User:BeatriceMessina

About Me
I'm a quiet poet who prefers the world of introspection and I tend to spend more time with dead people than I do with the living; that of Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, William Shakespeare and Michel de Montaigne. As a professed sycophant to the classics, I am apart of several online communities of people who are also enchanted by the minds living inside the books the dead left behind. This includes open communities like reddit pages dedicated to the 400-year-old bard Shakespeare which hosts over 50,000 members. This love naturally bled into interests that shared in kinship with literature, most notably, art, philosophy, and history. Books like Edward Quinns History in Literature exemplifies this fact. Besides that, think of any hobby a grandmother living in a cottage might have and likely they accompany me as well.

My Interests in Wikipedia
As aforementioned, my interests in Wikipedia are directly correlated to my interests in the literary arts, history, and philosophy. I see myself engaging, correcting and adding to the knowledge and conversations of the authors, stories and histories I adore. As a volunteer, my aim is simply to present to the world accurate, articulate, and concise demonstrations of the things I love.

Article Evaluation
I have devoted much of my time to the devotion of literature, and from such affections sprung divertissements that, through time and nurture, became passionate interests. Perhaps the most substantial being history in its most intimate state. To be sure, I found the great revolutions, wars, and inventions all stimulating, but I am much more invigorated by people's personal history. What they ate, how they thought, and what they wore; there is much to be revealed in what people wear, even today clothes disclose much of what resides in the wearer. Like the wimple, a head covering was worn by medieval women as a sign of matronhood and religious adherence. Wanting to widen and impart my knowledge I visited the Wikipedia page for the wimple, and although truthful and concise, I found three aspects of it worth commentating on: the lack of reliable sources cited to substantiate the claims, important information left out of the article, and underrepresented viewpoint on its historical and cultural value.

Citations

The article goes over the fundamental information of the wimple in a string of claims often unattested by a dependable reference or source, leaving the statements made to be rendered invalid. If you were to visit the site, only three sources are mentioned and only mentioned once in the actual article itself. I think it would be fruitful to further support the claims with an appropriate source.

Underrepresented Viewpoint

The wimple has both historical and cultural significance that lasts to this day, with nuns wearing a form of them, and a pseudo-form worn by catholic adherents who are not nuns during mass (veil). Yet the article, though manages to say a lot with a little, fails to fully encapsulate its significance. To provide a more well-rounded description of the Wimple further emphasis on its religious roots and importance would be beneficial. It was medieval Christianity and the aftermath of the crusades that cemented this particular article of clothing into the dress history of women, as well as the medieval social structure that saw women in a more demeaned role. The article could also shed more light on its artistic and literary place in Western art.

Missing Important Information

There is a great and intricate history of the wimple. Firstly, it was implemented in Europe during and after the Crusades. There is little mention in the article of where the wimple originated when it was instilled, why it ended, and how. The article also misses when it comes to the class disparity of the wimple and the differentiation of material. I think to elevate the article to new heights these details should be explained and added upon.

Conclusion

There must be a true representation of the past for what it was, no matter how trivial it seems. Something as simple as a wimple is a symbol of religious and women's history whose implications are still felt today, and if we impart information without backing it with vital references and information we do a disservice to the historical narrative. For its full picture, we must be the most candid and informative as possible, even if it is as simple as a headdress.