Kipling has a great respect for the man who gets things done. I suppose in Kipling's England, there was an attitude about men who got dirt under their fingernails as being a type apart from the gentleman class. Kipling did an excellent job of portraying their value and the value of the work that they did
Reading a lot of English literature over the years, from all eras, England has always been filled with snobs who looked down on anyone who worked with their hands. Kipling was a rare man who saw their value and worth.
Roosevelt's "Man In the Arena," several Twain, and several Will Rogers pieces from around the same time had that theme. There's undoubtedly many others, and likely earlier examples. It seems to be a universal concept, at least in Western European writing.
There was a point of awe and wonder at what the Industrial Revolution was doing, for the workers, for humanity at large, and the potential was thrilling. Then the doom and gloom won out, at least on the media side. We forget what machines made possible, and take our current era of prosperity and civilization for granted, not considering what life looked like before industry. It was not idyllic.
Very much so. You might make your money in industry, but then you sent your sons to public schools to learn Latin and become English country gentlemen.
It was one of the reasons they fell behind in industry. In the US, an industrialist was suitable for the highest circles. In Germany he wasn't -- and could never be, because that was the nobles, so he raised his son to be an industrialist,
Kipling remains underrated. There were too many people whose egos were bruised by his success. Add in the modern Leftist desire to see everything through the "oppression" lens and you have a group of incompetent morons willfully denying what once made them great.
I was thrilled and delighted to discover that Kipling and H. Rider Haggard were friends. Haggard was eclipsed by Kipling in time, but he was the equivalent to a rock star in his time, and is deliberately erased in the current times. I’m always surprised to talk to someone I know is a reader, particularly of fantasy, and they have never read Haggard.
Kipling is among the greatest story tellers ever to be visited upon the earth. His works speak of the eternal concepts man, machine, and situations, and the fleeting nature of life.
Kipling has a great respect for the man who gets things done. I suppose in Kipling's England, there was an attitude about men who got dirt under their fingernails as being a type apart from the gentleman class. Kipling did an excellent job of portraying their value and the value of the work that they did
Reading a lot of English literature over the years, from all eras, England has always been filled with snobs who looked down on anyone who worked with their hands. Kipling was a rare man who saw their value and worth.
You know it's still possible to rent Naulakha.
Would make for a heck of a writer's retreat.
Roosevelt's "Man In the Arena," several Twain, and several Will Rogers pieces from around the same time had that theme. There's undoubtedly many others, and likely earlier examples. It seems to be a universal concept, at least in Western European writing.
There was a point of awe and wonder at what the Industrial Revolution was doing, for the workers, for humanity at large, and the potential was thrilling. Then the doom and gloom won out, at least on the media side. We forget what machines made possible, and take our current era of prosperity and civilization for granted, not considering what life looked like before industry. It was not idyllic.
Very much so. You might make your money in industry, but then you sent your sons to public schools to learn Latin and become English country gentlemen.
It was one of the reasons they fell behind in industry. In the US, an industrialist was suitable for the highest circles. In Germany he wasn't -- and could never be, because that was the nobles, so he raised his son to be an industrialist,
One of Kipling's fantasy short stories is about anthropomorphic railroad engines who think about themselves in similar terms to these.
Yes. while he doesn't carry that into the levels that Awdry does, The Maltese cat is certainly the cultural grandparent of Thomas the tank engine
The more I read Kipling; I've become convinced he is the philosopher of us through the ages.
Kipling's short story "The Ship That Found Herself" is worth reading in this connection.
A great poem and setting! I also like the pictures.
That's really marvelous, particularly the way the cadenced chant perfectly expresses the machines' voices!
Did you have to set up the tune and the beat, or did the program do that for you? In either case, well done, indeed!
I told it what I wanted, a March done by a Welsh Male choir. I’m no musician so I was tickled when after a couple of tries I got just what I wanted!
Kipling remains underrated. There were too many people whose egos were bruised by his success. Add in the modern Leftist desire to see everything through the "oppression" lens and you have a group of incompetent morons willfully denying what once made them great.
I was thrilled and delighted to discover that Kipling and H. Rider Haggard were friends. Haggard was eclipsed by Kipling in time, but he was the equivalent to a rock star in his time, and is deliberately erased in the current times. I’m always surprised to talk to someone I know is a reader, particularly of fantasy, and they have never read Haggard.
Kipling is among the greatest story tellers ever to be visited upon the earth. His works speak of the eternal concepts man, machine, and situations, and the fleeting nature of life.
Can you do "Hymn of Breaking Strain" next?
I can! I hadn’t yet scheduled next week, so I’ll do that.