User talk:Midnightdreary/Archive 5

Thanks for fixing the mistake

May we talk this out please? The first picture I honestly mistaken took off the internet, but the new(2nd) one I have been added is my picture I took last Saturday at the cottage. please help work with me I just want my picture to be a part of the page, I am a big fan(Jackheart314 (talk) 18:37, 13 March 2015 (UTC)) I add another paragraph to Poe's cottage I hope now you will allow my picture of the rocking chair to stay up. thank you! (Jackheart314 (talk) 18:11, 13 March 2015 (UTC)

This edit was a mistake - I meant to check The Fall of the House of Usher & add there if it hadn't been & ended up in the wrong article. Sorry about that. Very nice work, btw, on the Poe pages. It's nice to see at least some of the American short stories in good shape. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 22:21, 11 January 2011 (UTC)

No worries; I assumed it was just an error and nothing malicious. And thanks for the kind words on Poe pages. Hmm... if you're looking for a project, I'm hoping to find a collaborator to bring Nathaniel Hawthorne back up to GA status (if not FA). --Midnightdreary (talk) 22:29, 11 January 2011 (UTC)

I might be interested, though I'm trying to stay away from biographies for a while. I'm trying to clean "Young Goodman Brown" at the moment, and have had The Scarlet Letter watched for ages but haven't had the courage to work on it. I'll add Hawthorne's bio to my watchlist and have a look at it. Certainly, in my view, it's better for the important author bios to be at GA or FA, but getting them there is a bear. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 22:36, 11 January 2011 (UTC)

Good luck! I took The Scarlet Letter off my watchlist years ago because I couldn't handle all the vandalism. Let me know about the Hawthorne article; it's in fairly good shape now (at least, the biographical section) but needs help mostly in the sections on writing, style, and response. It was removed as a GA because of that, I believe. --Midnightdreary (talk) 22:38, 11 January 2011 (UTC)

The biography is in good shape and the criticism shouldn't take too much work, so yes, I think I might be interested. I'm traveling at the moment and about to be snowed in for the next day or two, but will see what I have for books on Hawthorne when I get home - or order some from the library. I'll let you know (or you'll see me working on the article .... ) Truthkeeper88 (talk) 22:47, 11 January 2011 (UTC)

Ingram and other stuff

You are certain of this? I think it likely that it got muddled somewhere, there is a strong connection between Ingram and the Poes: "Marie Louise Shew Houghton, who had nursed Virginia Poe during her last sickness at Fordham and had watched over Poe as he suffered a long and violent attack after Virginia's death.—[1]", had sent much of the material that Ingram was using to rehabilitate Poe's reputation - including Viginia's letters. Both of these people seem pretty important to the backlash against Griswold's characterisation, but the story of this is missing here. His efforts were quickly surpassed by American scholars, which he was not, but it seems the facts concerning Poe were initially consolidated by him.

I've also noted a missing fact from Ingram's The Raven; with literary and historical commentary at Talk:The Raven#Pike, and there is more that could get a mention in that same work.

Is it okay to prod you about these things as they come up? I figure you have a big investment and access to refs already in the article. cygnis insignis 23:07, 11 March 2011 (UTC)

To answer your first question, the letter with Ingram as the recipient was definitely suspicious. Poe wrote it to George W. Eveleth in 1848. As I recall, Shew isn't considered credible, nor Ingram for that matter, which may be why they're not well reflected here. Perhaps it's worth remedying. As always, good sources make for good additions. --Midnightdreary (talk) 00:07, 12 March 2011 (UTC)

Is Miller's article 'credible'? It contains many things that support what I noted as "important", especially regarding Ingram: establishing facts later swiped by american scholars, popularizing his works with his editions, receiving encouragement and papers from surviving friends, and the "story" of his library.

Isadore ... Well! you have heard of it now :-) Do none of your sources mention it, or do they contradict what Ingram noted as part of the 'Genesis' of the poem? cygnis insignis 00:36, 12 March 2011 (UTC)

What "Miller article" do you mean? I'm not sure I know what your first paragraph about refers to. As for "Isadore", I don't recall ever coming across it. Then again, I haven't specifically looked for it. --Midnightdreary (talk) 00:39, 12 March 2011 (UTC)

The article linked in the quote, John Henry Ingram: Editor, Biographer, and Collector of Poe Materials by John Carl Miller, I think it worth reading. Isadore is also linked to en.ws, and has Ingram's note linked from it. I wonder if you might skim the indices of some later refs to see if any of this is mentioned, sometime anyway. cygnis insignis 00:51, 12 March 2011 (UTC)

Ina Coolbrith

I see you are working on the Joaquin Miller article... good work! I find it strange that there is not one mention of Ina Coolbrith there, but Miller looms large in her bio. Quite unequal, don't you think? Binksternet (talk) 02:59, 24 April 2011 (UTC)

I'm getting there! The problem with Miller (besides being an obvious pathological liar) is that there are no sources from the past fifty years so it's not easy to find stuff. --Midnightdreary (talk) 03:06, 24 April 2011 (UTC)

