h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Entry: Walpurgis Night - A5848987
Author: Matt James - [Sort of on the Front Page...] - U168592

A Flea Market Rescue

Original Entry is here; A3993645

Suggestions etc. welcome, as always

MJ

Looks good, MJ!

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This sentence sounds a bit clunky. Maybe you could say that '... it is much more than those stories would have one believe'?

If it's on 1 May, that would coincide with the pagan holiday of Beltane, wouldn't it? I don't know a whole lot about Beltane, but is there a reason why two traditional holidays would have cause to fall on the same day? Are they related?

emr, I've updated the Entry a bit now

I think the last section about Saint Walpurga may answer your question about Beltane and Walpurgis Night being related

MJ

Fascinating entry. I've often heard of Walpurgis Night (a long-standing fan of the Hammer Horror films, you see!) but I never knew the derivation of it.

We've got an entry on the Wiccan Year Wheel, which covers stuff about Beltane... you might want to link to it: A8622885

P

Is there anywhere in the northern hemisphere that *doesn't* celebrate around May 1st? Are they busy celebrating these in the southern hemisphere or is there a similar clutch around october time for them?

I particularly like that Saint Walburga is the patron saint of famine, plague and storms....and coughs Presumably that is because the flu season is mostly over by spring so if you still have a cold by May 1st you'd be casting around for some sort of divine intervention...

Paully (Think I've already linked to that Entry )

I know I sort of altered the Flea Market Entry a bit to cover more than just 'Vappu' though...

Ah! Hammer horror...hmmm wonder if I can link to those Entries too somehow...you know, I think I can!

Yay

kelli - being from southern climes we do indeed celebrate May Day AND Labour Day, but more as a Harvest Festival kind of thing, as it's Autumn time. In October/November (Spring) there's the Melbourne Cup (Victoria, Australia), Halloween and Harvest Festival again, but more the harvesting of summer fruits...mmmmm

btw, have updated the Entry again

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So it does.

I'm sorry Matt, but I'm getting that Wikipedia feeling again.

It's obvious that your source when you sat down to write this entry was this one here - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walpurgis_Night. Though it is also obvious that you have reworded much of it in the course of your re-write, and have added some additional material. My question though is: is this still too close to the original source to be acceptable?

I don't know the answer to that. So I'd appreciate comments from other peers.

And I'm sorry I'm getting this feeling that my work is getting questioned over and over again. I will rewrite some of this. Bear in mind much of the information was taken from a Flea Market Rescue, which in turn may have come from the 'other' source. I have several other pieces in Peer Review if you want to look into those also

Well actually no, the piece that you rescued from the Flea Market is not from another source. I've done a pretty extensive key phrase check and nothing shows up as coming from elsewhere.

Your re-write, on the other hand, when compared to the Wikipedia entry has an identical structure for the first half of the entry. The lay out of the facts are in a very similar order, and many of the phrases are similar.

But as I also said, you had done some substantial re-writing even if the flavour of the entry was reminiscent of its original source. What I questioned was whether it was distant enough yet.

And yes, I suppose I am picking you up on your sources; and I've done this on three of the entries that you've got in PR. My motives are not to have a go at you. My motive is maintaining the high standard of the writing in the EG. I feel that if we publish something that someone could then turn round and say that they'd read something very similar elsewhere, then that is damaging our credibility.

I respect your concern over damaging credibility. However, as I said, I chose to use an online source for my research. I hold my hand up and say yes I do use wiki, but I attempt to improve on what is presented there. I add more details. For this Entry in particular I chose to present it in much the same way as the source, because at the end of the day, any factual entry is going to have the same factual information as any other. I could have used an actual book for my sourcing, and set out the information in the same manner, but because others don't have access to that book nothing would be said.

I will work on this a little more so it doesn't appear to be to like the other sources however.

There we go. Restructured, rewritten, and reworded to make it more EG friendly I think

interesting stuff indeed

1st May is a holiday in Germany, I don't think you mentioned that. Also, as part of the "noise frightens off the bad spirits" on 30th April until the wee hours Germans Tanz in den Mai (dance May in).

Everything outside your house which isn't nailed down is likely to be "hidden" (although last year they stole a wooden plant pot ornament Gruesome #2 made and my doormat - usually they should be left where you can find them - along with everyone else's things - but in our village they didn't). It's bloomin' annoying!

Sho, have updated the Entry with that info

lookin' funky

Sufficiently funky indeed.

Your Guide Entry has just been picked from Peer Review by one of our Scouts, and is now heading off into the Editorial Process, which ends with publication in the Edited Guide. We've therefore moved this Review Conversation out of Peer Review and to the entry itself.

If you'd like to know what happens now, check out the page on 'What Happens after your Entry has been Recommended?' at EditedGuide-Process. We hope this explains everything.

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Great stuff