User talk:Midnightdreary/Archive 2

Philly meetup postponed
I'm sorry to have to do this, but it looks like the meetup is going to have to happen some other time, since we only have 3 RSVPs (my and ImmortalGoddezz count as one in my book). It'll probably be rescheduled for a month or so from now. -- Te xa sD ex  &#9733;  01:03, 26 January 2008 (UTC)

first reading of the Raven?
Have you seen this? You might find it interesting. here  - Epousesquecido (talk) 02:54, 26 January 2008 (UTC)

Walt Whitman cites
Oops, I didn't mean to mess up the referencing of the article. I reverted my subsequent edits. Lazulilasher (talk) 04:06, 1 February 2008 (UTC)
 * No worries, no harm done - oh, and your copy edits have been a great improvement! --Midnightdreary (talk) 04:14, 1 February 2008 (UTC)
 * Thanks for the kind words! Honestly, the article looks pretty good to me. I'm going to run through it a bit later to see if there's anyway to improve, but honestly I think you've done an awesome job....and this is coming from another Steelers fan ;) Lazulilasher (talk) 14:45, 1 February 2008 (UTC)

Metzengerstein
You've done a nice job on the article and others. Keep up the good work. I'll contribute here and there as I work my way through reading the stories but I don't have a lot of time to get into doing any major revisions, perhaps a few here and there, I wrote Bon-Bon (short story). I think there is a problem in his bibliography article, currently the short stories without an article link directly to Wikisource. This is bad form for a number of reasons. As other editors create new articles, they won't show up; it's also good to have red links as it encourages users to create the article, it's a void waiting to be filled. With the blue links, it sort of looks complete and doesn't encourage users to start writing. It sort of feels like one editor decided if the article doesn't exist, than it never will, until I do it myself, so I might as well link to Wikisource for now. Wikisource links could be added to the notes section, freeing up the article as a red link. 71.191.42.242 (talk) 15:36, 1 February 2008 (UTC)
 * The redlink/wikisource situation has been discussed before. As we attempt to get Bibliography of Edgar Allan Poe to featured list status, it's sort of a requirement. So, the Wikisource links should probably stay. Having redlinks encouraging the creation of new articles is not necessarily a good thing. We have dozens of Poe-related articles that are at crappy quality that need to be improved first, before we start adding articles on ridiculously unknown works, including Bon-Bon. Now, keep in mind that I'm the biggest Poe fan and scholar you'll meet, so I don't mind saying it: less is more if those less are high quality. Think of it that way. Even so, just because there's a Wikisource link doesn't prevent anyone from creating an article; give people credit for being at least a little smarter than that. And it's not like those ws links can't be changed to Wikipedia links when a new article is created. So, again, if we want to be comprehensive, Wikisource will do it. --Midnightdreary (talk) 15:45, 1 February 2008 (UTC)
 * By the way, WP:NOT does point out that we are not a collection of plot summaries. An encyclopedia article should be more of the other stuff and less of summary. See Eureka: A Prose Poem or The Murders in the Rue Morgue. --Midnightdreary (talk) 15:48, 1 February 2008 (UTC)
 * No problem. We don't seem to be working well together, I'll stop contributing for a while and do stuff elsewhere, it's not worth it for me to be in constant conflict. Keep up your goo work on the Poe articles. -- 71.191.42.242 (talk) 15:01, 2 February 2008 (UTC)

Rating Mallarmé
Hi M. I see that you have done a rating for the article Stéphane Mallarmé. I am mystified by your classifying an article on this crucially important figure in European literature as of "low importance". Some questions: Do you read Mallarmé in French? Have you read any studies of his poetry? Have you studied his influence on later French, English, and other European literature (Eliot and Pound, for a start), or his importance as a mentor of later poetic giants like Valéry? Or the inspiration he gave such artists as Duchamp, or such composers as Ravel, Debussy, and Boulez? Or his role as a transmitter of the aesthetic of Baudelaire, in the eyes of many French critics? Or the impetus that his Un coup de dés gave to the entire modernist programme? Or those other roles he played that are mentioned in the article?

