User:Estherdvorkin/sandbox

Week 3 - Article Evaluation
During the third week in class, our goal was to evaluate an article on Wikipedia and include comments within the page's talk section. For this assignment, an evaluation will be done on the article Spirit Cave mummy. This is an article which has been rated as Start-Class on the quality scale, indicating that the article lacks development.

Upon first glance, one issue which stood out to me immediately was the lack of images included within the article pertaining to the mummy itself, the location it was found in, methods used in order to date the specimen, etc. The article is broken up into 5 main section - (1) an introductory summary, (2) "Discovery", (3) "Spirit Cave", (4) "Dating", and (5)"Wizards Beach Man". Though each section is relevant to the topic of the Spirit Cave mummy, there is an abundance of information missing which can be added.

Within the "Discovery" section, there is missing information as to who "The Wheelers" are, what loss occurred for them as a result of the guano mining, a description of which artifacts were found as well as possible photographs of them, and more. The section pertaining to the description of the cave itself lacks images and a detailed description.

Upon reading the "Dating" section, the abundance of information struck me as incomplete despite the amount of text present. The ideas present are underdeveloped and lack detailed information concerning the methods used for the mummified body found, despite the body being the oldest to date found within the United States. The article describes that the outcome of the dating was published within the Nevada Historical Quarterly during the year 1997, however no details are given as to what was published precisely.

Aside from the lack of information present within the article, it was unbiased and used a total of 18 citations. Upon clicking to check several citations, it seemed as though they worked properly. Sources the authors used contained newsletters from the Nevada State Museum dating back to September/October 1999, and court documentation which describes a case between the Fallon Paiute-Shoshone Tribe and the United States Bureau of Land Management. These citations contain primary sources as seen with official documentation at the time of the historical find. These sources would support the claims made during their timeframe, however may not be fitting as new information could have come from further research. On top of this, as they are news articles and not published journal articles which have undergone extensive review, their credibility should be evaluated.

All in all, descriptions and images should be added, citations should be updated, and editors should work to further improve a rather important article on North America's oldest mummified body.

Prof Garcia's Comments
Thank you for all this work. I'm a bit nervous that maybe this is not the best topic to choose from. There is probably no academic research out there that you can turn to on this topic, and it will be hard to add a substantial amount to the topic because it is a bit too specific. Please go out and find a new topic to consider and rework this assignment. Ping me so that I know you have accomplished this task. Thank you! Alfgarciamora (talk) 23:08, 12 February 2018 (UTC)

Week 3 - Article Evaluation 2
A secondary article evaluation is being composed in order to evaluate the content written on the page Jewish views on suicide. The article has very little content posted and does not do a good job explaining any section with enough detail to help readers learn more. The lay out of the page has no flow for readers to naturally follow, and does not give background information for any section posted. Within the "Assisted Suicide" section, the title seems to point readers towards information of the act, however the section simply states that it is a sin and provides one quote from the Torah which has no explanation or seeming relevance. The article would benefit from a near complete re-write of content as well as a revision of headings. There are sections posted below "Assisted Suicide" that again lack information and are poorly written, making it difficult for anyone reading to understand it and/or want to continue reading. There are missing citations for information scattered through the article, and even the largest section of the article completely lacks citations despite the insert of a large quote. Overall, there is a lot of work that can be done to improve the article.


 * I think this can work! Have you started looking up sources yet? Alfgarciamora (talk) 16:22, 19 February 2018 (UTC)

I haven't begun to look up sources yet in case the article did not work, but I will start ASAP. Thank you!

Week 5 - Potential Article Selections
(1) Shiva (Judaism) is one of the articles I believe would benefit from major revisions. Firstly, the historical background of Shiva's has not been given, therefore readers do not have information as to when and how the process began. There is another article written, Bereavement in Judaism, which discusses the entire process of mourning, however I believe that the Shiva (Judaism) article may benefit by morphing into a "main article" that can be linked back into Bereavement in Judaism. Here, more information can be given on the whole process rather than just the Shiva. Customs, beliefs, religious texts, and modifications of mourning in Judaism can be described for Aninut, Avelut, Shiva, Shloshim, Shneim asar chodesh, and Yahrtzeit. These parts can be written into separate sections within one main article, forming a separate one describing the entirety of the process of mourning in Judaism.