Some of his attraction may have been his larger-than-life lying ability. Foisting his half-breed daughter on Ina Coolbrith was a loser maneuver, I think. He's a quirk, for sure. If you want a modern photo or two, I live minutes from Joaquin Miller Park in Oakland, the late-life home he purposely misspelled as "The Hights" out of sheer cussedness. Binksternet (talk) 03:26, 24 April 2011 (UTC)

I'm surprised his larger-than-life lying ability isn't still drawing people to him today. Granted his poetry is rather banal but I'm finding his life story fascinating. If you ever make it by The Hights, feel free to grab a photo or two - I'm curious myself about its current condition. --Midnightdreary (talk) 12:54, 24 April 2011 (UTC)

Some Words

I swapped back "References" for "Footnotes" in the section heading over at "Some Words with a Mummy". I hope it doesn't seem arbitrary, but articles on other Poe works use "References". Might as well keep it standard? --Midnightdreary (talk) 03:20, 12 May 2011 (UTC)

No worries - I understand about consistency!--Npd2983 (talk) 03:22, 12 May 2011 (UTC)

E-mail

I don't see the "e-mail this user link" - where is it, please? 36hourblock (talk) 21:18, 9 August 2011 (UTC)

Go to a user page and you should see a link "E-mail this user" on the tool box to the left. You can always just leave a message on the user's discussion page as well. --Midnightdreary (talk) 21:57, 9 August 2011 (UTC)

It's not there; not that I can see. Now I'm curious to find it. 36hourblock (talk) 20:59, 11 August 2011 (UTC)

I'm looking at it on mine, no problem. It could be because the "toolbox" is auto-closed and you might have to click it to expand the menu. --Midnightdreary (talk) 23:57, 11 August 2011 (UTC)

All I guess is that my Username is under some kind of restriction, or my personal information is not setup to engage in e-mail exchanges. Here's what I show at "Toolbox"

Toolbox
What links here
Related changes
User contributions
Logs
Upload file
Special pages

36hourblock (talk) 18:31, 12 August 2011 (UTC)

Sorry but...

Need refereces this article.--Botedance (talk) 11:07, 27 August 2011 (UTC)

That article has already passed the Good Article criteria. You'll have to be more specific about your concerns. --Midnightdreary (talk) 11:49, 27 August 2011 (UTC)

File:W&Jstatues.jpg listed for deletion

A file that you uploaded or altered, File:W&Jstatues.jpg, has been listed at Wikipedia:Files for deletion. Please see the discussion to see why this is (you may have to search for the title of the image to find its entry), if you are interested in it not being deleted. Thank you. Calliopejen1 (talk) 04:53, 3 October 2011 (UTC)

MOS Oblong etc

My bad, sorry, I use an external editor and it transposes " as '' sometimes. Great job on the Poe articles.--Mike - Μολὼν λαβέ 13:59, 11 October 2011 (UTC)

No worries. Thanks for adding the back up source for that info. I have a personal/professional issue with the work of John E. Walsh so I get skeptical! --Midnightdreary (talk) 14:28, 11 October 2011 (UTC)

I hear you, I actually had a personal/professional "encounter" with him back in 1995 (unrelated to this of course) that made me lose any respect for him as well (and anyone who fosters the victim mentality), I was actually surprised that he was the author, but it did provide a good quote that is easily checked. It seemed disingenuous that he listed Poe as a "coauthor" on that piece, but not surprising.--Mike - Μολὼν λαβέ 16:13, 11 October 2011 (UTC)

I think you can help me!

Hi Midnightdreary! I want to post something about the poem "The Road Not Taken." I saw your "The Raven" article and found Featured article criteria, which suggests using "a thorough and representative survey of the relevant literature. Claims are verifiable against high-quality reliable sources and are supported by inline citations where appropriate." I can find plenty of analysis on the "The Road Not Taken" poem, but I would rather base my post on the more respected books/writings on the topic. I haven't studied poetry formally so I don't know what these might be. I'm hoping that you can get me started and list a few of the "the relevant literature" and "high-quality reliable sources" in the poetry field that might discuss "The Road Not Taken." Thanks! Cody. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Codydakin (talk • contribs) 20:03, 19 November 2011 (UTC)

It is definitely a worthwhile undertaking, so I wish you luck with it! I'm not sure how helpful I will be, as Frost is just outside my particular scholarly interest (I don't delve outside the 19th century). Still, the best place to start is whatever books are readily available on Frost. From there, you might find other analyses in specialized academic journals. Avoid textbooks. Best of luck! --Midnightdreary (talk) 02:44, 20 November 2011 (UTC)

OK. Thanks. I'll check the Robert Frost article to see whats used there. Cody — Preceding unsigned comment added by Codydakin (talk • contribs) 14:56, 20 November 2011 (UTC)

