nothing, or I’m good. This girl next to me jokingly says, “You can buy me a coffee.”
“How much is it?” He asks.
“About five dollars.” She answers.
And without hesitation, this professor, this wonderful man with a love of teaching, and a love of his students, pulls out a fucking twenty dollar bill, hands it to her and just says “Go get your coffee, and bring me the change.” Then continues on his way like it’s nothing.
And it may be nothing. Maybe I’m blowing something small out of proportion. But in a world where it feels as if every class is just dragging you along in the gravel behind it, and the professors seem to just be going through the motions; to see someone actually do something kind and ask nothing in return is so refreshing and uplifting.
I don’t know. Maybe this is just a boring shit post, but I really needed to share my appreciation for this hero of a teacher. A teacher who after over 30 years of teaching is still happy with what he does.
tl;dr: Some teachers leave a long lasting impact on your life; change the way you think, the way you see the world. Appreciate them for what they are. The unsung heroes of a failing education system.
So as an ERB fan...
So as an ERB fan there are some battles I would love to see happen such as: 1) Audie Murphy ( one of the most honored soldiers in history ) V.S. Captain America. 2) Joseph Smith ( Founder of Mormonism ) V.S. L. Ron Hubbard ( Founder of Scientology ) with a Guest Run-In of Jim Jones ( Johns Town Cult Leader ) or David Koresh ( Waco Cult Leader ) 3) Buffy the Vampire Slayer V.S. Abraham Van Hellsing with Guest Run-In of Sam and Dean Winchester or Ash Williams ( Evil Dead ) 4) Captain Picard V.S. Captain Nemo 5) Bram Stoker ( Author of Dracula ) V.S. Stephenie Myers ( Author of Twilight ) with a Guest Run-In of Marry Shelly ( Author of Frankenstein ) 6) Patrick Bateman ( American Psycho ) V.S. Jeffery Dahmer with a possible Guest Run-In of Norman Bates. 7) The Phantom of the Opera V.S. Liberace with Guest Run-In of Little Richard 8) The Shadow V.S. Zorro with a Guest Run-In of Robin Hood 9) Frasier Crane V.S. D.R. Loomis ( from Halloween ) 10) Barnabus Collins ( From Dark Shadows ) V.S. Edward Cullen ( Twilight ) 11) The Three Musketeers V.S. The Three Stooges 12) Heinrich Himmler V.S. Dick Cheney 13) Peter Pan V.S. Alice Liddell 14) Cortana V.S. Skynet 15) J.M. Berrie ( Author of Peter Pan ) V.S. J.K. Rowling ( Author of Harry Potter )
Not generally, but now I do
Do you ever think about how many of the items now considered priceless artifacts were once commonplace items? The coins we now marvel at from behind the glass at a museum were once tossed around, stepped on, and traded around. The pottery painstakingly pieced back together was somebody’s favorite wine jug. The decorative pin now rusted and bent once held together the shoulder of someone’s chiton. History is simply a trail of ordinary people going about their day, and I think there’s an odd sort of beauty in that.
Please stop ✋🚨 you're the only hope to save my children😔😭
We haven't had bread for days... The war on Gaza continues, the blockade is suffocating us, and the situation is desperately desperate - children, families, everyone is starving. We need every voice, every support, every contribution to make our cry heard. Please don't ignore our suffering. We are currently under siege, and we have no safe haven. We are being subjected to heavy bombardment. My family and I could be killed at any moment. Donate, donate, help us get out of Gaza faster. Share, do good. Your donation is not just a donation, it's saving our lives. Don't leave us to die here.
✅️vetted by @/bilal-salah0, @/90-ghost, & @/el-shab-hussein✅️
knights can be created by other knights like vampires except instead of biting them they wack them on the shoulders with swords
Learning about the Great Depression in US History when you're a person who's part of multiple fandoms is like:
Joey Drew was the cause of the depression as Alastor just sat back and watched while they both laughed at society's suffering, everyone else being disappointed in the two of them.
I'd like to see literally anyone disagree, because am I really even wrong?
Propaganda Machine
One thing I think about all the time is the sheer scale of propaganda out in the world right now.
Consider for a moment, Henry IV of Castille. He was the brother of Isabella of Castille, who became Queen after his death, and it was because of her that Christopher Columbus set out on his voyage for India. We know SO MUCH about Isabella and Ferdinand and the conquest of the Americas but we know so little about Henry IV. And yes, that's in part because he didn't do as much and wasn't as significant, but it's also because during his rule, his position as monarch was tenuous. He had a lot of detractors and people vying for his throne. These detractors put out huge amounts of propaganda, about him and his daughter, and because there's so much nonsense to wade through to pick out even a sliver of truth, we know barely anything about his reign.
If Historians can be largely clueless as to what happened 500 years ago, in a time where there was no social media or internet, and there were highly limited mediums through which to spread propaganda and misinformation, how screwed does that make us now?
