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weirdowithaquill · 1 year

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What is the 'Engine Rulebook' and where did it come from?:

So, this really early era of railways was a bit insane, and I am not quite well-versed enough to make a case-study out of everything - but like with my Big 4 scrap post, this is more about trends than singular examples - though some do appear.

The 'Engine Rulebook' is basically the set of rules that every engine ever is taught when built. It's a series of important rules, customs and doctrine used by managers to keep engines in line. Yes, I will use a little business-management theory in here, because early management styles have a major effect. And every railway has its own rulebook that may have differences. But there are a few key things in the 'Engine Rulebook' that I see being universal:

1: The company comes first. This is basically the company ensuring loyalty by indoctrinating the engine to see its railway company as the most important aspect of their life. In the Railway Series, Donald and Douglas have very strong ties back to Scotland and the Caledonian railway - which is why they enjoy blue so much. It's the Caledonian Railway colour! And then there's Duck - who literally continues to wear his GWR colours even after joining the NWR. He's deeply connected to the GWR because of this loyalty taught to him.

2: Railway rules. This includes signalling, signage, speed limits, whistles and their uses, headcodes, flags and every other piece of railway rules. They are read the rulebook, and learn everything in it. It's vital! Percy is an industrial engine who is never taught this rulebook - because industries don't have many engines and often pilfer bits from a bigger company's - and thus Percy doesn't know much about the rules of being on a railway when he arrives on Sodor.

3: Etiquette (based on duty). Now, I don't mean bowing or curtseying or the proper fork for fish - I mean the ins and outs of the duty the engine will be expected to complete. Passenger engines learn how to handle coaches and speak politely to passengers, freight engines learn how to handle trucks and look after different cargos, shunting engines learn a new set of rules for the yards - this sort of thing. Gordon struggles with trucks because he was never taught how to handle them.

4: The managers are always right. Touched on this in a reblog of this @mean-scarlet-deceiver ramble, but its basically that the engines are taught that their managers are right in all contexts (unless breaking one of the above rules) and need to be respected and have all directions followed. The manager says to shunt - you go and shunt. They say to go get scrapped - and a good engine listens without hesitation. Doesn't work out in real life all the time - see Oliver, or the Big Engines' strike - but it definitely keeps most engines in line.

So we have these four core rules - but where did they come from? Well...

Regency Era Railways:

Straight off the bat - this is the era where every railway is figuring itself out. The L&MR was where everything was forged in fire - before it, the only railways that existed were isolated plateways in mines and the Stockton & Darlington Railway. None of these were anywhere near as complex as the L&MR, which is really the first railway 'system' in the way we might understand today. It's also where the first sentient engines begin to make a proper appearance and have an effect on people. Before, they were hidden in mines, if they existed at all - but now the public can see them!

Like, imagine this rocks up to collect you in an era when the most advanced method of transport is literally a horse. And it has a face. Remember, in this period people though that if they went over a certain speed or through a tunnel they would explode - so now the thing that might just kill them has a face?!

Managers would very quickly begin implementing ways to soothe their passengers. One way of doing that would be to dehumanise the engines - I can see many early engines being given basically no education because they are both seen as being 'working class' and because they are machines. When Rocket first ran, there were no public schools.

In this era, engines didn't know much, and they were isolated on their little systems. Yard managers are one of the few people with authority that these engines meet on a regular basis, and they use this to their advantage and cultivate this idea that the engines are entirely subservient to them. This is where that manager loyalty begins to become apparent - just not quite in its modern form.

The only education an engine would get is how to be loyal. Why should they learn signals, or passenger etiquette, or how to read? That is a driver or a guard's job. And so this really early era is characterised by dehumanisation and a lot of public-relations officers doing their best to downgrade the sentience of the engines. It's a lot of "yes they have a face, no they don't have intelligence, don't worry". This does extend into the Victorian era, as seen in Very Old Engines, as Skarloey arrives on Sodor with some principles taught at the workshop, only to be met with "you don't have rights, do your job." Which he naturally rebels at and then gets covered in a tarp for his troubles.

Of course, the Regency Era ends very soon into railway history, and just in time for a major game-changer.

The Victorian Era:

1838 is the year the first GWR train runs, and this railway in the South-west of England will have a huge impact on all railways that come after. First, the entire board of directors are very elitist and influential in parliament. This is a railway that needs to live up to its owners.

It is the GWR, not the L&MR, that writes the first book on engine learning. It's also the GWR, and not any other railway in the UK, that first develops a proper corporate culture for its engines that they actually like. The GWR does this by actually treating the engines like they have sentience.

Engines like Iron Duke are introduced to the 'Great Western Way' - this being the rulebook that Brunel and Gooch develop to best serve their wealthy owners. These engines are taught to read, understand the rules of the railway, passenger etiquette - which by now can be taught because there's less fumbling around blindly - and perhaps most importantly: they are taught a very proud mindset. The railway is the most important aspect of their lives, and they are to serve it to the best of their ability. All four of the rules appear in their first form here, except that the etiquette is not entirely based on duty, and instead all engines are taught all jobs - which horrified much of the rest of the railway companies.

