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Eclectic History Stuff

@kaiserin-erzsebet / kaiserin-erzsebet.tumblr.com

I'm a serious academic, but this is not a serious blog. Luna, 28, history PhD Candidate 19th and 20th Century German and Habsburg History.
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Since this blog is getting a few more eyes on it, I am going to do my best to put together an informational post about this blog:

  • I am a history PhD student. I have two Masters degrees in History. My areas of expertise are the Habsburg empire and the German states in the long 19th century. I also know quite a bit about the early 20th century, but it’s not my focus.
  • My academic interests encompass all of the former Habsburg empire, but my linguistic capabilities limit me. I can speak a bit about Central Europe and the Balkans, but I am better versed in German speaking areas.
  • This is my main, which means that it can get a bit eclectic. It’s a hybrid of langblr, studyblr, and various fandoms at times.
  • I like historical dramas, and I reblog quite a few things about them. They aren’t necessarily all going to be in the time period I study.
  • The whole of Tumblr seems to now be reading one of my favorite 19th century books, so I am rereading Dracula and trying to provide my commentary.
  • My inbox is open and anons are on. But please do be polite. I will block if necessary.
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Reblogged
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Man, I love Kurrent. I'd been trying to count the minums in this word for a solid couple minutes before I realized what it was.

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This is the other end of the spectrum:

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I can honestly say that I did not expect this to get this many notes.

I can't tell if there is a group of people who really enjoy Kurrentschrift or if people are reblogging for the funny looking German words.

#I should have taken a picture of the guy who writes the double f ligature as a eszett with a line through it#it was....unique
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Reblogged margridarnauds
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i love characters who do the “i worship the myth i make of you” and in turn dehumanize and get wrong the object of their devotion and love. yes project a thing that does not exist onto a pedestal and kneel at it like it is your altar. this will surely not blow up in both of your faces eventually

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Reblogged
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"white wedding dresses were a trend started by Victoria and aren't period accurate before that."

Yes, this is true. I understand the frustration.

But hear me out: the way that the color has become synonymous with weddings to the point that putting a character in a fancy white dress signals "she's getting married" (symbolically or literally) is a fascinating case study in how period dramas and adaptations might sacrifice accuracy for the sake of being readable to a modern audience. Costuming is trying to speak in modern symbols too so its meaning isn't lost on the viewer.

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all true. But if this is in reference to that godforsaken Wuthering Heights image, she needs some fucking petticoats under that thing, because I can see every one of her goddamn hoop wires through that satin. Being symbolic rather than accurate does not excuse terrible underpinnings.

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This is about the criticism generally since Wuthering Heights is not the first nor do I expect it to be the last piece of media to have this particular criticism used as an indicator of how historically inaccurate it is.

In my humble opinion, the fact that it's white is not even remotely the biggest problem with that dress. You're right. It needs petticoats. It also looks like the wrong silhouette for the period. It also doesn't look particularly well-constructed. If I were so inclined, I could pick apart all the issues that make it bad historical costuming, and it being white wouldn't be close to the top of my list of issues.

As for the adaptation....we've known that it is going to be bad since we saw the casting, right? We didn't need the white wedding dress to know that, right?

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....does anyone who is more chronically online than I want to explain why Chappell Roan is controversial this time?

I feel like I've missed some crucial thing that has people posting opinions again.

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One thing I'm willing to be pedantic about: Wicked the book and Wicked the musical are very different pieces of media, and I wish people would be clear which one they are talking about. Usually I assume it is the musical because more people have seen that.

While musicals and the books they are based on are always different, Wicked has such a substantial tone change. It has such different stakes and while the themes are similar, the book is so much darker. I might even go as far as to say that what each one is trying to say about what it means to be "wicked" is different.

#apologies I saw a post about how wicked pulls the “she isn't really evil”#and didn't want to add the “I think you want Book Elphaba instead” to a single digit notes post#fiyero is also just a completely different character#but people hopefully know this
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Anonymous asked:

I figure that's true of most things that anyone does. Most people could learn any subject if they chose to dedicate a degree and years of research and work to it. The point is that most people don't. You're choosing to dedicate so much research and time and care to it, and that's what sets apart what you're doing

I do really believe this when it comes to history. I think if anyone works on it, they can learn the context and read the sources. It's quite a lot more work than most people think, because there's a communication gap between academics and the public when it comes to what historians do.

But it does put me in this place where I don't think there's anything particularly remarkable about me to do the work I'm doing. And, frankly, if academia wasn't so focused on making new contributions, it wouldn't make me so nervous. The anxiety comes from me thinking that someone else could write what I'm writing, and being fairly certain that I'm not the only person who has ever focused on this subject enough to do so.

It keeps me up at night because of how make or break your dissertation and your first book can be for your career.

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Reblogged oldfritz
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treating "historians" not only as this unified group but also as a coherent socio-political entity w unified ideas, ideals, goals and methods is actually the reddest possible flag. thats a tell-tale sign that this person doesnt know what the fuck theyre talking about. capital h Historians arent lying to u. capital h Historians arent hiding stuff from u, they dont want u to believe anything, bc Historians isnt an organization or a political affiliation. u know the old saying, 2 jews, 3 opinions? historians r like that too

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"Historians dont want u to know *historical figure* was gay!1!!" n its in the 'personal life' section of said figure's wikipedia page

#our favorite pastime is arguing#there is consensus on some things#but there's always room for arguments
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