Just curious! :)

–&thinsp; Noetica ♬♩&thinsp;Talk 06:21, 2 February 2008 (UTC)


 * [M, we can keep the discussion in one place. I'll catch any continuation here.] You answered:
 * "Regarding Stéphane Mallarmé assessment from WP Poetry. I hesitated on assessing that one... I wouldn't mind bumping him up to Mid-level importance - these kinds of questions, though, should probably go on the Poetry project talk page. Remember not to take it personally either: the ratings are solely for the use of the project, not for Wikipedia in general, so it really only affects the dozen or so members of WP:Poetry. I would presume that Mallarme should be of a higher rating for a Wikiproject relating to France but I'm not a member of one. Either way, I always say this to people: ignore the assessment. It's hardly relevant to anyone besides the handful of us in the Wikiproject."
 * Well, I would happily participate in that project myself. But I am not happy about such ratings. Especially given the ambiguity of project in talk about these things (Wikipedia is called a project!), it is often not clear what significance they have. I would suggest that people not assess an article if they are unfamiliar with the literature concerned, and with the status of the poet within and beyond that literature. Better to have no assessement than one that is insufficiently informed.
 * I don't mean to be derogatory, but you have not bothered to answer the questions that I have taken the trouble to formulate above. I note that you have rated Robert Penn Warren as high, but Stéphane Mallarmé as low. Why should we think this reflects anything other than the relative knowledge you have of each? Yet most editors looking at the top of the talk page, and wherever the rating is reproduced, are going to think it means far more than that!
 * These things are rough, of course: but Google finds 410,000 hits for "Stéphane Mallarmé", and 294,000 for "Robert Penn Warren". How's that, for a predominantly English-speaking web? Amazon.com finds 400 books with "Mallarmé" in the title; 205 with "Penn Warren" in the title. How's that, for English-speaking, US-based Amazon?
 * Better not to rate at all than rate without sufficient knowledge. Even a shift to a middle rating is not good, if it is from a baseline that is ill-founded.
 * All of this is meant collegially and without judgement of anything else about you or about the poetry project.
 * –&thinsp; Noetica ♬♩&thinsp;Talk 21:02, 2 February 2008 (UTC)
 * –&thinsp; Noetica ♬♩&thinsp;Talk 21:02, 2 February 2008 (UTC)


 * Thanks for the lecture. I have removed the assessment because, frankly, it is so incredibly irrelevant, it's hardly worth the discussion. I think you've added more weight to its value than it is due. --Midnightdreary (talk) 23:48, 2 February 2008 (UTC)
 * I take no pleasure in lecturing, except where lecturing is my official role (which is not here). Thank you for removing the assessment, which I think is a highly responsible course of action. If the matter were entirely trivial, I think there would not be a system for rating – and you would not have done a rating, and I would not have commented on that rating.
 * Well resolved! A proper use of Wikipedia consultation, for which we have talkpages like this one.
 * –&thinsp; Noetica ♬♩&thinsp;Talk 23:56, 2 February 2008 (UTC)
 * If you say so. I still think a mountain was being made out of a mole hill here. Keep in mind that anyone else can still add their own assessment. Then someone could still change it. And another could change it again. I don't claim to be an expert on this particular poet, or on poetry in general, but that's one of the things that Wikipedia is founded on: anyone can take part. Either way, the task now should really be to improve the article beyond Start class - if I were a Mallarme expert, that's what would bother me, not the silly little importance rating!!! :) --Midnightdreary (talk) 00:04, 3 February 2008 (UTC)

The Murders in the Rue Morgue
Hey there, I just wanted to say thanks for your work on this article. I'm studying the story in school, and your work has been a big help, so thanks. Keep it up! :) Cheers, dihydrogen monoxide (H20) 08:36, 4 February 2008 (UTC)
 * Thanks for the kind words... I'm glad I could help! I hope you read the actual story too, though! :) --Midnightdreary (talk) 14:56, 4 February 2008 (UTC)
 * Oh, yes, of course ;) It's just that sometimes a wiki article makes a lot more sense than an olde english book! dihydrogen monoxide (H20) 08:46, 5 February 2008 (UTC)

Ralph Waldo Emerson
not that it really matters, but the use of the isbn was specifically designed to accomplish such issues with pages and versions. cheers! --emerson7 23:20, 6 February 2008 (UTC)
 * Ah, yes, good point... can't argue there. But, even so, considering the large print version is sort of non-standard (it's all my library had), and considering the cite book template leaves room for it, we might as well...? Anyway, the two of us should put our heads together and collaborate on this article and beef it up to GA quality! What do you think? --Midnightdreary (talk) 23:21, 6 February 2008 (UTC)

Re: Great catch and a welcome!
Hmm, just noticed your comment on my talk page about how you let that one edit slip. Actually, it was reverted by someone but you somehow managed to put it back -- to be fair, I don't think an actual vandal could have done a better job at hiding it :D (no harm meant, I just found it funny...) --Sgt. Salt (talk) 12:41, 8 February 2008 (UTC)
 * HA! Now I find it funny too! :) Hey, I never claimed I was perfect...! --Midnightdreary (talk) 14:58, 8 February 2008 (UTC)

Thanks v. 2.0
Thanks so much for the barnstar, I really appreciate it! I'd recommend Huggle for fighting vandalism, if you don't already use it. Keilana | Parlez ici 15:46, 11 February 2008 (UTC)