Surely it'll be hundreds of times more difficult to ascertain what happened when there are thousands of contradicting tweets, videos and articles surrounding every issue. It's unspeakably horrible to imagine that 600 years from now, Historians might look back and believe the words of Anti-Vaxxers, or take everything Trump and his supporters say as gospel. I'm not saying they will, because Historians are super smart, and a big part of the discipline is taking sources with a grain of salt, but I think it's a legitimate concern, that we're going to lose the lessons we could've learnt from our present, because it's so bogged down in bullshit.
5 Ways to Support Your Local Library
Get a library card. I know this might seem obvious, but simply being a cardholder is a huge way to support your local library. Prices vary, but many people are able to get a library card for free, depending on their location in relation to the library. Check with your local library for more precise pricing.
Check out books. Any books circulating through the library’s system is good - however, I will make the recommendation to check out educational, history, and craft books, for your own benefit. Something to remember: The more a certain type of book circulates, the more likely books of that ilk will be ordered in the future.
Attend programs. Programs are the backbone of a library, but unfortunately, many libraries struggle with attendance. Look for your library’s calendar, find something that interests you, then go to that program. This not only shows support for your library, but opens up opportunities for you to get to know other like-minded people in your community.
Volunteer. Many libraries need volunteers to help handle some of the important organizational tasks that the library staff does not have time for. Many of these tasks are neurodivergent-friendly, such as shelf-reading. Volunteering is not only a good way to support your library, but it may help your mental health and socialization.
Donate. Libraries everywhere are struggling, with many laws going into place in various places that could defund them. If you are unable to donate money, then see if your library accepts donations of other sorts, such as books. Many libraries partner with Friends of the Library groups in order to sell books that are donated to them. Many libraries also have a “Library of Things” where items that have been donated can be checked out by patrons (for example, my Library of Things has an air fryer, a ukulele, a snow cone machine, etc.).
There are many other things that you can do to support your local library, but for now, I leave you here. Be safe out there, and remember: USE YOUR LIBRARY.
Oh, I'm working on short stories too. Lmk if you're interested. "Moon Bite" and another about the Berlin Wall. AMA
I am terrified tonight.
Tonight, March 5th, my president talk to France. God, I am terrified.
What is going on in the world ? Between Russia, the US and now Europe ? Fuck, I am european. It terrifies me. He's talking about creating a european army, to 'defend'. But fucking hell ! you can just see he wants to go to war, so he can stay president longer !
I'm going to put what he said -cause I found it-, and put the translation for the non-french speakers : "C’est notre sécurité qui est menacée. Si un pays peut envahir un autre en Europe, c’est la paix qui est menacée" -It is our security that is threatened. If one country can invade another in Europe, peace is threatened- Yay, national security, how nice ! You're going to cost us. Even if he says that it wont, it will.
"La menace russe est là, et touche les pays d’Europe. La Russie a fait du conflit ukrainien un conflit mondial" -The Russian threat is there, and affects the countries of Europe. Russia has made the Ukrainian conflict a global conflict- New world war ? Welp, I'm studying history. Never really intended to live what I'm studying...
"Qui peut croire que la Russie d’aujourd’hui s’arrêtera à l’Ukraine ?" -Who can believe that today's Russia will stop at Ukraine?- They won't. Unfortunately, in my opinion, unless Putin dies -and even then, nothing is sure-, they will continue. They will be world war soon.
"Nous restons attachés à l'Otan, et à notre partenariat avec les États-Unis. Mais l'avenir de l'Europe n'a pas à être tranché à Washington et à Moscou." -We remain committed to NATO, and to our partnership with the United States. But the future of Europe does not have to be decided in Washington and Moscow.- This is probably the thing I agree the most : peace shall not be made outside Europe. It is not a matter from the US to decide who's right and who's wrong. It is not to the US to decide who wins or not. But, arms race is not the answer either. Unfortunately, it seems we do no longer have a choice.
And you know what's even more terrifying ? My brother. He listen, arrived arround half the speech, and then tried to tell us that it was not so bad. That the world wasn't changing a super speed. That, no, our president wasn't trying, in subtext, to invite more people to join the army. He does not believe war can start that fast -we told him he could'nt wait 'till he finished his masters degree at the speed the world is moving, he doesn't want to believe us.
I am shaking, 45 minutes after the speech begun. I am terrified. I feel like I'm going to throw up. I am simply terrified. I would love this text to be one of my dystopian creation. Unfortunately, it is the world today. And fuck, I don't want to be in that world.
Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat
I'm in class. Yes, again. I swear I listen (proof : i'm talking about it)
We just listened to Churchill's speech "Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat". Duuuuude ! He sound so much like Palpatine. I know it's not. But between the poor quality of the recording, and the accent -which was definetly intentional by George Lucas-, he sounds so much like him.
But yeah, that's all. I found that Churchill sounded like Palpatine ^^'
So. The rest.
I feel so much by all this.
It's not good quality : yeah normal. It was pretty much night time (we love a 8am class).
But it talks about macron (french president), trump and musk (they don't deserve to have the majuscules at their names : I don't respect people like them.)
And lastly : the Antifa that we have nearly everywhere. We are in the history buildings of the uni. We know how it happened 90 years ago. It is litteraly my class as I'm typing this.
Always say no to fascism. They promess you things. They won't give it to you. They dont care about you.