But while this is going on on the GWR, the rest of the country's railways were trying to survive a crisis. Railway Mania swept Britain, and hundreds of engines and built (and destroyed) by the week. One thousand bills for new railways were submitted to parliament during this period, and while not all were built - it certainly had an impact. The LNWR was formed during this period, chunks of the Midland Railway, NER, GNR, GCR, Caledonian and basically every other major railway were all constructed in this time frame - but that didn't mean a drastic improvement in how the engines were treated in this area. Many North-western railways were influenced by the thinking from the L&MR, leading to entire fleets of early engines having zero clue how to act or even speak in some cases. When the bubble collapsed, many engines were scrapped - and this is where the other extremely important pillar stone of railway doctrine was introduced: engines are expendable, and should not want to hinder a company. The fourth rule is set into stone here, and goes unchanged and practically unchallenged all the way into the modern era.

This here, the end of steam in Britain, is able to happen because of principles introduced during Railway Mania. British Railways uses this rulebook and the laws that most likely surround it by this point to justify their actions, and also because thanks to this rulebook very few engines have the vague notion or idea to protest. Why would they, it goes against the rules!

The eradication of steam is almost directly caused by the era of Railway Mania and the principles managers introduced in the era to protect their profit margins. Without that doctrine, engines would have had a lot more rights and a lot more ability to protest being scrapped.

In other words, the 1840's was when scrapping began to appear properly, as well as the explosions, derailments and every other crash from the previous generation. Engines became unfeeling in this era - in the north at least. The GWR escaped this by being... well, not an economic bubble.

However, as the British Isles emerges from Railway Mania, two very strong railways vie for influence: the LNWR and the GWR. The LNWR has that traditional L&MR mindset - and it leads to a huge problem. The engines begin to learn how to speak from their crews, and moreover they question why their GWR counterparts are treated so much better. The LNWR also suffers from a number of easily preventable accidents caused by the engine having zero clue what to do.

Some railways land between the two, and it was the GNR that ended up formulating the four rules in their next evolution: engines were only taught their jobs. This was the GNR compromise with their board members. The board wanted a GWR approach, however the actual managers on the ground rebelled, worrying this would lead to the engines working together to demand fairer treatment. The Communist Manifesto was in major circulation at the time, and none of these companies wanted their engines getting any ideas. Instead, they implemented something of a class system, with express engines at the top and shunters at the bottom.

In the TVS, Emily is extremely abrasive towards Thomas (Seasons 8-12), and it may just have to do with the way she was raised, seeing shunters as the lowest form of engine. Gordon certainly did!

These three very distinct practices all melded and fused together on the Midland Railway - which of course ran right in between them all. The Midland Railway wrote the third proper rulebook in 1859, roughly twenty years after the GWR wrote its.

The Midland Railway's rulebook took the LNWR idea that engines needed to be taught to accept death, the GNR idea of a class system and the GWR importance of company loyalty and railway-rule-knowledge and fused them together, being able to create the rulebook that most British railways would use by 1890. The major exception to this was of course the Great Western, which slowly evolved its rulebook to use the LNWR ideas of engines being subservient to their managers while retaining the classless form of etiquette the engines were taught. The GNR would also hold out on some ideas from the GWR until it was amalgamated into the LNER, due to rising fears of Communism by the board.

Many smaller railways, such as the Furness Railway or the Highland Railway in Scotland, would use the GWR style, due to the smaller size of the workforce, and thus the potential necessity for engines to complete duties they were trained for.

Duck fits into his role at Tidmouth with such ease because he knows the theory behind every express train, every freight train, every style of shunting and branchline service. He doesn't need them, but the GWR engines were taught this just in case. Duck is excellent at his job, but he won't take any flak from the other engines because his GWR ideology makes him see them all as equal. This is of course part of the Great Western Way as explained in this post.

In direct contrast, Gordon has zero clue how to pull a freight train, and stalls on the hill because he physically doesn't know what to do.

And this brings me quite neatly to Sir Topham Hatt I. See, this is a GWR man who runs a railway that is very heavily influenced by the Midland Railway rulebook ideology. Edward knows how to do multiple tasks because the Furness Railway used GWR practice (maybe that's why he likes Edward?) while none of the other engines do. Sir Topham Hatt's management style using GWR practice is so confusing to them. Why is James - who is mixed-traffic at best - pulling the express? Why is Gordon pulling freight? Why are the big engines shunting?!

And then we have Henry. Sir Topham and Henry have such a rocky relationship, and it in many ways comes from the fact that Henry had none of the formal education that I just discussed. He's a privately-built engine from stolen plans sold cheap. He doesn't actually know the etiquette of a passenger train - no wonder he stops when he doesn't like the weather! He doesn't physically know better, and so he's acting on his first instincts. This clashes so badly with the GWR style which places etiquette almost above everything else. Hatt reacts so badly and outright insanely to this because to him, Henry is actively and deliberately breaking every rule in the book because of his paint? And Henry doesn't have a clue. Look at how horrified he is!

