Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Humanities/2010 October 23

Welcome to the Wikipedia Humanities Reference Desk Archives
The page you are currently viewing is an archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages.

October 23

Paranormal Activity 2

What happened to the nanny in the movie! she just... dissappered..... —Preceding unsigned comment added by Iluvgofishband (talk • contribs) 04:35, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Should be asked on Entertainment Desk... AnonMoos (talk) 06:25, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

If that's not paranormal, I don't know what is.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 08:29, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Is there an Anime-style Gospel cartoon?

Sometimes, in order to reach the unsaved, it may take adapting to certain demographics' animation preferences.

This is a cartoon about Jesus in the (barely) antiquated American cartooning format: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nu80g-uPi-w

However, is there an Anime/Manga-style show that spreads the Good News about the Lord?

You see, such a style of animation may be helpful in reaching the unsaved who happen to be Anime & Manga fans. They might or might not pay attention to ordinary-looking cartoons about Jesus, but if it's in Anime form, then they're more likely to. --Let Us Update Wikipedia: Dusty Articles 05:59, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

I've read a Manga Bible before, but it wasn't very good. The Picture Bible is still the classic in my eyes, even though it's more like traditional comic art. bibliomaniac15 06:07, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Maybe Chick Tracts should be made into manga. That would be...something. Adam Bishop (talk) 06:19, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

It's not anime, but there is the brick testament. However, the idea of casting the characters of the bible in anime style is slightly disturbing. I can almost see drawing Jesus as a super-skinny morbid teenager (Western ideation portrays Jesus as slightly-build and wisely-sad anyway), but I just can't picture Mary as a doe-eyed, over-curved ingenue. --Ludwigs2 19:19, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

For actual Japanese-produced animated Bible stories, all I can find are Superbook, The Flying House and In the Beginning: The Bible Stories. The last was created by Osamu Tezuka and Osamu Dezaki, both of whom are rather famous, but it seems to be almost entirely Old Testament except for the last episode (judging by the episode titles—I haven't seen it). Night on the Galactic Railroad (the animated adaptation by Gisaburo Sugii) has some parts that seem like Christian morality stories, along with a lot of Buddhist symbolism. It's also a good movie that I recommend, for reasons mostly unrelated to the religious aspects (though not for kids, and not the English dub).

All of those are in the style of Japanese animation by virtue of being actually Japanese, but maybe they aren't what you're looking for. I suppose there's Neon Genesis Evangelion. -- BenRG (talk) 06:35, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

Or you could commission this guy to remake the Peanuts Christmas special. -- BenRG (talk) 07:39, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

Just don't accidentally look up the anime Bible Black, expecting something about the Testament... — The Hand That Feeds You:^Bite 17:55, 25 October 2010 (UTC)

American writers abroad

I'm working on a list of known literary Northamerican writers, who have spent considerable time abroad and/or have written books (or important poems, stories) outside the US or Canada or have published first editions of their books abroad. I have a lot of names for Europe already, esp. for Paris in the 1920s, but next to nothing for Asia or Southamerica, nothing for Africa, very few people for the recent past (c.1980 to 2010).--Radh (talk) 08:50, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Paul Bowles spent most of his adult life in Morocco and wrote about it. Pearl Buck grew up in China and set most of her novels there. Lafcadio Hearn is often considered an American writer, though he was born in Greece and grew up in Ireland; he moved to Japan, took Japanese citizenship, and wrote extensively about that country. Antiquary (talk) 09:20, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Now I come to think of it I should add Paul Bowles' wife Jane, though she spent less time in Morocco. Antiquary (talk) 09:30, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Two more fiction writers who lived in and wrote about China: Alice Tisdale Hobart and Emily Hahn. And two contemporary poets: Jesse Glass in Japan, and Todd Temkin in Chile. Antiquary (talk) 11:04, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Thanks, I had overlooked Jane Bowles (and don't know much about Paul), also Alice Hobart and Emily Hahn . And I have never heard of Jesse Glass and Todd Temkin, thanks a lot!--Radh (talk) 11:47, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Zane Grey spent quite some time in Australia, and set some stories here. Mark Twain also visited, and wrote about his impressions. -- Jack of Oz ... speak! ... 12:56, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Twain also visited Europe (and wrote a hilarious essay about the German language). Adam Bishop (talk) 19:09, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

His writings on Austrian politics are eerily similar to watching Congress today, it's pretty frightening, actually. The Blade of the Northern Lights (話して下さい) 21:50, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

For recent authors, Bill Bryson springs to mind. Warofdreams talk 00:20, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

