Excellent (modern) series on Scottish history.

[GenSec]

I can one up you here. I failed French, and Spanish. In Spanish class in university I joined a study group with two native Spanish speakers, and I invested in a tutor. I don't think foreign languages are my thing either GenSec. I want to try the Rosetta Stone method, but I don't want to pay all that money for something that may not yield results. Strangely, I have no issues learning computer langauges.

I'm working on episode 3! It's slow going due to our choppy internet connection. My parents are hogging all the badwidth with Netflix! lol! Looking for the DVDs for region 1 DVD players. The region 2 DVDs are reasonably priced.

You know, it's funny (and I'm going to show my ignorance here) but a lot of things in Scottish history (the pictii, especially) I always more or less thought of as belonging to Irish history.    Whoops!

I gave up on foreign languages after the Russian debacle, lol!

Yes, alot of things traditional to Scotland and its culture have been shall we say "appropriated" by Irish sympathisers over time. This is particularly true in the USA; partly by accident i think, seems as Scots and Irish are supposed to all be "celtic" and therefore everything to do with them is interchangeable, and partly by design. I see New York pipe bands on television claiming to be "traditionally Irish" and i look at their style of bagpipes, tartan and general attire and think "nope, that Scottish". There's no doubt in my mind some groups out there have deliberately and knowingly pillaged Scottish culture for their own ends in the USA over the decades.

Online, i've spoken to many Americans who ask if i am "Scotch Irish" like its a nationality. In many universities today, the topic of Scottish history comes under "Scots-Irish studies". One lady in a chatroom once responded to my assertion that i was Scottish by saying "scratch the surface of every Scotsman and you'll find an Irishman"! Well, i'm Scottish and i have absolutely no links whatsoever to Ireland or anything related to it!

Where i live in Scotland, Irish influence is negligable. During the 19th century our immigrant labour came from the Highlands of Scotland, not Ireland. The religious sectarian divide that you see in places like Glasgow does not exist here. In fact the most well known piece of history between the Scots of my region and the Irish was in the 17th century when a predominantly Irish Royalist army attacked the town (The Battle of Justice Mill) in 1644 then went on to rape, burn and pillage their way through it in an orgy of violence for 3 days. Even for its time the act was shockingly brutal and barbaric, particularly when you consider that the city had no real defending army to speak of. Yet the town inhabitants knew what was coming their way... the reputation of the approaching army preceded it (lets just say its soldiers didn't have a reputation for being a good Christian bunch). The town council held a debate to decide what course of action to take to the approaching threat. If it had been any other army it probably would have just surrendered the town (as some present indeed still wanted to do regardless). I think re-enactments have sometimes been made of the battle: the debate itself is certainly re-enacted in the old Town House.

So no Tales, full of dance and romance for you, while history in all its gore is for us? What if I danced to the song of Olympia? If I could I'd post that link. Can you do it? Take it from The Tales with Moira Shearer and love besotted Hoffmann (The 1951 movie)?
 
Oh well, I'll put on my armor and march on to Episode 5 though probably not today. How bloody is it anyway? For relief I'll dance to Olympia.

Its just not my kind of movie, Tina. I did try to enjoy it- oh how i did try, ha ha.

I did try to find the song Olympia on youtube, but from the 1951 movie alone i kept finding different scenes all claiming to be "Olympia" so i was confused as to what i was actually supposed to be looking for. Its like there is an entire part of the movie called Olympia with songs in it. Very confusing.

Go on then, put on your armour and brave that final episode!

Regards,
Gen.

 

[helplessdancer]

Thanks for posting this GenSec, it looks really interesting! About to watch part 1, but not sure I should while I'm eating dinner  as I suspect it will be rather bloody 

[tinam7]

Can't give up......yet. It could be Part 2 but it is the longest, taking about 15 minutes.

So Part 3 will do, almost 12 minutes. Is that too long? Hoffmann is in love and the tune and song are repeated. Fakery is uncovered, as much can be in life and love. Poor Hoffmann, duped again and again.

Oh well, sure enjoyed seeing and hearing it.

[GenSec]

Thanks for posting this GenSec, it looks really interesting! About to watch part 1, but not sure I should while I'm eating dinner  as I suspect it will be rather bloody 

Hi, kind thanks! Really, its ok i assure you its fine to watch whilst eating, lol! This is a BBC production so you can safely assume that its nicely sanitised.

Can't give up......yet. It could be Part 2 but it is the longest, taking about 15 minutes.

So Part 3 will do, almost 12 minutes. Is that too long? Hoffmann is in love and the tune and song are repeated. Fakery is uncovered, as much can be in life and love. Poor Hoffmann, duped again and again.

Oh well, sure enjoyed seeing and hearing it.

Yes Tina, fakery. Being duped by the promised allure of love to suit some concealed selfish purpose of another. A common theme when it comes to love. To a certain extent it crawls out from underneath its rock even in many a friendship too... can you perhaps tell i'm a cynic? Ha ha!

As for love, i've led an easier life since giving up the search for it: actively avoid it now, have done so for years. In my experience it just isn't worth it. Does Hoffmann ever learn the hard way to shoo it away too, or does he keep going back for more? Dare i ask? There's only so long a wise person will allow themselves to be burnt again before calling it a day i say, lol!