(2) Dziady is another article I found particularly interesting (because my dad is from Belarus and my mom is from Latvia), however I am unsure of how much information there is on the day. The article would benefit from simply adding in more cited sources and including a complete background history, traditions, images, etc. One of the issues that may arise is translation errors. I am fluent in Russian, however as with all languages there are many words/phrases which cannot be directly translated into English. This may leave room for bias depending on how you choose to translate. Overall, it may be difficult to contribute to this article.

(3) Death marches (Holocaust) is an article that may or may not need contribution. There may be more information available to add detailed information to each march, and possibly add more marches to the list. Reasons for the march, any notable individuals who partook in the march, implications, aftermath, etc. can be included for each march individually. Death march as a page by itself doesn't have much information either, as death marches most likely occurred in many more areas than listed, and throughout the course of history well before WWI. There may be more room for improvement on this article with the inclusion of more examples with detailed information on each, and a link for Death Marches (Holocaust) can be included in the article as well.

Thank you for your work here, Esther. I like how you have organized your sandbox - thank you for doing that. Of your topics above, I think the best ones to consider are the ones in (1) and (2). You will find a wonderful assortment of information both on Shiva and bereavement through scholarly work and books, and you can also use our professors in the department to help you. The Dziady project sounds fascinating, but I know much less about that. There might be an issue with finding translations of documents into English. But overall, I think you are well on your way to starting with a solid topic of Shiva and Bereavement in Judaism. Well done. Alfgarciamora (talk) 22:28, 26 February 2018 (UTC)

Week 6 - Finalizing a Topic
For this week, our main goal was to finalize our topics. I had originally picked two, Shiva (Judaism) and Dziady, however after further research realized that Dziady may be too difficult to proceed with. Throughout the remainder of the course, I will continue to research to see if maybe more information can be found.

On the Shiva (Judaism) article, there is an abundance of information online. Using a website (which has listed references from published books), www.shiva.com, I found a layout which explained the information they obtained in a logical manner.

In section one, understanding shiva was the main topic. From here, subsections including (1) what is shiva, (2) purpose of shiva, (3) benefits of shiva, and (4) ending shiva, where present.

In section two, the main topic was sitting shiva (which is the proper term). Subsections included (1) types of individuals who sit at shiva (religious, non-religious, intermarriage, converted, etc.), (2) mourner observations, (3) the first meal, (4) preparing the shiva house, and (5) mourners kaddish.

Section three was entirely about the process of visiting a shiva home. This information included (1) making a shiva call, (2) entering the home, (3) comforting those in mourning, (4) what to expect when entering a home, (5) how to act - depicting the length of visit and participating in prayers, and (6) what to say.

Section four dealt with bringing gifts into the shiva home and/or sending gifts. Information from this section depicted (1) food baskets, (2) donations, (3) planting trees in Israel, (4) creating plaques, and (5) flowers.

Section five included information on how to plan for a shiva, and listed information pertaining to coordinators and types of food served

In section six, the process of burial was described. Here, I think it would be best to include information on the typical process of burial to introduce the topic. In Judaism, not all individuals experience the same type of burial, therefore it would be beneficial to include the typical process before explaining the exceptions. Exceptions to the process include those who have tattoos/piercings (often times) and those who commit suicide (there are two types of suicides - one which elicits a proper burial and one which the individuals does not get typical rights.

In section seven, the information included the prayers done for the dead and for the mourning. This included (1) mourner's kaddish, (2) minyan, and (3) prayer of mercy. In the final section, section eight, the information was about honoring the deceased during religious times throughout the year. These included shabbat, rosh hashanah, yom kippur, sukkoth, and many more.

Of the articles listed on the website, there were a few which provided necessary information in order to start improving the introductory part of the article. Those are listed below:

Articles for Introduction

- A Time to Mourn, A Time to Comfort by Ron Wolfson

- Jewish Insights on Death and Mourning Edited by Jack Riemer & Sherwin B. Nuland

- The Jewish Way in Death and Mourning by Maurice Lamm

- When A Jew Dies: The Ethnography of a Bereaved Son by Samuel C Heilman

- To Begin Again: The Journey Towards Comfort, Strength, and Faith in Difficult Times by Naomi Levy

- Why Me? Why Anyone? by Jaffe, Hirshel, Rudin, James, Rudin, Marcia

- Why Me? Coping with Grief, Loss, and Change by Kraus, Pesach and Goldfischer, Morrie

- When Bad Things Happen to Good People by Harold Kushner

Articles on Exceptions to Proper Burial

Suicide: Kolatch, Alfred J. The Second Jewish Book of Why. Jonathan David Publishers, Inc.; Middle Village, New York, 1985.