Main page appearance: Nathaniel Parker Willis

This is a note to let the main editors of Nathaniel Parker Willis know that the article will be appearing as today's featured article on November 23, 2011. You can view the TFA blurb at Wikipedia:Today's featured article/November 23, 2011. If you prefer that the article appear as TFA on a different date, or not at all, please ask featured article director Raul654 (talk · contribs) or his delegate Dabomb87 (talk · contribs), or start a discussion at Wikipedia talk:Today's featured article/requests. If the previous blurb needs tweaking, you might change it—following the instructions at Wikipedia:Today's featured article/requests/instructions. If this article needs any attention or maintenance, it would be preferable if that could be done before its appearance on the Main Page. The blurb as it stands now is below:

Nathaniel Parker Willis (1806–1867) was an American author, poet and editor who worked with several notable American writers including Edgar Allan Poe and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. He became the highest-paid magazine writer of his day. For a time, he was the employer of former slave and future writer Harriet Jacobs. Born in Portland, Maine, Willis came from a family of publishers. He developed an interest in literature while attending Yale College and began publishing poetry. After graduation, he worked as an overseas correspondent for the New York Mirror. He eventually moved to New York and began to build his literary reputation. In 1846, he started his own publication, the Home Journal, which was eventually renamed Town & Country. Shortly after, Willis moved to a home on the Hudson River where he lived a semi-retired life until his death in 1867. Willis embedded his own personality into his writing and addressed his readers personally, specifically in his travel writings, so that his reputation was built in part because of his character. Critics, including his sister in her novel Ruth Hall, occasionally described him as being effeminate and Europeanized. Despite his intense popularity for a time, at his death Willis was nearly forgotten. (more...)

UcuchaBot (talk) 00:02, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Nathaniel Parker Willis

Hi. I made two small comments at WP:ERRORS. If you're around, I'd be grateful for your views. Thanks. --Dweller (talk) 12:37, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

Navboxes

I noticed the changes to the R. W. Emerson navbox, and I was hoping you could give me some advice regarding when to use quotes and when to use itallics. I've done 40+ navboxes, and I want to make sure they're all as good as they can be. Some of my navboxes, like Template:Robert Burns and Template:Emily Dickinson only feature poems, while others, like Template:Matthew Arnold and Template:John Dryden list both poetry and prose. Any guidelines you can give me would be much appriciated, as I intend to do many more navboxes.--INeverCry 16:24, 25 November 2011 (UTC)

Stay true to Wikipedia's manual of style section on titles and you'll do fine: MOS:TITLE. --Midnightdreary (talk) 17:11, 25 November 2011 (UTC)

Thanks for the quick response.--INeverCry 17:56, 25 November 2011 (UTC)

In looking at WP:MOS, I see that quotation marks are recommended for essays and short stories along with short poems. I guess I'll have to change the Emerson box and almost all of my other ones. Any thoughts?--INeverCry 17:13, 26 November 2011 (UTC)

I think essays are generally in quotes. With that said, however, if you notice that most books about Emerson list, say, "The American Scholar" as The American Scholar, maybe that's the way to do it. --01:41, 27 November 2011 (UTC)

I'll just leave well enough alone.--INeverCry 03:48, 27 November 2011 (UTC)

Concord Hymn

I've corrected the rotation of the image (and of the other one, even though, strangely, that thumbnail came out right at first). --dave pape (talk) 14:20, 28 November 2011 (UTC)

Looks great - thanks for taking care of it. --Midnightdreary (talk) 17:01, 28 November 2011 (UTC)

Leaves of Grass

Cover of Whitman's own personal 1st ed copy of Leaves of Grass

I thought you might be interested in this.--INeverCry 21:12, 11 December 2011 (UTC)

Without a doubt, this is interesting! Thanks so much! --Midnightdreary (talk) 23:50, 11 December 2011 (UTC)

Here's a couple others: E.A. Poe facimile letter: File:E A Poe Letter.jpg; Whitman at 36 :File:Walt Whitman at 36.jpg. I'm going back through some of my earliest Commons uploads and cleaning them up.--INeverCry 01:39, 12 December 2011 (UTC)

Poe's politics

As I mentioned, Baudelaire interpreted Poe on democracy and socialism and the ideology of progress in the same manner (see his "Further Notes on Edgar Poe") and it certainly was not because he wanted to assassinate his character. Nor do I see anything defamatory about ascribing those opinions to Poe; in fact, I find them quite sensible and prescient. As Meltzer notes, Poe's views were formed at a young age and consistently held throughout his life. I don't think too many biographers would dispute that Poe was an aristocratically-minded pessimist and those views are consonant with such a personality. Again, unless you provide evidence to the contrary, I see no reason to believe he was being "humorous" or "ironic" when he denounced democracy and reform-cranks. Meltzer was a legitimate historian and I don't think his target audience impugns his scholarship, especially since many adolescents and teenagers are interested in Poe, but if you want another contemporary scholar with a similar assessment, there is also Charles A. Coulombe. I can find exact page numbers etc. later but to me, the Brooks quote more than adequately sums up Poe's views. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Gobineau (talk • contribs) 15:31, 11 January 2012 (UTC)

Please do. Multiple sources would definitely add some heft against my WP:UNDUE argument. However, I must ask that you refrain from making this personal. Your most recent edit summary bordered on a personal attack. Please don't make this a "me vs. you" kind of situation; I'm only concerned about the integrity of a high profile, recognized featured article. Again, evidence would be helpful that comes from something other than a satirical work of fiction (unfortunately, vague references to other people like Baudelaire and Coulombe are not helpful here). --Midnightdreary (talk) 17:39, 11 January 2012 (UTC)

Real Love

For all your work on Poe's works, we really love you, Midnightdreary.