There are a lot of borderline cases. For example, was Jules-Paul Tardivel an American expatriate in Quebec or an American-born Quebecois? What about someone like Arudou Debito? As for a recent example / an example not involving Europe, I might suggest Katherine Russell Rich, although she only spent a year in India, so it's questionable whether she qualifies as an "expatriate". A better example is Leza Lowitz, who has lived in Japan for more than twenty years. Also, it depends on how broadly you define "writer". There are tons of obscure American expatriates who have published specialist books like travelogues and guidebooks, and who might therefore be classified as "American expatriate writers", but who are certainly not noteworthy literary or scholarly figures. LANTZY^TALK 10:40, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

To my mind Tardivel would fit, also Katherine Rich, but there might be too many of such "cases"? --Radh (talk) 12:24, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

Paul Linebarger, aka Cordwainer Smith, grew up in China. Sun Yat Sen was his godfather! Steewi (talk) 01:27, 26 October 2010 (UTC)

Gore Vidal lived in Guatemala in 1950 or so, where he wrote at least one novel (Dark Green, Bright Red). Later, for several decades, Vidal split his residence between Los Angeles and Italy, roughly half a year each, and wrote a great deal of his work in Italy. Henry James lived in England, on and off, and wrote a lot of work there. 63.17.75.239 (talk) 02:08, 26 October 2010 (UTC)

William S. Burroughs wrote Naked Lunch while living in Tangier, Morocco, according to the article on him.

'Currency wars'

How is the devaluation of a currency beneficial? 213.106.180.214 (talk) 10:23, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Your exports become cheaper, foreign products become more expensive, so it improves the competitiveness of your industry. The currency war article has more. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 194.171.56.13 (talk) 10:59, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Hyperinflation has sometimes been seen as a way to slash government debt. But I can't recommend it. Moonraker2 (talk) 04:44, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

Inflation also reduces the real amount of your debt. If your debt is 1 trillion clams, and you reduce the value of 1 clam, your debt is theoretically lower in real terms. However, it's not as simple as that. In the U.S., for example, certain entitlement payments go up automatically with inflation. -- Mwalcoff (talk) 04:55, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

But in that scenario, wouldn't people with a large $ fixed rate mortgage be the real winner, since they now get their house for a very low price? Googlemeister (talk) 16:49, 26 October 2010 (UTC)

Not ot mention a much lower value house. TNSTAAFL . . . DOR (HK) (talk) 06:23, 27 October 2010 (UTC)

ninteenth century stocks

say you could send back 1 bar of gold and a letter to a respected law firm, as an IMMEDIATE consequence Tomorrow a long trust (holding stock) would be paid out to your personal name and otehr identifying information, which trust having been set up by the respected lawyer you pre-mailed the gold + instructions to. The question is: if you forgot to specify WHICH stocks the lawyer should have bought for you, if the lawyer picked a single one then what are your chances that that 1 stock is still trading? Assume that the lawyer, being prudent, invested in one of the biggest 50 stocks of his day... 84.153.222.131 (talk) 13:31, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Do you want to know which ones are still trading as separate entities? There are many companies that have been taken over so that you would have stocks in a different company, as opposed to the company going bust and you losing everything. I also think that it would be quite hard to get a respected company to set up an account payable to someone not yet born! -- Q Chris (talk) 14:46, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Ah, but I said respected, not respectable! You'd be amazed at what a respected law firm can do for a bit o' gold... 84.153.222.131 (talk) 15:16, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

The French government still honours an annuity issued in 1738, to be payed to Claude Linotte, his wife, his children born and to-be, which would be extinguished “as of the date of death of the last survivor among the descendants of Mr. and Mrs. Linotte.” You could tell the lawyers to set up a similar life annuity (though you would want to word it in such a way that the money doesn't end up with your cousins, brothers & sisters etc.) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 194.171.56.13 (talk) 15:26, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Damn straight! I hate my cousin. How did you know??? 84.153.222.131 (talk) 15:34, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

The answer is that the stock market offers relatively poor returns, even when an outcome is known. I think The Undercover Economist looks at the Great Eastern Railway (I don't have a copy to hand), which, though it sparked a boom and did very well, didn't see a good return to investors. On the other hand, I remember someone saying of Warren Buffett that his suggestion, should one have known what technology was going to do in 1900, was not to be long in cars (too many companies to choose from) but to be short in horses. So maybe that would be your best strategy: be short in a highly valued stock that you knew was going to crash (e.g. in the Wall Street Crash; if they had short-selling in September 1929, for example) and watch the cash pour in. - Jarry1250 ^{[Who? Discuss.]} 18:01, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

I think you're taking the wrong moral away from that story. The stock market offers very good returns, that in the long run out-strip many other similar forms of investment. Of course those numbers might suffer from selection bias, and other things, but the efficiency (how close the reward is to the actual risk) of a stock market is much better than many other sorts of investments.

But in any case your point about Buffett's comment is very interesting. I'd not heard that, but it is a fascinating one. I wonder if there was an "automobile ETF" back then if that statement would still be accurate.