Throughout the next few weeks, I will go to the library and begin to read in more detail about these, as well as their referenced texts, and will continue my web search in order to compile all the necessary information required to contribute to the article.

Week 6 Feels like you left this for last minute, Esther. Depending on one website for information is not the best way to go. Please remember that you have to judge the validity of your sources, not just list them onto the page. The books sound nice, but it is important to consider the publisher, the year of publication, etc. Especially with a topic like Shiva, you will find that there is a host of information out there, but it will soon get confusing if you do not separate the content effectively by source. Is the author a religious figure? Is the author an academic? Is the author trained in Hebrew or well-versed in the Torah? There is a lot to consider with each piece. Please make sure to take the time to do research at the library moving forward. Do not depend on just websites. Alfgarciamora (talk) 22:52, 5 March 2018 (UTC)

Week 7 - Peer Review
I was away on spring break this past week, so I apologize for the post being rather late. I still have to update citations with more information, and pull from more sources to add more content. Thank you in advance for all comments. I look forward to hearing your ideas and suggestions!

In the article, Shiva (Judaism), there is lack of structure, images, unnecessary information, missing information, etc. I wanted to start by re organizing the article for the information to be presented in a better way. To do this, I originally thought of organizing the sections as following (P.S. more information will be added/sentences will be re-written, I did not know whether we needed to write the entire article out or just provide information and quotes/citations):

About Shiva

Traditionally, there are five stages of mourning in Judaism. Shiva is considered the third stage of mourning, and constitutes of seven days. Following the prior two stages, shiva embraces the time when individuals discuss their loss and accept the comfort of others. Fathers, mothers, wives, husbands, sons, daughters, brothers, and/or sisters who pass away are required to observe shiva for. Individuals who are less than thirty days old upon passing are not required to observe shiva for. Typically, the seven days begins immediately after the deceased have been buried. It is necessary for the burial spot to be entirely covered with earth in order for shiva to commence. During the period of shiva, individuals remain at home. Friends and family visit homes of those with loved ones who have passed away and give their condolences in order to comfort those in mourning. The process, though dating back to biblical times, follows a natural way an individual confronts grief. Shiva allows for the individual to express their grief, discuss the loss of a loved one, and slowly re-enter society. Thus, the entirety of the fives stages are designed for individuals to overcome death through a stepwise process thought out to mimic the natural order of life.

Etyology

The word shiva means "seven" in Hebrew.

Historical Accounts of Shiva/Mourning

As mentioned in the Bible, Aaron, a High Priest, began a similar process of mourning over the loss of his two sons. Aaron explained to Moses that the time of mourning is not meant to feast, however it is meant to express grief for the loss of loved ones.

In the Bible, Amos described a period of time specialized for mourning. Amos stated that he would "turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentations".

The seven day period of mourning was depicted by the sages before the revelation at Mt. Sinai. During this time, Joseph mourned the death of Jacob, his father, for precisely seven days.

Biblical and historical accounts of mourning are described to partake for more than one day, and are depicted as a time set aside strictly for observing and expressing grief.

About Sheloshim (30 day period of mourning which follows Shiva - just a brief introduction because the two periods blend)

Following shiva is the fourth stage of mourning, known as sheloshim. During this period, mourning proceeds for thirty days following the burial. The first seven days of sheloshim is the period of shiva, however sheloshim continues on after shiva has ended. After the intense period of shiva which is mainly contained to the home, the fourth stage allows individuals to leave their residences and begin to interact with others again. Sheloshim allows the mourner to resume daily life as it normally once was and encourages individuals to begin to partake in social relations. Though the final stage, yahrzeit or yizkor, symbolize the end of mourning, sheloshim gives mourners a way to slowly ease back into normal daily activities.

Computing the Timing of Shiva and Sheloshim

The period of shiva commences immediately after an individual has been buried, and ends after seven days in the morning following public services, or shacharit. However, if there is no public services held on the morning of the seventh day, services are done in the home of the mourner. In order to compute the time of shiva, Jewish traditions state that an entire day can be counted as a fraction as well. Therefore, the first day of shiva occurs following burial and the last day of shiva occurs directly after services. Both the first and last days, though partial, are considered to be an entire day. For sheloshim, the thirty days are counted following the date of burial and continue on until the end of morning services. As with shiva, partial days during the period of sheloshim are considered full days as well.