DONT NEED TO BE ALONE, NO NEED TO BE ALONE.

ITS REAL LOVE, ITS REAL. YES ITS REAL LOVE, ITS REAL. (J. Lennon)

Best wishes.--85.59.202.164 (talk) 19:16, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

Wikipedia:WikiProject Poetry

Hi Midnight, I was looking at the Poetry Project's archives and I saw that you were one of the main contributors. It's gone into hibernation in the last few years. I wondered if you could give me some of the background on its history - if it all fizzled out or there was some big contretemps. I know that some main poetry contributors were banned at one point. I've been around for a few years but I don't really know how projects run; are they usually led by admins? The Wikipedia landscape seems to have changed so much over the last five years. Any thoughts appreciated. Span (talk) 15:23, 21 February 2012 (UTC)

It's never been particularly active in group efforts, so far as I recall, and really just provides a forum for individuals looking for feedback. I'm sure people are still contributing to poetry articles but maybe not expressing much of it on the Poetry Project page. --Midnightdreary (talk) 20:10, 21 February 2012 (UTC)

OK. I was just wondering who might have been involved in taking a lead in it back in the day, with drives and initiative as things. Your name came up. I'll ask around. Best wishes Span (talk) 01:58, 22 February 2012 (UTC)

Again, I'm not sure what sort of "things" anyone ever took the lead in. We weren't really involved with group projects that required leadership. --Midnightdreary (talk) 01:38, 23 February 2012 (UTC)

Edgar Allan Poe's family

Hello, I thought you might like to talk about the question of Edgar Allan Poe's family background. I can understand that you don't want to have any claims that mightn't be 100% true, so I've re-drafted it there to put the emphasis on the fact that there were stories current among the Poe family themselves and their friends of their Irish heritage (and relationship to Admiral MacBride. Perhaps you'd like to give some feedback on it, maybe suggest some changes? This might be a bit more suitable for the article:

It has been suggested that the Poe family was originally from Ireland. Poe's one-time fiancée, Sarah Helen Whitman, wrote in 1860 that Edgar's great-grandfather John Poe had been born in Ireland and was the son-in-law of Admiral John MacBride MP. Some forty years later Edgar's Baltimore cousin John P. Poe, Sr. was quoted as saying that John Poe had actually been Admiral MacBride's brother-in-law. From this information the genealogist Sir Edmund Thomas Bewley in his book on the Poe families of Ireland felt it likely that Edgar Allen Poe's grandfather David Poe Sr. had been born in Dring, Kildallon near the County Cavan town of Killeshandra in the 1740s to John Poe and his wife Jane MacBride, sister of Admiral MacBride, before the entire family emigrated to America in 1749 or 1750.

The sources would still be the same (and can be added before editing the page itself), but they aren't being treated as the objective truth of his ancestry. I look forward to your feedback. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Blippityblop (talk • contribs) 22:31, 19 April 2012 (UTC)

Don't look at me: I'm just trying to follow Wikipedia's high standards for featured articles. Stylistically, there are a lot of weasel words. Still, I haven't disputed the information - only the sources, which must be reliable. If we were to consider at the content, we have to ask if we should look into his family history on every side of the family and, following the policy on undue weight, each family member would have an equal amount of information on them. If that happened, I would ask if his family history two generations removed needs to take up so much space. Ultimately, it's irrelevant considering the subject. --Midnightdreary (talk) 00:23, 20 April 2012 (UTC)

Thanks for getting back to me. I'm looking at you because it was you who saw fit to delete my edits twice. I would take issue with your views on relevancy/irrelevancy, as giving the ethnic background of a well known (especially American) figure is rather usual on wikipedia and encyclopedias. As for the sources, considering one is from a fiancée and the other is directly quoting a Poe cousin, they're obviously legitimate sources. I will take the discussion to the Poe talk page and see if people agree/disagree. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Blippityblop (talk • contribs) 06:31, 20 April 2012 (UTC)

I'm sorry, I should be clearer: I'm not giving my personal opinion, but responding based on what I know as a long-term Wikipedia editor as far as policy, sourcing, and the high standards of a featured article. --Midnightdreary (talk) 21:51, 20 April 2012 (UTC)