Flagg
Thanks for the encouragement, its appreciated. :) --CyberGhostface (talk) 23:41, 11 February 2008 (UTC)

Beauchamp-Sharp Tragedy
Thanks for your comment about my work on the Beauchamp-Sharp Tragedy. It did indeed take some time to put this article together. I have already nominated it for DYK. You can find it under the Feb. 10 articles near the bottom. I have also nominated it for GA if you or someone you know would like to review it. I also worked on Solomon P. Sharp, which is under peer review at the moment. I'm hoping that one day I can get a featured topic on the Beauchamp-Sharp Tragedy. Acdixon (talk • contribs • count) 05:41, 14 February 2008 (UTC)
 * Getting Scenes From 'Politian' to GA or FA would be a great help. Literature is outside my area of editing expertise. Thanks for the offer to help. Acdixon (talk • contribs • count) 19:03, 14 February 2008 (UTC)

Happy Valentines Day!
You might appreciate this: A Valentine (Poe)/highlighted, it has been put on the main page of Wikisource today. - Epousesquecido (talk) 20:01, 14 February 2008 (UTC)

Thanks! (For want of a nail)
I really appreciate the feedback on For Want of a Nail (Proverb) and I will make the edit you suggested putting the first instance of "for want of a nail" in quotes. As far as the history section is concerned, that's mostly the work of the person / website who is noted in the references - I was hesitant at first to modify it more than it already is, due to having been stung by a lot of WP:OR comments in the past. Let me think about that for a while to see how best to approach it. Once again, thanks so much for the feedback! -Timmccloud (talk) 20:34, 15 February 2008 (UTC)

WikiProject Universities Newsletter: Issue VI (February 2008)
The February 2008 issue of the WikiProject Universities newsletter has been published. You may read the newsletter, change the format in which future issues will be delivered to you, or unsubscribe from this notification by following the link. Thank you for your continued support of WikiProject Universities! &mdash; Delivered on 19:21, 5 March 2008 (UTC) by MiszaBot (talk)

Sigourney
Just curious if you could suggest the best thing to do with the Jamestown image on the Lydia Sigourney page? It is far too small to see anything now. I think it was too large before. Perhaps a fixed pixel width smaller than before? --Matthew K (talk) 21:11, 9 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Well, my suggestion would be not to worry about it too much. The thing with the "thumb" command is that it varies from user to user. For me, for example, the image looks fine and it's perfectly sized for its subject matter in relation to the article. And for those users who see it a bit too small, they can always click on the image to get a better look. Read over WP:MOS to see when it's most appropriate to have a forced pixel width; I'm not sure if any make sense here. --Midnightdreary (talk) 22:40, 9 March 2008 (UTC)

Congrats on GA promotion of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Hi Midnightdreary,

You beat me to the punch (I was writing the review), but I just wanted to congratulate you on writing an excellent article. If you want help ce or improving the content, just drop me a message.

Best regards,

Malachirality (talk) 00:05, 14 March 2008 (UTC)

Politian (play) cleanup
Thanks for restructuring my contributions to this article. I considered combining the performance and publication history as you have done, but wasn't sure of the recommended practice. Your edit makes the article flow better. Tjarrett (talk) 18:50, 16 March 2008 (UTC)
 * This is the only article on a play that I've worked on so I'm not sure it's the set standard... but it seemed logical to me! I'm glad you agree! --Midnightdreary (talk) 18:54, 16 March 2008 (UTC)

SGGK help
This article will be on the front page soon and I may need help handling vandalism and grammar problems as they get added in. Can you help? Wrad (talk) 19:12, 16 March 2008 (UTC)

Washington Irving
I'm happy to help with the Washington Irving entry, and actually made a number of significant edits to the page, then realized later that I had not logged in. (I'm also the author of an Irving book, so I'm not sure if referencing my own work on the page is considered bad form or not. I'll leave that up to you to determine.)  Many of the additions I sumbitted to the page are based on my own short online bio of Irving over here. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Federalistpapers (talk • contribs) 15:25, 21 March 2008 (UTC)
 * By the way, did you know Irving met John Allan and young Edgar Poe in London around 1818 or so?--Federalistpapers (talk) 16:17, 2 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Thanks for the cleanups on the article. You do good work!