As for sending things back in time as a fictional premise... we live in a world today where a minute could mean billions of dollars. Even in the 1920s a day could mean millions or more. I bet you could envision hundreds of similar plot devices. Shadowjams (talk) 10:10, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

Well first off, your bar of gold (assuming it is a 400 toz bar) would go in value from about $500,000 today down to around $12,000 then, so you would have a pretty hefty uphill climb. In any case, going by the original 12 stocks that made up the Dow Jones Industrial average, 4 of 12 are now broke, and only GE is still remaining all to itself. The other 7 have been bought by other companies, and it would take some in depth research to figure out the intricacies of those possibilities. In any case, I have not been able to find the price of a share of GE before 1962 so far. Googlemeister (talk) 16:48, 26 October 2010 (UTC)

were witches really wiccan as conceived today

or is the idea of witches throughout the ages casting the spells they attempt to emulate just a fantasy on the part of teenage "wiccan"s? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 84.153.222.131 (talk) 13:43, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Our article on the History of Wicca says:

"Many Wiccans, particularly those of the early decades, believed that their religion was a continuation of this pagan Witch-Cult. It was only in the 1980s and 1990s that some Wiccans began to see the idea of the Witch-Cult as a creation myth rather than as historical fact."

And also that the "witch-cult" on which it was based never really existed as such, but was more just a sort of "mass hysteria":

"In the 16th and 17th centuries, something known as the witch hunt took place across Europe and the American colonies, during which somewhere between 40,000 and 100,000 people were killed. These people had been accused of being witches, who, according to their persecutors, worshipped the Devil, and committed acts of diabolism that included the cannibalism of children and desecration of the Eucharist. Most scholars since have agreed that these were the victims of isolated incidents of hysteria in remote, peasant communities, and that there was no religion being practiced by these witches."

I would say that it is not clear on what exactly modern Wiccan practices are based: some of it perhaps has been passed down as (actual) cultural tradition, some of it was made up out of whole cloth in the 19th and early 20th centuries, some of it is based on a variety of "occult" texts and traditions, some of it is just pure fantasy on the part of individual practitioners. ;) WikiDao ☯ (talk) 14:01, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Just for a bit of history lesson, the concept of witches goes waaaay back into prehistory. The general conception is that women have a closer relationship to the divine (because - pardon my OR - of the ability to conceive children). In early civilizations, women were credited with the gift of prophecy and foretelling ('suffer not a witch to live' from the bible refers specifically to fortune tellers, and Greek myth has female prophets like Delphi to Cassandra). Sometime in the early Christian era being a witch became associated with deviltry, and witches became hell's equivalent of priests. This is where the idea of spell-casting came from: early Christian priests were conceived as spell-casters (reading from holy books to drive out illnesses and demons, to cast blessings on people and objects, to purify the soul for entry into heaven), and so people decided that witches must have unholy books to cast curses to possess people or make then sickly, and must gather to perform ceremonies for the devil the way that priests gather for holy ceremonies.

The whole 'flying around on broomsticks' thing probably arose because of (a) the ingrained human fear of things that fly around in the dark, and (b) the unsubtle freudian reference to highlight just what kind of women these were.

Wiccans really trace back more to impressions of pre-Christian western european druidical-type practices than to Christian witch conceptions. As far as I've seen (I can't really call myself an expert on Wicca), they blend herbalism and representative symbolism (a type of sympathetic magic), and generally take more of a ritualistic (as opposed to analytic) approach: Magic is more of a request for intervention from the Earth Mother than a Hogwarts-style zap-em-n-cap-em. Of course, Wicca is mostly a reconstruction of long-lost practices, with a lot of new-age ideology blended in as it makes sense. I doubt an actual pre-Christian Druid would be able to make heads or tails of it. But then, I doubt Jesus would be able to make much sense of modern Christianity either, so... --Ludwigs2 18:18, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

The reason Jesus would not be able to make sense of modern Christianity is because although his followers have converted huge chunks of a FAR larger world than he ever conceived was possible (he probably had a much smaller "world map" in mind!) and although he EXPLICITLY told his disciples that he would come back, and they DUTIFULLY wrote it down, and people STILL learn this fact --- despite all these things, I say, no one, but NO ONE, would believe seriously that he was really Jesus, even if he came back with all the knowledge he died with. They simply would not believe that it's him. There are thousands of people saying they are Jesus in the world, and many of them probably make a better case than he ever could... 84.153.221.42 (talk) 18:51, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

"The reason Jesus would not be able to make sense of modern Christianity is because ... no one ... would believe seriously that he was really Jesus". That's quite a non-sequitur. As for what he "could" do, he's supposedly the Son of God, who knows and understands everything, who also came down from Heaven, was crucified, rose from the dead, went back to Heaven, and is now returning to Earth 2,000-odd years later. That in itself is a pretty neat trick, and I think he would have one or two more tricks up his sleeve than you give him credit for. -- Jack of Oz ... speak! ... 20:29, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