Your opinion

I hope you have time for a question. I've done a big expansion of George Crabbe the old poet. I need the opinion of someone with GA and FA experience with poet and poetry articles regarding the critical ("legacy") section of Crabbe. I tried asking Wadewitz, but she's too busy with students. There aren't very many GA and FA poet articles as I'm sure you know, and you have several of them. I especially noticed Jones Very, a lesser known poet as is Crabbe. Can you let me know if you think Crabbe might be GA worthy? If it happens that you don't have time, do you know who I could ask? INeverCry 01:37, 2 May 2012 (UTC)

I'm sorry I don't have time enough for a significant response. However, upon first look, it seems that the article has plenty of content. The "Legacy" section seems strong enough that it may even call for subheadings. Going through a GA or, certainly, an FA review, however, will almost certainly get some negative response to the use of such significantly old sources (1888 and 1903). Those two sources seems quite heavily relied upon; is there nothing more recent? We all know how different an 1888 biography looks compared to something from the past few years. I might also suggest that the lede does not accurately summarize the article as very little of his biographical details are included there. --Midnightdreary (talk) 14:31, 2 May 2012 (UTC)

Thanks for such a quick response. I don't think I'll subject myself or my article to GAN any time soon. ;) The 2 sources are actually the newest I know of (he's really a forgotten author), and are based on the original bio by Crabbe's son, done in the 1840s or 50s. I was planning some other expansions where the sources are public domain and old, but now I wonder if that's a good idea. I'm glad you mentioned it before I wrote 5 or 6 more huge articles. That really gives me something to think about. Thanks again. INeverCry 16:46, 2 May 2012 (UTC)

A thought: these older sources should be ok in regard to simple biographical detail, ie place of birth, family and friends, schools attended, positions held, homes and travel, publication details for works, etc. A modern bio might differ in matters of politics, philosophy, religion, sex, etc, but not that much in plain biographical details. I could see an old bio not mentioning a few things, smoothing over controversial details, or making a few errors, but that kind of thing could always be filled in with a modern ref, and modern refs could be used to adjust or support material if needed.

Another thought: Most modern bios reference older ones for much of their biographical details. For instance, many of the modern Bronte bios still use material from Gaskell's 1857 work.

I've re-organized the legacy section of Crabbe somewhat as per your advice, and I'll see what I can do with the lead as well. Another reason I'm not in a hurry to do a GAN is that my last one took about 2 months from start to finish because the reviewer was too busy. During that 2 months he spent right around 4 days actually doing the review (after repeated reminders from me).

BTW, don't feel as if this ramble needs a response, as I'm prone to thinking outloud, and you've already helped plenty. ;) INeverCry 20:27, 2 May 2012 (UTC)

More rambling: I've crossed out the above about not nominating. GAN would seem to be the only way of really testing those older refs. I don't want to start on other projects of the same nature without knowing how the refs will stand up. I also don't like the idea of letting Crabbe sit around without atleast trying for GA. I've expanded the lead too. INeverCry 22:26, 2 May 2012 (UTC)

William Evans Burton

Hi. I see you did some work on this article. I've recently been adding bits using DNB and New York Times as sources but the trouble is, they conflict. NYT accounts written at the time of Burton's death say he was born 1802; DNB says 1804. A record on www.familysearch says 1802, but not christened till 1809.

DNB says his estranged wife successfully claimed dower rights on his estate after 7 appeals, culminating in her making legal history when the Supreme Court decided wives who were aliens were still entitled to dower. NYT (in 1864) reports rejection of her claim precisely on the grounds she was an alien, but says nothing about her later success; until 1916, when reporting the death of Burton's son, they suddenly do.

I also added a reference to Burton's short story 'The Secret Cell' (1837), which I just read in an anthology of Victorian detective fiction. The editor Michael Sims suggests - though acknowledging Burton's work isn't in the same class - that Poe would probably have been aware of it, and it may have swayed him towards writing a detective story. Is this worth adding? RLamb (talk) 00:32, 5 May 2012 (UTC)

I'm not familiar with "DNB", nor do I know much about researching genealogical stuff. But Wiki policy says we should just use reliable published third-party sources. For the birth year, I'd say pick one that you can verify with two or more sources, and add a note that there is another source that says something else. --Midnightdreary (talk) 13:26, 5 May 2012 (UTC)

Thanks. 'DNB' is the British 'Dictionary of National Biography' and they give Burton's date of birth as 1804. They're usually very reliable, but still - nobody's perfect. I don't feel bold enough to alter the birth year on the wiki entry, but I will put a footnote saying two other sources suggest it should be 1802. www.familysearch.org is a genealogical website that provides transcripts of church registers, censuses etc. The quality of the transcriptions varies sometimes as many were submitted by amateur genealogists, but this particular record about Burton seems okay to me.