Web refs
I switched one ref to cite web - the author could be "last = Poe" and "first = Edgar Allan", which would make it "Poe, Edgar Allan" if you prefer. Let me know if you have more questions, hope this helps Ruhrfisch &gt;&lt;&gt; &deg; &deg; 11:16, 29 March 2008 (UTC)
 * I just weighed in on the FLC - well done. Ruhrfisch &gt;&lt;&gt; &deg; &deg; 21:55, 30 March 2008 (UTC)

WikiProject Universities Newsletter: Issue VII (March 2008)
The March 2008 issue of the WikiProject Universities newsletter has been published. You may read the newsletter, change the format in which future issues will be delivered to you, or unsubscribe from this notification by following the link. Thank you for your continued support of WikiProject Universities! &mdash; Delivered on 18:01, 31 March 2008 (UTC) by MiszaBot (talk)

The Children's Hour
The Children's Hour (poem) is one of his better known poems. As such, it deserves mention in the Henry Wadsworth Longfellow article. I do not agree that it should not be mentioned in the lead. --Bookworm857158367 (talk) 14:03, 2 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I added the poem to the list of his works in the main body of the article, but that list may actually be a list of publications rather than individual poems. Add it wherever you think it fits in best. The poem was apparently published first in a magazine in 1860 and became quite popular and was published widely. I found one Web site that indicates the poem and a print of his daughters was found on the body of a soldier at Gettysburg in 1863. I'd like it included somewhere in the body of the article. This was a poem my grandfather, a school superintendent, had memorized in elementary school and used to read to his kids and grandkids. It's also one of the poems that was listed a few years ago by Americans as one of their favorite poems. I'm surprised you weren't familiar with it, as the big Longfellow poems always seem to be "Paul Revere," "Evangeline," "Hiawatha," and "The Children's Hour." Are you a newspaper reporter too, by any chance, or teach journalism? --Bookworm857158367 (talk) 19:17, 2 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Could be. "The Skeleton in Armor" doesn't come first to my mind, though I know I've heard it. But then Longfellow was decidedly out of fashion, at least when I was in college 15 years or so ago. I majored in English, but I don't recall stumbling across him in any of my American literature survey courses in college. My exposure was strictly familial. When I covered the "America's favorite poetry" reading in this area several years ago, "The Children's Hour" was one they picked to recite. It looks like you're also a Poe enthusiast. I always loved "Annabel Lee," but "The Raven" is pretty high on the list too. --Bookworm857158367 (talk) 19:48, 2 April 2008 (UTC)

Talk:Edgar Allan Poe
You just broke the time on Talk:Edgar Allan Poe for one of its milestones with your revert. 99.244.115.169 (talk) 17:16, 3 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Don't worry. I fixed it. I'm only trying to help here. 99.244.115.169 (talk) 17:18, 3 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Actually, that had been broken for some time. I just noticed it and was about to fix it when the phone rang. Thanks for taking care of it! --Midnightdreary (talk) 17:20, 3 April 2008 (UTC)

Sarah Josepha Hale
I did follow your suggestion ofn Hale, honors. Thank you.Yankee Scribe (talk) 14:24, 7 April 2008 (UTC)Yankee Scribe

Multiple FAC noms
Midnightdreary, did you notice the instructions at WP:FAC about multiple noms when you put up Walt Whitman when you already have Rufus Wilmot Griswold up?
 * Users should not add a second FA nomination until the first has gained support and reviewers' concerns have been substantially addressed.

Griswold has been up five days and has not garnered any support; would you like it withdrawn? Sandy Georgia (Talk) 02:56, 8 April 2008 (UTC)
 * There aren't three co-nominators listed; only your name. Sandy Georgia  (Talk) 02:58, 8 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Well, please add co-noms or decide which to withdraw; I'll check back tomorrow. Griswold has not garnered support, so the second nom is premature. Sandy Georgia  (Talk) 03:03, 8 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I didn't say Griswold was going nowhere; I asked that you recognize that the FAC instructions help prevent both reviewers and nominators from being stretched too thin. As I said, I'll check back tomorrow; no hurry.  Sandy Georgia  (Talk) 03:12, 8 April 2008 (UTC)

legacy or poetic theory?
In a sense, the information belongs in neither section! Theory is more opinions, thoughts, and feelings about poetry as a medium, or specific styles or applications of poetic language. These opinions, thoughts, and feelings are proven with the performance of actual work, as in his famous Leaves of Grass, but do not necessarily leave a lasting impact on society. Application of this author's poetic theory to his work only tells the reader something about this man, but not about what he left in the world. On the other hand, it may be noted that Whitman actually made some unique decisions in other areas of his poems. His free verse certainly inspired later authors. For this reason, several sentences that I moved do fit in the legacy section. I see your objection in regards to: "He also used unusual images and symbols in his poetry, including rotting leaves, tufts of straw, and debris. He also openly wrote about death and sexuality, including prostitution." This suggests a more hybrid section which mentions both how he wrote and how others were influenced by his writing. A tricky debate that involves valid concerns over redundancy especially. CaseyPenk (talk) 00:23, 9 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Are you thinking "Writing" in terms of style? I don't feel "poetic theory" would have much of any place in that section, although there should certainly be plenty of information as it relates to his transitional work and great influence.  CaseyPenk (talk) 01:02, 9 April 2008 (UTC)