Religious Holidays during Times of Mourning

Religious holidays during shiva and sheloshim require the traditional rules to be bent slightly. Because Judaism embraces the holidays and requires joy, the sadness and grief associated with mourning are set aside until the holiday period ends. Typically, if an individual passed before the beginning of a holiday, the holiday removes the observance of shiva or sheloshim. The days of the holiday are counted towards the days of mourning, though the traditions and rules enforced during mourning are revoked in order to encourage the celebration of a holiday. If a death occurred during the holiday or unknowingly, mourning commences after the holiday ends. In other situations, if the entirety of shiva has been observed prior to the start of a holiday, the holiday will cancel the observance of sheloshim, signifying the fulfillment of the fourth period of mourning.

Shabbat

During Sabbath day, otherwise known as [shabbat]], shiva continues as originally planned as shabbat is not considered a major holiday in Judaism. The days individuals observe shabbat count towards the days they observe shiva. During mourning however, individuals are not allowed to leave their home or partake in public services, and are required to have private mourning services. In order to prepare the home for shabbat, individuals are allowed one hour and fifteen minutes in order to cook and get ready. If this is not enough time to do so, in certain situations there may be two and a half hours allotted for such.

Passover

During Passover, any days in observance of shiva before the start will equate to seven when the holiday begins. Since Passover is celebrated for eight days, any mourning prior will total to fifteen days when holiday ends, leaving only fifteen days of observance of sheloshim.

Shavuot

During Shavuot, any days in observance of shiva before the start will equate to seven when the holiday begins. The first day of Shavuot equates to seven days. The second day of Shavuot is considered the fifteenth day, leaving only fifteen days left of observance of sheloshim.

Succot

During Succot, any days in observance of shiva before the start will equate to seven when the holiday begins. Since Succot is observed for seven days, any mourning prior will total to fourteen days when the holiday ends. Shemini Atzeret is considered the eighth day of Succot, and equates to seven days of mourning. Simchat Torah is considered the twenty-second day of mourning, leaving only eight days of observance of sheloshim.

Rosh Hashanah

During Rosh Hashanah, any days in observance of shiva before the start will equate to seven days when the holiday begins. Yom Kippur following Rosh Hashanah, will symbolize the end of mourning, and the end of both shiva and sheloshim.

Yom Kippur

During Yom Kippur, any days in observance of shiva before the start will equate to seven days when the holiday begins. Succot, following Yom Kippur, will symbolize the end of mourning, and the end of both shiva and sheloshim

Place of Observance (where it is ideal to observe Shiva, how to observe otherwise, observance in synagogue, etc.)

The best place for the observance of shiva to take place is within the home of the deceased individual. However, if observance in the home of the deceased is not permitted or is unable to be done, the second best place is in the home of a relative close to the deceased. During the observance of shiva, individuals are not permitted to leave the premises, however, there are certain exceptions to this rule. Exceptions include, not having enough room to house every individual observing, the loss of another loved one, and the inability to conduct services in the home. If an individual mourning is allowed to leave the home, they must do so without disturbing others and never alone.

Shiva House - Preparing the Home for Mourning

Candles

Within Judaism, candles are symbolic of special events throughout life. They are lit during major holidays, during shabbat, and during the process of mourning candles are required to burn for the entirety of shiva. Prior to the death of Rabbi Judah Hanasi in the thirteenth century, he instructed that a light should be kept burning. During shiva, the candle represents the deceased. The light is symbolic of the human being, the wick and flame are representative of the body and soul respectively, as well as their connection with one another. Traditionally, candles are required to be made of either oil or paraffin and are not allowed to be electric. The candle is ideally burned in the home of the deceased, however exceptions can be made. Regardless, however, candles should be in the presence of those observing shiva. During major holidays, the candle may be moved in order to lessen the feeling of mourning and focus on the joyous occasion at hand.

Mirrors

Individuals who are in mourning, or in a shiva home, are required to cover mirrors. Mirrors are covered from the instance an individual passes away and remain covered until the end of shiva. There are several reasons as to why Judaism requires this. The first reason may stem from the idea that man was created in the image of G-d. In doing so, man acquires the same dignity and value as G-d. When a creation of G-d dies, this lessens His image. The death of human beings disrupts the connection between the living man and living G-d. Since the purpose of mirrors is o reflect such image, they are covered during mourning. A second reason as to why mirrors are covered in Judaism branches from contemplation of ones relationship with G-d during the death of a loved one. At this time, individuals are instructed to focus on grief and mourning rather than themselves. In order to prevent selfish thoughts, all mirrors are covered within the homes of mourners. A third reason which depicts why mirrors should be covered comes from the law which states that an individual may not stand directly in front of an image or worship one. Therefore, mirrors and pictures are hidden during mourning.