Actually, how does the movie end Tina?

Kind regards,
Gen.

[tinam7]

Sorry, GS, there is no happy ending which is mostly true in opera. I first saw the movie when I was 14 and was so taken with it. Never forgot it. Maybe I understood, even then, that there are no happy endings. There is only longing, fantasy, imagination. There may be moments and we can make the best of them. Otherwise, we can learn to be our own best friend, rely on ourselves. Moments with others can be found but do they last? Sometimes they actually do endure.

To get onto a cheerier path I'll try and watch Episode 5 as soon as I manage some time. There is no way I know to break it up. Also, I'll need to put on my helmet and bullet proof vest.

[ClassicNerd]

I gave up on foreign languages after the Russian debacle, lol!

Yes, alot of things traditional to Scotland and its culture have been shall we say "appropriated" by Irish sympathisers over time. This is particularly true in the USA; partly by accident i think, seems as Scots and Irish are supposed to all be "celtic" and therefore everything to do with them is interchangeable, and partly by design. I see New York pipe bands on television claiming to be "traditionally Irish" and i look at their style of bagpipes, tartan and general attire and think "nope, that Scottish". There's no doubt in my mind some groups out there have deliberately and knowingly pillaged Scottish culture for their own ends in the USA over the decades.

Online, i've spoken to many Americans who ask if i am "Scotch Irish" like its a nationality. In many universities today, the topic of Scottish history comes under "Scots-Irish studies". One lady in a chatroom once responded to my assertion that i was Scottish by saying "scratch the surface of every Scotsman and you'll find an Irishman"! Well, i'm Scottish and i have absolutely no links whatsoever to Ireland or anything related to it!

Where i live in Scotland, Irish influence is negligable. During the 19th century our immigrant labour came from the Highlands of Scotland, not Ireland. The religious sectarian divide that you see in places like Glasgow does not exist here. In fact the most well known piece of history between the Scots of my region and the Irish was in the 17th century when a predominantly Irish Royalist army attacked the town (The Battle of Justice Mill) in 1644 then went on to rape, burn and pillage their way through it in an orgy of violence for 3 days. Even for its time the act was shockingly brutal and barbaric, particularly when you consider that the city had no real defending army to speak of. Yet the town inhabitants knew what was coming their way... the reputation of the approaching army preceded it (lets just say its soldiers didn't have a reputation for being a good Christian bunch). The town council held a debate to decide what course of action to take to the approaching threat. If it had been any other army it probably would have just surrendered the town (as some present indeed still wanted to do regardless). I think re-enactments have sometimes been made of the battle: the debate itself is certainly re-enacted in the old Town House.

Wow, you Scotsmen just never catch a break, eh?

I'm deeply sadded to realize I'm not the only one who has confused Scottish culture as Irish. Of course, I recognize the two groups as being very different, which is why the whole thing with the pictii really confused me.

Scottish history is a hell of a lot more violent and brutal than I thought! Exciting!!!!  It has everything.

In high school, we briefly covered some of the events in A History of Scotland but we looked at it from an English perspective. What I find so interesting is how those two perspectives really differ. I like how Neil Oliver speaks of the Scottish conquests with such pride.

[GenSec]

Poor Tina, you sound as pessimistic as me, haha. "There are no happy endings. There is only longing, fantasy and imagination." Oh well, better not get my hopes up right enough!

Wow, you Scotsmen just never catch a break, eh?

I'm deeply sadded to realize I'm not the only one who has confused Scottish culture as Irish. Of course, I recognize the two groups as being very different, which is why the whole thing with the pictii really confused me.

Scottish history is a hell of a lot more violent and brutal than I thought! Exciting!!!!  It has everything.

In high school, we briefly covered some of the events in A History of Scotland but we looked at it from an English perspective. What I find so interesting is how those two perspectives really differ. I like how Neil Oliver speaks of the Scottish conquests with such pride.

My post about the Scots and Irish reads stronger than it really is... honestly, i have no issues with the Irish. For many years the nearby neighbours of my grandmother were an Irish family and they got along very well. My grandmother went to bingo with the wife of that family quite frequently. The Irish singer Enya is one of my favourite singers (i collected all her albums and singles over the years). Being as the British Isles are a relatively small place, its natural enough that there should be some interaction between the Scots and Irish over the centuries. Plus, we sometimes found ourselves facing a common foe, lol! Neil Oliver mentions that Robert the Bruce returned to Scotland with Irish fighters. Gaelic is still spoken in parts of Scotland as it is in Ireland (in fact under the official title of the Scottish government the Gaelic tranlastion is included). The place i live has a Gaelic name that is a nightmare to clarify on the telephone because it doesn't sound how it looks when written down on paper! After all, what happened in 1644 is hardly the fault of anyone from Ireland today! Everyone's an individual. Stereotypes are rarely ever accurate.

Scottish and Irish Gaelic is pronounced slightly differently. For instance the Irish capital Dublin: off the top of my head in Gaelic thats 'Dubh-Linn'. Scottish Gaelic would drop the harsh sounding 'b' from the name and pronounce it 'Doo-linn'. Scottish Gaelic (like French) drops harsh sounding letters.

Just another piece of useless information from me, lol.

Best,
Gen.