The Opal (magazine)
Hi, I started a stub article for The Opal. It seems to have been founded/published by John C. Riker??? - Epousesquecido (talk) 15:59, 11 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I'll have to do more research... that name sounds familiar. But my understanding was that The Opal was a hardcover book, not a magazine. Maybe the terminology is deprecated? --Midnightdreary (talk) 16:02, 11 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I am finding conflicting information, for instance see http://books.google.com/books?id=f68QAAAAYAAJ. - Epousesquecido (talk) 16:39, 11 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I think you've got the right one... I completely forgot about Sarah Josepha Hale's involvement. But, this definitely looks like a hardcover book. Could I recommend, for now at least, we rename the page The Opal (annual)? I'm at work right now (don't tell the boss I'm on Wiki) so I'm away from my library. Once I have access to my books I should be able to address some of this confusion. --Midnightdreary (talk) 16:43, 11 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Yes, the name should be changed, I will take care of that. - Epousesquecido (talk) 16:49, 11 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Thanks! By the way, it's great working with you again! --Midnightdreary (talk) 16:53, 11 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I would like to link The Opal to Griswold now, what do you think? - Epousesquecido (talk) 17:31, 12 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Added more information about gift books to Opal. - Epousesquecido (talk) 19:08, 12 April 2008 (UTC)

WP:LOTD
Congratulations on getting what appears to be your first successful WP:FL during the last month. You may want to get involved in our List of the Day and List of the Month experiment. Feel free to help us select next months lists at User:TonyTheTiger/List of the Day/voting/200805 or nominate your list for consideration to be a LOTD in June at User:TonyTheTiger/List of the Day/Nominees/200806.--TonyTheTiger (t/c/bio/WP:CHICAGO/WP:LOTD) 18:20, 12 April 2008 (UTC)

Gift book
Started the gift book article, would appreciate any input. (I'm off to find a nice image) Thanks - Epousesquecido (talk) 03:21, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

Images and categories on commons
Hi... when you put images on Commons, (as you recently did for some Rufus Wilmot Griswold related ones) you probably shoud try to put them in at least one subject related category if at all possible, not just put them on on a gallery page. My AWB bot id Larbot and I went around and sorted out the ones in the gallery I think, but you may want to check my work. There are a number of tools that can help you find good categories and add them quickly, I commend "CommonSense" to find categories and "HotCat" to add them... These and others can be added via the Gadgets tab in your prefs. Please ask if I can be of further assistance... Good luck with your FA... I think there are just a couple loose ends left before I can support. ++Lar: t/c 19:05, 14 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Okay, that makes sense - thanks for the info. I'll try to be more mindful of that! --Midnightdreary (talk) 19:16, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

Another bronze star!
Congratulations on your well deserved FA for Rufus Wilmot Griswold! Well done! - Epousesquecido (talk) 23:40, 15 April 2008 (UTC)

Yes, congrats, well done! ++Lar: t/c 02:40, 16 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Thanks for the nice note. I've actually started working on some AmLit articles.  Although I can see it's not your century, do you have any interest in F. Scott Fitzgerald or Ernest Hemingway?  I'm sort of bracing myself psychologically for a summer run on one of them.  I know how tough articles that high visibility will be.  I've been chipping away at Zelda Fitzgerald in preparation.  When the moment of truth draws nigh, I might be asking for your eye :) --JayHenry (talk) 05:43, 17 April 2008 (UTC)

Poe featured topic
I don't think a featured topic on Edgar Allan Poe would be unreasonable, but perhaps it should encompass his works as well as just the articles on his life? I'm not sure what the average standard is there, but looking at a few they look like they're not bad and could be brought up to a high level with some work. Then again, I'm fairly new to wikipedia (as you know, having just put a welcome post on my talk page - thanks again btw)! Adacore (talk) 13:12, 16 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Ooohkaaay... automatic triple posting - that'll be a reason never to seriously edit wiki from work again. I hate this computer.Adacore (talk) 13:14, 16 April 2008 (UTC)
 * Ha ha, no worries. I've been having a similar discussion with another user regarding Poe's works being part of the featured topic. There are just so many articles, where do we start? It would be nice someday to have all of Poe's works represented with a Good Article or better but, realistically, it's not going to happen any time soon! --Midnightdreary (talk) 14:38, 16 April 2008 (UTC)

yeaa
Yea it is his poem because thats what I am researching on a Poem called Days by Ralph Waldo Emerson. It is very complicated too bad yall dont have info on it because I need history on the poem :( —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.96.0.236 (talk) 01:55, 18 April 2008 (UTC)
 * No one ever denied the existence of the poem... just a Wiki article on it. In other words, you were trying to link to a non-existent article. If you have research to do, try a library instead of the internet. --Midnightdreary (talk) 01:57, 18 April 2008 (UTC)