I hope you're not suggesting that Jesus would engage in witchcraft (just trying to bring it back to the OP's question, here...) --Ludwigs2 21:38, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

---

The actual Wikipedia article on this subject is Witch-cult hypothesis, and the overall general answer to the original question would have to be much more negative than affirmative (allowing for certain complexities and possible partial exceptions). For the type of material which has been used to allege a Wicca / historical witch connection, see Aradia etc. AnonMoos (talk) 23:14, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

According to this Wiccan site, Wicca is about sixty years old, meaning it has little connection to the witches that got burned in Salem and elsewhere. Some modern Wiccans cast spells and make potions; I suppose you could call it a fantasy, though it's little different from the modern Christian conception of prayer and belief in holy relics, etc. Matt Deres (talk) 23:39, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Well, I am not sure what is insufficient about the article, History of Wicca, that I quoted from in my initial answer which also says:

"Wicca originated in the early twentieth century, when it first developed amongst several secretive covens in England who were basing their religious beliefs and practices upon what they read of the historical Witch-Cult in the works of such writers as Margaret Murray. It was subsequently popularised in the 1950s by a number of figures, namely Gerald Gardner, who had been initiated into the Craft - as Wicca is often known - by the New Forest coven in 1939. Gardner's form of Wicca, the Gardnerian tradition, was spread by both him and his followers..."

And, as in my previous quotes, that article also discusses the Witch-cult hypothesis in this context. (Note that the distinction between Wicca and "the idea of witches throughout the ages" which the OP asks about need not necessarily refer exclusively to those "witches" who were persecuted by the European and North American Christian authorities over the centuries; see also eg. Traditional Witchcraft).

Wicca, which is a religion, seems actually to have been largely "synthesized/written-from-scratch" by Gerald Gardner in the '50s. It is similar to, but not the same as, other varieties of witchcraft. WikiDao ☯ (talk) 00:31, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

kurt f. stone

Why can't i find a biography of Kurt F. Stone. He is an author (The Congressional Minyan), historian, lecturer at FAU in Boca Raton, Fl. and rabbi.Jadyn rose (talk) 15:50, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Dunno. maybe you should write one. see Wikipedia:Tutorial. and happy editing! --Ludwigs2 17:47, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

You can find a profile of him here. Antiquary (talk) 18:06, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Kurt Stone -- now improve it so that it doesn't get deleted. DRosenbach ^{(Talk | Contribs)} 00:18, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

Ray Comfort degree?

Hello on the Ray Comfort page it says he has no formal degree or training http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Comfort (from http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/story?id=1735434&page=3) but He is listed as having a Doctor of Divinity from Mount Carmel on their page http://www.mountcarmelibs.org/alumni.html Is there a way to know which is correct? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.174.136.39 (talk) 22:03, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Those two are not necessarily mutually exclusive. The article says he has "no formal degree", and the Mount Carmel site on accreditations says in oh so many defensive sour-grapes words that they have no formal accreditation. So he may have a degree from there but it's still not a formal degree. TomorrowTime (talk) 09:30, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

His "degree" isn't worth the paper it's printed on. As TT pointed out, it's not from an accredited school, so it has no weight as a formal degree. — The Hand That Feeds You:^Bite 18:01, 25 October 2010 (UTC)

Presidents of the United States

I read an article about the Presidents of the United States and the cologne or after shave lotion that they used. There were several listed. One was common to many of these men. Can you provide information on this subject? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.164.67.27 (talk) 22:37, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Probably not, as I doubt that that is a matter of public record. We'd have a better chance if you tell us what the article was you read, and what information precisely it is you're looking for. Rojomoke (talk) 22:53, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

The OP is probably thinking of Caswell-Massey, whose colognes and soaps were supposedly favored by George Washington, John Adams, Dwight Eisenhower, and John F. Kennedy. It may or may not be true, but the company itself claims these presidents as clients. LANTZY^TALK 10:54, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

By the way, Rojomoke, you say that you doubt such a matter would be a matter of public record, but I think you underestimate the breadth and depth of U.S. presidential trivia. "The papers want to know whose shirts you wear", as the man said. For a taste of how probing and impertinent this madness for trivia can get, look no further than the wonderful Medical History of American Presidents. Also, don't underestimate the willingness of many presidents, especially recent ones, to indulge the people's more innocuous curiosities. The life of the president is so ritualized and theatrical, it seems to me perfectly plausible that something as innocent as his cologne preference would be publicly known. And certainly the president would be far more likely to volunteer the information than to keep it a secret. I'm not saying that the information definitely is known, merely that it's precisely the sort of trivial, inoffensive thing that would be known. LANTZY^TALK 11:15, 24 October 2010 (UTC)