tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587150608901957801.post178649534606365164..comments2024-03-22T17:51:15.887-04:00Comments on The Edge of the Precipice: "The Lady and the Lionheart" by Joanne BischofHamlette (Rachel)http://www.blogger.com/profile/11961916847426233995noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587150608901957801.post-36548224563477749642021-05-05T20:34:11.566-04:002021-05-05T20:34:11.566-04:00Katie, um, yeah. The more I think about the book,...Katie, um, yeah. The more I think about the book, the more issues I have with it. And you're right, there are totally instances of actual Victorian literature talking about actual Victorians having tattoos. Sigh.Hamlette (Rachel)https://www.blogger.com/profile/11961916847426233995noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587150608901957801.post-1169890530345046692021-05-04T12:04:15.821-04:002021-05-04T12:04:15.821-04:00(Yep, I was right! In "The Adventure of the ...(Yep, I was right! In "The Adventure of the Red-Headed League," Holmes tells Jabez Wilson, "The fish that you have tattooed immediately above your right wrist could only have been done in China. I have made a small study of tattoo marks and have even contributed to the literature of the subject.") <br />Katie Hannahttps://iamcharlesbakerharris.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587150608901957801.post-25511383655885855602021-05-04T12:01:39.280-04:002021-05-04T12:01:39.280-04:00Ugh, that's even worse! "If you WILLINGL...Ugh, that's even worse! "If you WILLINGLY got a tattoo, well, you're just a bad person, but if you had tattoos forced on you as part of this melodramatic and extremely unrealistic plot point, don't worry!" What ... how ... send help??? <br /><br />I WAS GONNA SAY!!! I didn't want to make statements that I couldn't back up, but I had a feeling in the back of my head that the Victorians actually kinda LIKED tattoos ... Doesn't Sherlock Holmes say in one of his early stories that he's an amateur expert on tattoos and has written a little book about them? Or something? Katie Hannahttps://iamcharlesbakerharris.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587150608901957801.post-47192964875012388072021-05-03T19:16:14.926-04:002021-05-03T19:16:14.926-04:00Katie, I know! And honestly... the message felt m...Katie, I know! And honestly... the message felt more like "tattoos are awful, but having them forced on you doesn't make you a bad person." They started out talking about how convicts often had tattoos (true), and so you should suspect anyone who had a tattoo of being a convict (I suppose that could be a valid conclusion many Victorians would jump to).<br /><br />Again, a <b>cursory internet search</b> brings up loads and loads of info about how in reality... tattooing kind of became a Popular Thing in the Victorian Era. It wasn't just for convicts. Reportedly, even British royalty of the era had tattoos...<br /><br />But, you know, research is hard...Hamlette (Rachel)https://www.blogger.com/profile/11961916847426233995noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587150608901957801.post-44817480091138507512021-05-03T19:07:40.400-04:002021-05-03T19:07:40.400-04:00*blinks rapidly* I really read that correctly? W...*blinks rapidly* I really read that correctly? WUT. <br /><br />Yeah, the racism he would face from being Romani would be a MUCH bigger factor, and far more important to address from a historical standpoint. This just sounds like the author went really overboard on her "tattoos aren't actually bad!!!" message, which ... is important for certain hyper-rigid 21st century Christians to hear, I guess? But sticking it in the middle of the Victorian era and acting like there was this huge society-wide stigma against skin tattoos just doesn't make sense. Katie Hannahttps://iamcharlesbakerharris.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587150608901957801.post-37614196363707919092021-05-03T16:58:04.342-04:002021-05-03T16:58:04.342-04:00Katie, yeah, you read that correctly. I really thi...Katie, yeah, you read that correctly. I really think this is an instance of modern sensibilities being imposed on characters living in the past. It was hard/impossible to swallow.<br /><br />He's not actually a social outcast, exactly -- he just assumes he would be if he ever left the circus. When I think the fact that he's Romani would have way more of an impact, but is not mentioned as a potential issue at all. Sigh.Hamlette (Rachel)https://www.blogger.com/profile/11961916847426233995noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587150608901957801.post-77298957837311460542021-05-03T15:31:31.396-04:002021-05-03T15:31:31.396-04:00(ugh, Blogger still says I'm not signed in. I...(ugh, Blogger still says I'm not signed in. I'm so sorry. Hopefully you can tell it's me by my overwrought capital-letter-laden commenting style. ;)) Katie Hannahttps://iamcharlesbakerharris.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587150608901957801.post-35624508732043882182021-05-03T15:29:46.908-04:002021-05-03T15:29:46.908-04:00"choice between getting a lot of tattoos or b..."choice between getting a lot of tattoos or becoming a male whore"<br /><br />*spits out drink*<br /><br />I'm sorry, WHAT???? <br /><br />I know a lot of conservative Christians today are absurdly obsessed with the "shame" of tattoos, but even taking that into account, it's hard for me to wrap my head around a Beauty and the Beast story where the Beast is a social outcast SOLELY BECAUSE HE HAS SKIN TATTOOS? Did I read that right? Katie Hannahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04500710972271568739noreply@blogger.com