Thanks
--Appraiser (talk) 20:01, 18 April 2008 (UTC)

Henry Thoreau
I suppose if you want to write an article The Thoreau Reader that might be helpful, other than that there isn't that much i can think of. I will look at Emerson's article. --Briaboru (talk) 20:41, 22 April 2008 (UTC)

Emerson
Yes, schools and organizations named for Emersom does sound better, or however you want to phrase it. Also, Orestes Brownson might need work possibly starting of with an infobox.--Briaboru (talk) 20:53, 22 April 2008 (UTC)

Goldbug OED
1. = CRYPTOGRAM. a1849 POE Tales, Gold Beetle, I could not suppose him [Kidd] capable of constructing any of the more abstruse cryptographs. 1879 FARRAR St. Paul I. 641 note, Much of the Talmud consists of cryptographs which designedly concealed meanings from persecutors and heretics. (OED3, 2R version)

OED records first usages rather rigorously, and is an authorative source of first uses in English. They don't quote anyone about usages, only directly from the texts usages were discovered in. Fifelfoo (talk) 01:21, 1 May 2008 (UTC)

Thanks!
Thanks for the invisible barnstar you posted on my page, I really appreciate it!— Noetic  Sage  04:01, 1 May 2008 (UTC)

Discussion for A Tale of the Ragged Mountains
I left you a note there... Thanks for taking the time to communicate with me. I just want to make the article as strong as possible. Dashfast (talk) 18:25, 1 May 2008 (UTC)

WikiProject Universities Newsletter: Issue VIII (April 2008)
The April 2008 issue of the WikiProject Universities newsletter has been published. You may read the newsletter, change the format in which future issues will be delivered to you, or unsubscribe from this notification by following the link. Thank you for your continued support of WikiProject Universities! &mdash; Delivered on 21:31, 2 May 2008 (UTC) by MiszaBot (talk)

Planning for the 7th Wikipedia Meetup
The planning for the summer Philadelphia meetup has begun. We would appreciate your input. You're getting this invitation because you're on Wikipedia:WikiProject Philadelphia/Philadelphia meet-up invite list. BrownBot (talk) 21:41, 7 May 2008 (UTC)

Poe's Brother
Great work on that article, especially since you were skeptical as to whether it should be kept or not. I think it will prove useful to folks who want to learn more about Poe, and I was envisioning a short article exactly along those lines when I came across it in AfD but had no way to actually expand it myself (I haven't even read Poe since high school, which is a shame actually). Would you consider nominating the article to be listed on the Main Page at DYK? I think it easily qualifies now and it would probable be easy to make up an interesting hook for the article. If you don't want to nominate the article I might do it myself, but since you wrote the thing I figured it would be more appropriate if you nominated it yourself.

Regardless, thanks for working on that. I always find it heartening when the AfD process results in much-improved articles. --Bigtimepeace | talk | contribs 18:19, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Yeah you did a great job of elaborating on William Henry Leonard Poe...I just created the crumbly basis for your aka(compared to mine) masterpiece. Great job and thanks for all of the help.Corpus1 (talk) 00:51, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

Yes, great job on improving this article. Thanks! Nsk92 (talk) 12:59, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Great job, undoubtably the result of original research! Cheers! Gioachino (talk) 18:54, 2 June 2008 (UTC)
 * What the--? Do you even know what you are talking about? Everything in that article is cited to a reliable source. That's a hell of an accusation to be throwing around... --Midnightdreary (talk) 21:50, 2 June 2008 (UTC)

Your response reads original but greek to me nevertheless!Gioachino (talk) 03:30, 3 June 2008 (UTC)

Poe Plaque
Thanks for the Poe plaque praise. I've been trying to get some of my images into the Common section. I was having some difficulties with an earlier attempt. Swampyank (talk) 23:14, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Longfellow
I see now in the history that my first effort removed stuff - but I don't know why. I reverted what as far as I could see was a simple deletion. When I used search to see if the text were in the article this time, it didn't show up, so I went back to the original material and location and copied it to the place where the search function took me (I just looked at the html, with-out checking). I assumed it would be the same spot as whence it originally came. Sorry if it messed things up. No, of course, the material should not be repeated in the article. Kdammers (talk) 04:47, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

Virginia Eliza Clemm Poe
Virginia looks like a solid FAC candidate to me. Interesting article! If you want, I can put a few comments that occurred to me on the article's talk page. Awadewit (talk) 18:05, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