Prayers in the Shiva House/Changes in Service when in Mourning

Praying in the home of a mourner is done in order to demonstrate respect for the grieving individual as well as the deceased. Even as early as 1790, the Hebra Maarib beZemanah Oheb Shalom was founded to provide mourners observing shiva with a minyan. During 1853 in London, the Hebrath Menachem Abelim Hesed Ve Emeth was constructed to accomplish a similar goal. Throughout history, prayers during mourning have been important. However, during shiva, the prayers change slightly. The changes below are made:

Addition of Psalm XLIX - Redemption of the Soul

Omission of Pitum Haketoret

Omission of Tachanun and/or Nephilat Appayim

Substitution of Psalm XVI for Psalm XLIX during the omission of Tachanun

Omission of Psalm XX

Omission of The Priestly Benediction (Number VI: 24-26)

Omission of the six Psalms before Friday night services

Omission of Psalm XC: 17 verse: "And let the graciousness of the Lord our G-d be upon us: establish thou also upon us the work of our hands, yea, the work of our hands establish thou it"

Spices are omitted from use in the home of a mourner during Havdalah (the end of shabbat)

Return from Funeral

Washing Hands

After being near or around the deceased, it is ancient custom to wash yourself and/or your hands. After a funeral, or visitation to a cemetery, individuals are required to wash their hands. During shiva, it is mandatory to do so before entering the home. There are many different origins of this tradition, however typically the act is associated with symbolic cleansing, the idea being that death is impure in a spiritual sense. Within judaism, the living is thought to emphasize value of life rather than focus on death. When washing hands after visiting the deceased, it is custom to not pass the cup of water used from person to person. The reason behind this stems from the beliefs and hopes of stopping the tragedy where it began, rather than allowing it to continue from person to person as symbolized by the passing of the cup.

Meal of Condolences

The meal of condolences, known as seudat havra'ah, is considered to be the first full meal eaten when returning from the funeral. The commandment which states such rule depicts that the meal must be the first. Traditionally, mourners were served the meal by neighbors. This act is considered to be a mitzvah. Though being the tradition, if the meal of condolences is unable to be prepared by a neighbor, extended family may do so, and in the last case the mourner themselves may prepare the meal. It was seen that many times following the death of a loved one, individuals who were in mourning possessed a death wish and often times attempted to undergo starvation. The meal given to them upon returning home provided warmth in order to lessen such wishes. The meal must contain several specific dishes. One of which is bread. Bread is seen as the staff of life. On top of this, the meal must contain hardboiled eggs, cooked vegetables, and coffee or tea. Often times wine is allowed to be served as well. The only time the meal of condolences is not served occurs when there is no public observance of mourning or if the individual who passed did so due to suicide.

Traditions

Shoes

Leather shoes are not permitted to be worn during the observance of shiva  The reasoning behind this involves a lack of luxury. Without leather shoes, an individual is able to concentrate on mourning and the deeper meaning of life. However, exceptions to this rule include pregnant women and those with ailments of the feet

Aside from those observing shiva or shelohsim, guests and individuals who are not should refrain from wearing leather shoes in the home of mourners as well. Hygiene/Grooming

Similar to the idea of wearing leather shoes, hygiene and personal grooming fall under the idea of the task being done for pleasure. Such acts are prohibited during the observation of shiva or sheloshim as they are seen as actions done for physical comfort. However, there is a fine line which separates grooming for hygienic reasons and for comfort. Therefore, in order to prevent grooming for comfort individuals who are mourning are instructed to only bathe separate parts of the body, head, and face. On top of this, cold or cool water is recommended. The use of cosmetics are not allowed as this constitutes as an act done for comfort and pleasure. However, the exception to this rule being a woman who is a bride, engaged to be married, dating to be married, or feels as though the use of makeup is necessary.

"Sitting" Shiva

"Sitting" shiva refers to the act of sitting on low stools during times of mourning. As mentioned in the Book of Jobs, upon mourning King David "sat down with him upon the ground seven days and seven nights", Therefore originally, individuals who were observing a period of mourning were required to turn couches or beds over and sit on the ground. After time, modifications towards this rule were made. The Halakhah states that an individuals is required to sit on low stools, or on the floor. The mourner does so in order to symbolize lowliness and diminution.