So... Yesterday my university -in France- was blocked by other people :
And they left some traces
It's says : fuck Elon Musk (on the bench : death to Trump)
No need to translate that : we know it even here
Do a Luigi please
That's a french politique, and it's says fuck him
Once again : no need to translate
I'm gonna need to reblog it to add more, 'cause there's so much.
And I don't usually post this kind of things here but.... I went past that wall, went into the next building, and knew I had to go back. I find it really powerful. One of my friends said it was dirty and not well done. I don't agree.
Wait. So. I'm a history student, and right now, we're in modern history and talking about Christopher Columbus. Who wanted to go to India, by boat. How did he want to do that ?
Right. Travel around the Earth. Because Earth is round. And they knew that at the end of the XVth century.
Now. Explain to me, how the hell do people think the Earth is FLAT ??????
Like, If you believe that, I'm sorry dude, but you're dumber than an XVth century man (yes, many of them knew. I don't actually believe people thought the Earth was flat at that time. How did we end up thinking that again ? Like we knew it was round during Antiquity, through middle age -yeah, they didn't believe in heliocentrism, but the Earth was not flat- and now what ? I don't understand.)
by whl.travel on Flickr.Roman ruins of Palmyra - near Damascus, Syria.
Teen girls in the past.
Yup! 🔥
Meiji period fashion was some of the best in the world, speaking purely from an aesthetic standpoint you can really see the collision of European and Japanese standards of beauty and how their broad agreement even in particulars (the similarity between Japanese and Gibson girl bouffants, the obi vs the corset, the obi knot vs the bustle, the mutual covetousness for exotic textiles, the feverish swapping of both art styles and subjects) combined and produced some of the most interesting cultural exchange we have this level of documentation for. Europeans were wearing kimono or adapting them into tea gowns, japanese were pairing lacy Edwardian blouses with skirt hakama and little button up boots. haori jackets with bowler hats and European style lapels. if steampunk was any good as an aesthetic it would steal wholesale from the copious records we have in both graphic arts and photography of how people were dressing in this milieu.
Fun fact: back in 2012, on this very blog, I made a post about American Girl dolls I’d like to see. One included a Black girl growing up during the civil rights movement and listening to Motown music. So yes, I’d love to take credit for Melody. But her actual creation goes back to a tweet someone made that I can’t find a link to right now. AG and the civil rights/motown era is SUCH a natural match, it’s kind of baffling it took until 2016 for Melody to finally come out. Being that she was a part of the “BeForever” line, it’s beyond infuriating that she only got two books.
THE GOOD NEWS IS BeForever was kind of a disaster for AG and they’ve done away with the brand. Claudie was released with Meet Claudie and her next book is Travels with Claudie so she definitely looks like she’s returning to the six book format. I doubt that the other girls released under the BeForever line (Nanea, Maryellen and Courtney) will get their full six books, which makes me so angry. I mean, given that Nanea is kind of specific to JUST pearl harbor, I can sooort of understand her having just two (even though I DEFINITELY think she should have gotten six. Hawaiian history and culture deserve a full six books). Given that Courtney is in the 80s, and a lot of what was controversial in the 80s is still controversial today, I can see how AG would be very very very hesitant to seriously dig into 80s history and politics, although six books in which Ronald Reagan and The Moral Majority are the bad guys would fucking rule. But for Maryellen and Melody it is bullshit of the highest order that they only got 2 books, especially when you consider that Maryellen’s big story is super bland bullshit about her struggling to stand out in her big family and not so much about confronting the sexist and racist cultural bullshit of the 50s. BUT she gets massive bonus points for covering the Salk vaccine (a major turning-point in history that doesn’t get NEARLY the amount of love and attention it deserves) and for having an amazing collection.
Melody being only two books is unforgivable. COMPLETELY UNFORGIVABLE. You cannot fit the enormity of civil rights and Motown and the 60s in general into just two books. All that being said, however, the two books they gave her seem to do a massive job with the tiny bit of space they were given. First of all, the advisory board for Melody is STACKED. Secondly, the trailer for Melody: Love Has to Win is the shit of Ron DeSantis’s nightmares:
A LITTLE BLACK GIRL REFUSING THE SAY THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE AND SAYING THAT AMERICA IS UNJUST?! That’s the sound of millions of pearls being clutched all across the nation. I’m honestly shocked Moms for Liberty weren’t burning Melody’s books in the streets. I am hereby a Melody stan now and forever. I still SINCERELY hope she gets a re-release with her full six books and a much bigger collection. Because for real Melody may be my new favorite doll (although that could change depending on what kind of collection Claudie gets).
yall we gotta put some respect on emperor wu zetians name. my girl was the only female emperor of china like fucking EVER and all anyone ever talks about is queen elizabeth i or cleopatra or something. like. i LOVE THEM but they did not girlboss their way into role the way wu zetian did. my memory is a little bit fuzzy but i THINK that she somehow masterminded her way into power. anyways my queen wu zetian you will always be famous and people will end up being obsessed with you like i was
obsessed with subhas chandra bose. everyone in india was like peace ✌ love 😍 non violence 🥺 and homeboy tried to invade england