Lives of the Most Eminent Literary and Scientific Men
Thought you would like to see this little mention of Edgar! Awadewit (talk) 00:38, 24 May 2008 (UTC)

WikiProject Pennsylvania
Hi Midnightdreary. You currently have yourself listed as a participant in the Pennsylvania WikiProject. If you are still active in the project then ignore this message. However if you are busy or no longer wish to be involved, please remove yourself from the list so we can get an updated count on the number of active members. Thank you! Monobi (talk) 19:42, 24 May 2008 (UTC)

"Let every sheep keep its own skin" -- Henry David Thoreau
Hi Midnightdreary, thanks for your comment on my talk page. I thought that by adding two links to other wiki pages that explain that diplomas were formerly made from sheepskin I had addressed your concern of a lack of citation. I thought of adding a third link to wiktionary as well, but then I thought that was a bit of overkill (and it was getting late).

The reason I put the extra half sentence in there (i.e., "presumably a reference to the tradition of diplomas being written on vellum, a paper made from sheepskin") was because when I first read the quote, it seemed obscure to me, like some sort of mystical metaphor. But then I remembered that "sheepskin" is an American metaphor for diploma. (see definition #2 of "sheepskin" on wiktionary). I thought others might be similarly confused, and thought that the reminder of this (now obscure) fact might help add insight to the quote. My intention was to do no more than to define an archaic usage of the word sheepskin. I do not assert that that was what Thoreau meant (though Ockham's razor would suggest it was highly likely) which is why I used the word "presumably". Of course, if I had not used the word "presumably", I would thoroughly agree with your objections.

I take your point that it would be better still to have original evidence about what Thoreau meant in this specific context. But failing that, it seems to me we would better serve readers to say what "sheepskin" meant in the context of 19th century diplomas than to not include that information at all.

Does that answer your concern about this being original research?

Would adding a footnote link to the Wiktionary definition of sheepskin (defn 2 = "(US) a diploma") have addressed your concerns at all?

I see you have a huge amount of experience on wikipedia, and I really admire and respect that. I wish I had the time to have done a fraction of what you have. But I am still just learning the ropes. In that context, perhaps you can help guide me on a couple of points.

1) Shouldn't we be having this discussion on the Thoreau talk page rather than on each other's talk pages?

2) If one person makes a change, and then a second deletes that change, isn't the appropriate course of action to raise the matter on the talk page to resolve the matter, rather than to change the change back once more?

As they might have said in the 19th Century, I am, respectfully yours in the dissemination of accurate, reliable and (not least of all) accessible knowledge,Boxter1977 (talk) 03:01, 29 May 2008 (UTC)


 * Hi again, thanks for your quick and friendly reply to my above listed concerns/thoughts. I was not aware that wikipedia was not considered a reliable source. (How ironic!) :)

Cheers, Boxter1977 (talk) 03:18, 29 May 2008 (UTC)

Re my "Al Aarraf" contribution!
Did you remove it from the "current" version of the article and if so, why?

Nevertheless, you'd propably need do something about "it" sooner or later!

Cheers! User:Gioachino 06:47,(talk) 31 May 2008 (UTC)

Your answer at my "talk" page-thanks-does not really address the issue: "It" is bigger than anything written on Poe so far, my "bad english" did not prevent me from solving his mystery, the ball is in your park now, I am done with Edgar, it's Henry Poe's turn next: Does the name "George Washington Cass" sound familiar to you btw?

Cheers again!

Gioachino (talk) 19:24, 31 May 2008 (UTC)


 * I have no idea what you are trying to say. --Midnightdreary (talk) 13:10, 1 June 2008 (UTC)

You "have no idea" because your Edgar's father was David Poe jr, mine's David Poe sr, your's foster father was a John Allan, mine's John AllEn (of Allenwood, Tennessee, friend of Andrew Jackson, a fillibusterer and shrewed businessman as well). As for "William henry Leonard Poe": They invented him jointly, in 1827, Edgar Allen and William Townshend Washington (nephew of the late president) who misbehaved and fell seriously ill while in Greece, 1823-24, returned to the States, visited John Allen summer 1825 to obtain a new "identity". Edgar replaced him returning to Greece as his brother George, spring 1827 and, among others, "fixed" William's death. That's how their early publication efforts materialised (by WHLP) and that's why "cadet Williams" T.Washington, in Paris 1822, "died" as William Townsend Washington April 1827 in Napoli, Campagna, Italy (US sources) or as George Townsend Washington, philhellene, in Napoli di Morea, Greece (greek and US sources).

