I said something today that was complete and utter bollocks. I said that I haven’t posted in two whole weeks because we’ve been watching a movie and I don’t get as much from movies. Umm, yeah, I watch a lot of Korean television and could make some pretty good ethnographic statements from just those shows. (Well, as long as we acknowledge that TV generally says more about the way we think about ourselves than what may or may not be actually happening in our cultures.) So, I’m just a giant lazy bum and:
First, I’m gonna talk papers. I need to alter my focus to include the stuff that this class is actually about: culture and social history. Ideas, politics and etc (the sorts of information that I’m actually comfortable with) that was the content of my first paper doesn’t really count. Faugh. So, I’m looking into how defeated manhood in post-WWI Italy played into the rise of Fascism and Mussolini. Fortunately, Mark Jones wrote a whole paper on the culture of defeat during that time…so, I just need to find other sources that discuss the same thing or close to it.
On to Kaos, I was super-fascinated by La Giara. Mostly ’cause I just love crockery. Seriously. Anyway, I was surprised to see that the jar wasn’t glazed on the inside, so I’ve been intending to look it up and, finally, today: I remembered to do it. Here, there is some discussion of Italian crockery. (You should go to the site just for the pretty pictures.) However, these lines are the ones I’m interested in:
The ancient olive jars at Mital-a collection amassed over a lifetime by his father. Franco was clear-none of the ancient jars were for sale. Though they were simply diplayed at the pottery, they were a treasured reminder of all the the history of his craft. Glazed on the inside, olive jars both new and antique have a distinctive shape. The large oval bodies tapering at the bottom permitted the jars to be stored upright in metal or clay rings, or in wood braces aboard ships. The relatively narrow necks still permitted easy access to the oil; the handles were useful should the jar need to be moved.
I was right. I like being right. Couldn’t tell, could you?
Marriage. Even with Dr O’Neil’s assistance, I’m still not sure what we can definitively say about rural Italy in the late 19th century and the early 20th from what we know about marriage. That’s just ridiculous for me to accept this…I believe that marriage is a civil and social contract for inheritance and property rights, regulated and therefore, presumably, safe sex…wtf?! Why did I spend all that time reading about cousin marriages?! Especially since I was in the middle of writing a sentence…that I can’t remember the last part of. I may have to give up on this.
(Did you know that double cousins are as closely related as half-siblings? And they’re not nearly as rare as Wiki seems to think…)
Oh, right, I was looking for this. I was hoping to freak some of you out with GSA. You’ll be happy to note that the Westermarck effect should mean that most of us are safe.
I think I should get off the internet now…but I’ll leave you with this:
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