I give up on the 'dower rights of an alien wife' thing. In 1864 the NYTimes reported a final quashing of the claims of the English wife; then in 1916 it said not only had her case been successful but actually a landmark ruling establishing the rights of other foreign wives. In the 62 years between it apparently said nothing. Maybe I'm searching their index wrongly.RLamb (talk) 18:23, 5 May 2012 (UTC)

Poe and Cooping

Thanks for your note - I deleted it based on the 1872 reference: Poe died 23 years earlier, the theory seems quite ex post facto. But I'm not a Poe expert, so I will just re-write the reference to make it a little clearer.

WP:Poetry

Thanks for the award! It means alot coming from you. The GA and FA updating was easy compared to updating the DYKs, though. I hope I can find a simpler way of gathering them than searching manually thru the archives. It looks like the project lost its momentum a bit after the banning of this fellow. The work that you and he and folks like Yellow Sub have done on poetry and poets is some of the best stuff on wikipedia. The Poe and Dickenson articles are favorites of mine. I think I might be able to get a few GAs going sooner or later, but FA seems quite daunting. INeverCry 00:48, 31 May 2012 (UTC)

"Leaves of Grass" in popular culture / Breaking Bad

Hello, Midnightdreary:

Would you please respond at Talk:Leaves of Grass?

On 3 September, you "Removed as trivial, tangential, and unimportant to the legacy of Whitman or his book" my addition to the Leaves of Grass article of an "In popular culture" category and an entry for Breaking Bad, in particular the "Gliding Over All" episode. I beg to differ with your decision, my friend, and am restoring my post. However out of sincere respect for you [you Whitman fan, you! :) ] and to avoid an edit war, I ask that you: (1) please consider my rationale, offered below, as well as (2) if you don't agree with me, please initiate a request for commentary at Talk:Leaves of Grass or request some other sort of resolution involving third parties.

By way of rationale, I offer:

• Two relevant precedents - the "In popular culture" sections of "The Second Coming" (poem) - which poem, incidentally, served as the eponymous title of The Sopranos episode 6.19 - and "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening"
• Links to relevant posts that illustrate popular recognition of this strong Breaking Bad - "Leaves of Grass" connection:
  • A discussion board post by Brandon Brummett, which responds to Dave Thier (12 September 2012). "Breaking Bad "Gliding Over All:" There's No Redemption for Walter White". Forbes.com. Retrieved 10 September 2012.

I went back and watched season 3 ep 6 where walt first meets gale. Man Vince and the writers must have knew all along how Hank would find out because it is sorta foreshadowed in that episode. When Hank calls Walt and asks about Jesse and the RV he suspects Walt is shown sitting reading the Leaves of Grass book. It has a tight shot on the book, walt is smiling reading and then Hank calls. Then Jesse leads Hank to the RV with walt in there and it is soooo close to Hank discovering Walt way back then. That book has been significant now for 3 years now almost. Genius, Best show ever on television, cant name a better.

Justified is next best right now.

• • Other references I've posted within my contribution to the article
  • There are so many others, I'll be lazy and just link the results of Googling "Breaking Bad Leaves of Grass"
• Data about what a huge cultural phenomenon Breaking Bad itself is, which fact renders the show's close associations with Walt Whitman and "Leaves of Grass" far more than "trivial, tangential, and unimportant to the legacy of Whitman or his book". For example, see:
  • "Gliding Over All" Reception, including the high ratings
  • The Breaking Bad article's intro paragraphs and Reception section
  • List of awards and nominations received by Breaking Bad

I look forward to your response (and those of other Wikipedians) to this same post at Talk:Leaves of Grass.

Warm wishes - --Froid 07:13, 10 September 2012 (UTC)

Overlinking

Thank you for informing me of the policy against overlinking. I was not aware of it. I am new to Wikipedia and, frankly, I have next to no idea what I'm doing. I appreciate your informative feedback. (I would also like to thank you for not criticizing me like a few others have.) If you have any advice or constructive criticism to give me on acceptable editing, I would be more than grateful for it. Thanks again! — Preceding unsigned comment added by Krueg (talk • contribs) 22:56, 4 October 2012 (UTC)

Poe / Adoption

Sorry about that. When I noticed that the Allans were listed as Poe's foster-family it just didn't look right to me. I asked a friend of mine about it and he told me that Poe was adopted as a toddler. Apparently, I recieved some bad information. I apologize for any inconvenience I caused. I'll be sure to double-check facts next time. Krueg (talk) 01:07, 9 October 2012 (UTC)

All the changes you made were already cited to reliable sources. I would argue that 1) these sources are better according to Wiki policy than your friend, and 2) you probably shouldn't change cited information without checking the cited source. Thanks! --Midnightdreary (talk) 01:41, 9 October 2012 (UTC)

I appreciate your constructive criticism. I realize my mistake and it won't happen again. I would like to thank you for taking the time to inform me of my errors instead of just changing them or mocking them. Please know that I am genuinely grateful for your help (You are one of only two users I've found who are willing to actually instruct me) and that I am not deliberately trying to pester you. Thanks again. Krueg (talk) 21:09, 9 October 2012 (UTC)