Re "Cass": Secretary Lewis Cass wrote a letter to David Douglas at West Point June 1827 recommending his nephew, son of his sister, yet named George Washington "Cass". Secretary L.Cass and professor D.Douglas are Edgar's two aquaintances NOT spoken about by "Poe scholars" repeating the same falsitudes over and over. G.W.Cass outlived Edgar but Edgar Allen Poe may have had his reasons to dissappear following the death of Tampico captain John Allen. (Also of interest a George Washington Poe, Edgar's penpal and the Raven's-Sam Houston-lieutenant!)

Gioachino (talk) 15:45, 1 June 2008 (UTC)
 * This is still mostly incoherent to me. What does this have to do with "Al Aaraaf". This sounds like a conspiracy theory that there was an "Edgar Allan Poe" and an "Edgar Allen Poe" with very similarly-named foster-fathers. I'm responding with a more relevant response on your talk page. --Midnightdreary (talk) 23:07, 1 June 2008 (UTC)

"Secrecy shall knowledge be in the environs of heaven" huh? No, there was just one Edgar Allen Poe who declared his part in a conspiracy in his "Al Aaraaf". His con-spirator, John Allen was "The Raven's" fatherinlaw. Midnightdreary rimes with weak and weary and responds in this fashion too! Cheers! Gioachino (talk) 04:46, 2 June 2008 (UTC)

Washington Irving
I finally got around to doing a review of Irving - it is posted on the peer review page. Awadewit (talk) 17:43, 31 May 2008 (UTC)

The Black Cat
Please enlighten me where in this story is the doppelganger theme? The main character is a killer, driven by alcohol etc. He doesn't imagine having a double! There is a second cat similar to the first one, but how is this a doppelganger theme related to the main character? William Wilson is a clear doppelganger theme, and so is Dostoevsky's the Double for example but this can hardly qualify...Velimir85 (talk) 20:23, 1 June 2008 (UTC)
 * It seems pretty clear to me: there are two cats, one of which is a doppelganger of the other. Why does it have to relate to the main character? Not sure what's confusing and, besides, most of the scholarly work I have seen about "The Black Cat" mentions the doppelganger theme and any scholarly work that discusses Poe's use of the doppelganger mentions "The Black Cat". --Midnightdreary (talk) 23:05, 1 June 2008 (UTC)

Well, the confusing thing is that doppelganger is ALWAYS related to the main character (look at Doppelganger article, all examples are like that) and also, doppelgangers are doubles of living creatures - living character has its double in the real world. Once he is dead, well, then this relation does not exist any more. So this second cat was not the doppelganger of the first one when it was alive, but only after it died. And also, it wasn't exactly the same - its physical appearance is somewhat different. So, it is all highly uncharacteristic for the doppelganger theme. But hey, I'm merely a begginer in reading Poe, so if you say there is scholarly work supporting the idea, put some reference in the article and that'll be fine with me. Cheers,Velimir85 (talk) 16:06, 2 June 2008 (UTC)
 * I'm not sure a (mostly unsourced) Wikipedia article is a good source. Even so, this article doesn't seem to say that a doppelganger only counts if it's the main character (though it does say supernatural doubles are often a symbol of impending doom... i.e. "The Black Cat"). I'm living out of boxes right now so most of my library is packed away and out of reach. But, if you feel strongly about this, go ahead and remove it. --Midnightdreary (talk) 16:12, 2 June 2008 (UTC)

Ellet
A few things....Thanks for the help with the Ellet article. I have been looking everywhere for some images to use for Poe's brother, no luck yet. And I still plan to work on Ann Stephens, one of these days. Feel free to shorten my name. (Lar usually just calls me E.) :)- Epousesquecido (talk) 17:46, 5 June 2008 (UTC)

re: Request for help
No problem, I'd love to help. I'm living a crazy life at the moment (school deadlines, brand-new-house-fiddling stress), however, so I may not get to it until tomorrow, but I'll definitely do a copy-edit and then check in on the FAC. María ( habla con migo ) 21:18, 7 June 2008 (UTC)

Request for help
Hello, Midnightdreary, I need two or three 'good' titles on the subject critic about Poe´s tales (in English, of course). Is it posible? Thank you very much. Best wishes. Your friend of the es:wik, Sürrell. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.53.136.217 (talk) 17:10, 9 June 2008 (UTC)
 * Critiques of the tales? Well, you'll find plenty in Arthur Hobson Quinn's Edgar Allan Poe: A Critical Biography, which should always be at the top of any list of Poe inquiries. I also recommend The Cambridge Companion to Edgar Allan Poe and A Historical Guide to Edgar Allan Poe, both of which are collections of Poe literary criticism and analysis. There are also two journals you might find in a good scholarly library: Poe Studies and The Edgar Allan Poe Review. That should start you off pretty well. --Midnightdreary (talk) 17:14, 9 June 2008 (UTC)

Thank you very much. You're very kind. Sürrell. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.53.143.152 (talk) 11:38, 10 June 2008 (UTC)