You must be catching me on my good days!! :) --Midnightdreary (talk) 23:09, 9 October 2012 (UTC)

WP Poetry and The Canterbury Tales task force

As someone who is listed as a participant for WikiProject Poetry, I hope you will be interested to learn of an attempt to revive the WP and alongside this the creation of task force to improve coverage of The Canterbury Tales. We are currently looking for participants to help set up the basics. Please get involved if you can, and we can hopefully revive this important project within Wikipedia! Many thanks, MasterOfHisOwnDomain (talk) 00:18, 13 December 2012 (UTC)

Poe and Byron

Kindly read the context in which a new contribution appears before removing it. This way, you will not have to make comments such as "no clear connection made" in reaction to an additional connection between Poe and Byron a few lines below a sentence introducing this connection and its relevance. The same statement hopefully doesn't have to be repeated in every other sentence just because you are in a rush. ;-) --Minutae (talk) 02:09, 2 January 2013 (UTC)

My apologies; I tend to be a bit aggressive in protecting the integrity of recognized articles (GAs and FAs). The citation helps so thanks. --Midnightdreary (talk) 02:31, 2 January 2013 (UTC)

You're welcome. :-) --Minutae (talk) 03:28, 2 January 2013 (UTC)

Poe

I don't agree with your reason. The picture is exactly as it looks in real life. However, I only wanted to help. If you want to keep the smaller black & white version, fine. --Lecen (talk) 03:19, 10 January 2013 (UTC)

The photo was not retouched and it is (except for the frame which was removed to avoid copyright infringement) a faithful copy of what the actuaç daguerreotype looks like as you can see in here. If you don't want the picture because you personally prefer the black & white version, then it's ok. --Lecen (talk) 12:52, 10 January 2013 (UTC)

Brook Farm image

Thank you for your work on Brook Farm.

Unfortunately, the File:BrookFarm-engraving.jpg image you contributed in 2009 was very misleading. That book and image have a fictitious title: "Brook Farm" a pseudonym for "Pond Field Farm" in East Chester, New York; the 1859 book is by James Bolton (1824-1863), the youngest son of Rev. Robert Bolton. (Please refer to the image talk page for details and sources.)

Please help fix the wikimedia image data!

The image title BrookFarm-engraving.jpg is quite unfortunate in retrospect. Could it be changed to something like PondFieldFarmNY-BrookFarm-1859-engraving?

I am new to dealing with image tags. It seems that they should be changed to something along these lines:

Description 	
English: Engraving of "Brook Farm" a pseudonym for the Bolton's Pond Field Farm in East Chester, New York; printed 1859.
Date 	Published 1859; London, Wertheim, Macintosh, and Hunt
Source 	Brook Farm: the amusing and memorable of American country life (1859)
Author 	(from book by James Bolton)

-96.237.4.73 (talk) 20:30, 11 January 2013 (UTC)

It doesn't seem to be misleading at all... it seems to be categorically incorrect! I will make what adjustments I can but the file name "BrookFarm-engraving.jpg" seems fairly appropriate, as that is the title on the image from the book, even if it's a fictional version, and I don't have the power to rename files (I don't think). Thanks for pointing this out; I'll do what I can. --Midnightdreary (talk) 20:42, 11 January 2013 (UTC)

Merge discussion for The Gates Ajar

An article that you have been involved in editing, The Gates Ajar, has been proposed for a merge with another article. If you are interested in the merge discussion, please participate by going here, and adding your comments on the discussion page. Thank you. — btphelps ^{(talk) (contribs)} 05:58, 28 March 2013 (UTC)

Navboxes on author pages

Since you have over 100 edits at Herman Melville, Edgar Allan Poe, and Washington Irving you might want to participate in the discussion at Wikipedia_talk:WikiProject_Novels#Derivative_works_and_cultural_references_templates regarding including navigation boxes for adaptations of and related subjects to an authors works on the author's bio page.--TonyTheTiger (T/C/BIO/WP:CHICAGO/WP:FOUR) 16:40, 25 June 2013 (UTC)

Rufus Griswold dispute

See my talk page for my response to your charge of a conflict of interest.Jnkatz1 (talk) 16:32, 8 July 2013 (UTC)

Harriet Beecher Stowe

Hi Midnightdreary, thank you for the kind note left here [2]. If I've been churlish with the editor, it's because they've apparently used at least three accounts on this and other articles to add unsourced content. Surely they're working in good faith, but there's never been a reference provided, nor an attempt to engage or explain their edits. So much for background. Very best, JNW (talk) 12:45, 14 October 2013 (UTC)

I can't say you've done anything wrong and I hope I wasn't stepping on toes. The editor's choice to remove your comment confused me so I thought I'd try a different approach. Hopefully, they will be more interested in finding the correct method and not become discouraged. This project can be overwhelming to newcomers, after all. --Midnightdreary (talk) 12:55, 14 October 2013 (UTC)

I don't blame them for removing my last remark; probably a standard warning template is less noxious than a personal chastisement. You weren't stepping on any toes. Civility needs no explanation, whereas dudgeon often does. JNW (talk) 13:04, 14 October 2013 (UTC)

Oh well [3]. I've requested page protection. If you have access to biographical sources that support the content in question, it would be terrific. Thanks, JNW (talk) 14:02, 14 October 2013 (UTC)

Leaves of Grass

Looking through your GAs and FAs and am quite impressed. I'd love to work on Leaves of Grass with you if you want to collaborate.--ColonelHenry (talk) 15:49, 25 November 2013 (UTC)

Thank you for the offer! Alas, other projects have kept me from taking an active role on Wikipedia for a couple years now. For a project as important (and daunting) as Leaves of Grass, I certainly wouldn't be a reliable partner. I'm sure if you got started, however, others would join in. --Midnightdreary (talk) 15:52, 25 November 2013 (UTC)

Wife of My Youth

Thanks for your note - I think your article is really good, and would be glad to work on it with you. Chesnutt's such a provocative writer. That will have to be after the holidays - and have happy ones! (Am trying to read "The Marrow of Tradition" online, as I've read histories of the events in Wilmington; find the dialect difficult to wade through.)Parkwells (talk) 17:18, 19 December 2013 (UTC)

It looks like the GA process is pretty backed up. It could be some time before we hear a response. I'll get it ready soon, nonetheless. Best wishes to you in the coming new year. --Midnightdreary (talk) 20:57, 19 December 2013 (UTC)

New England Wikipedia Day @ MIT: Saturday Jan 18

NE Meetup #4: January 18 at MIT Building 5

Dear Fellow Wikimedian, You have been invited to the New England Wikimedians 2014 kick-off party and Wikipedia Day Celebration at Building Five on the Massachusetts Institute of Technology campus on Saturday, January 18th, from 3-5 PM. Afterwards, we will be holding an informal dinner at a local restaurant. If you are curious to join us, please do so, as we are always looking for people to come and give their opinion! Finally, be sure to RSVP here if you're interested. I hope to see you there! Kevin Rutherford (talk)

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Your GA nomination of The Wife of His Youth

Hi there, I'm pleased to inform you that I've begun reviewing the article The Wife of His Youth you nominated for GA-status according to the criteria. This process may take up to 7 days. Feel free to contact me with any questions or comments you might have during this period. Message delivered by Legobot, on behalf of Seabuckthorn -- Seabuckthorn (talk) 00:22, 26 February 2014 (UTC)

You're invited: Women's History Edit-a-thons in Massachusetts this March

Women's History Edit-a-thons in Massachusetts this March - You are invited!

New England Wikimedians is excited to announce a series of Wikipedia edit-a-thons that will be taking place at colleges and universities throughout Massachusetts as part of Wikiwomen's History Month from March 1 - March 31. We encourage you to join in an edit-a-thon near you, or to participate remotely if you are unable to attend in person (for the full list of articles, click here). Events are currently planned for the cities/towns of Boston, Northampton, South Hadley, and Cambridge. Further information on dates and locations can be found on our user group page. Questions? Contact Girona7 (talk)

Your GA nomination of The Wife of His Youth

The article The Wife of His Youth you nominated as a good article has passed ; see Talk:The Wife of His Youth for comments about the article. Well done! Message delivered by Legobot, on behalf of Seabuckthorn -- Seabuckthorn (talk) 21:41, 27 February 2014 (UTC)

You're invited!

NE Meetup #5: April 19th at Clover Food Lab in Kendall Square

Dear Fellow Wikimedian, New England Wikimedians would like to invite you to the April 2014 meeting, which will be a small-scale meetup of all interested Wikimedians from the New England area. We will socialize, review regional events from the beginning of the year, look ahead to regional events of 2014, and discuss other things of interest to the group. Be sure to RSVP here if you're interested. Also, if you haven't done so already, please consider signing up for our mailing list and connect with us on Facebook and Twitter. We hope to see you there! Kevin Rutherford (talk) and Maia Weinstock (talk)

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Longfellow House–Washington's Headquarters National Historic Site

Why would the Wadsworth House not be official? Washington was Commander-in-Chief, he moved in with his staff and directed operations from there, he took command of the Continental Army while occupying it. I've never seen anything that implies that he moved in intending it only to be a temporary headquarters. Had space and condition problems not arisen, he might never have moved to the Longfellow House.

Even if for 2 weeks, the Wadsworth House WAS his first headquarters. -- BoringHistoryGuy (talk) 16:22, 18 April 2014 (UTC)

Sorry, that's always just been my understanding that Washington was merely lodging at Wadsworth House but the Continental Congress only authorized use of the Vassall House as headquarters. I have no source to support it though. Full disclosure: I have been a tour guide at the latter for longer than I care to remember. To clarify, it's the term official that I thought made the difference. There's no doubt Wadsworth was chronologically first. Thanks for asking. I'm not sure how to handle this. --Midnightdreary (talk) 23:54, 18 April 2014 (UTC)