And don't get me wrong, this is extremely unethical and very stupid, but it has a precedence in miscommunication, differing ideologies and Henry's foolishness.

This was another massive ramble with a lot of insanity, but I do enjoy writing these. Helps organise my mind! As usual, none of the above pictures belong to me, and feel free to chuck in a comment with your opinion!

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beautyinyourbeast · 10 months

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˗ˏˋ 🤍 ˎˊ˗

à la déité féroce, je vins d'une candeur liliale / prédestinée à floraître par la graine de la vénusté; / voudrais-je demeurer jeune pousse à la blancheur nivéale / ne guère être constellée des tachetures de la vétusté [...]

🌬🏛🕯☁️🕊🐚

Portrait of a Lady, 1894 - Vittorio Matteo Corcos.

Window Study, b. 1958 - Serguei Toutounov.

Cloud Study, 1821-1822 - John Constable.

⠈⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠈⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄

˗ˏˋ ❤️‍🔥 ˎˊ˗

[...] de mes aïeules, j'en suis les relents que médire il te plaît / amasseuse de sang, toi qui me voulait purificatoire; / guérisseuse au génie divinatoire, j'eus à penser tes maux / jamais assez mais suffisamment pour le saint embrasement / pourfendeur à la langue de glaive, coutumière à panser tes mots / est-ce ainsi, depuis Ève, que les femmes usent de l'onguent.

🔥🌋🩸🗡🌪🌑

Lying Female Nude (Mythology scene), 1881 - Victor Casimir Zier.

space, 2021 - Evi-gilatio.

Nymphs Dancing to Pan's Flute, 1920 - Joseph Tomanek.

Lacrimosa, 2020 - Nicola Samori.

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women-throughout-history · 2 months

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What do you think about Emily Dickinson’s love life?

Hi! Thank you so much for your ask!

As I've said here, there have been many speculations about Emily Dickinson's love life, though she never married. Some of these possible love interests include Charles Wadsworth, Samuel Bowles and Judge Otis P. Lord, but more interestingly, in my opinion, Susan Gilbert, Emily's friend and sister in law.

Susan and Emily lived in the same town and attended the same school, Amherst Academy, as well. In 1853, Susan had married Emily's brother Austin too.

It's no secret that Emily and Susan were close and that Emily confided in her and valued her opinion. In a letter, she's compared Susan to Shakespeare as well. There were more than 500 letters, most of them expressing "strong homoerotic feelings" (as said by Lena Koski in The Emily Dickinson Journal)

In modern media, their relationship is portrayed to be a romantic one, rightfully so based on the evidence and letters between the two. Emily wrote passionately to Susan, and trusted her too.

To this day, scholars debate whether Emily and Susan were romantically involved. Though I've not dedicated nearly as much time and research towards this debate, I believe that there was chemistry between the two that is much more than friendship. Honestly, it's difficult to label what the two had as "sisterhood" or just "friendship" when there are so many romantic connotations behind the letter. In my opinion, Emily has perfectly captured the essence of true love through her letters to Susan, and expresses it beautifully.

#women in history #emily dickinson #american history #susan gilbert #1800s #writers #poets #queer writing

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boneskullravenriver · 4 months

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Writing is such a funny hobby. It fr has me reading a handbook for outdated etiquette for women in the 1800s as research for a story that I probably will never show anyone else 😂

#*.☽ .*boneskullrr*.☽ .*#writerblr #writing #writers on tumblr #writers #look im trying to be more organized. ive written more plot/world building stuff than actually writing the story #the setting is kind of like... vaguely mid 1800s

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thewriteadviceforwriters · 11 months

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How to Write a Regency Era Novel | Short Guide

Introduction

Imagine yourself in a world of pride, prejudice, and elegance. A world where the rich and powerful are constantly seeking marriage arrangements, and where love can be both a beautiful and dangerous thing. This is the world of the Regency Era, a time period in the early 19th century in England that was characterized by a distinct social and cultural scene. Writing a Regency Era novel can be an exciting and rewarding experience, but it requires a deep understanding of the time period, as well as a mastery of the art of storytelling. In this guide, I'll help you explore the key elements of a successful Regency Era novel and provide tips and tricks for crafting a compelling story that will transport your readers back in time.

Section 1: Setting the Scene

The first step in writing a Regency Era novel is to create a vivid and immersive world that captures the essence of the time period. This means paying attention to the historical details that will bring the era to life, such as the clothing, architecture, and social norms of the time. Here are a few tips to help you create a vibrant and believable setting:

1. Research the era thoroughly: To create a realistic and accurate portrayal of the Regency Era, you will need to do your homework. Read books, watch movies, and immerse yourself in the culture and history of the time period.

2. Pay attention to the details: The devil is in the details, as they say, and this is especially true when it comes to writing a Regency Era novel. Pay close attention to the clothing, architecture, and social norms of the time, and make sure your descriptions are accurate and vivid.

3. Use sensory language: To truly immerse your readers in the world of the Regency Era, you need to use sensory language that appeals to all five senses. Describe the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and textures of the world you are creating, and your readers will feel as if they are right there with your characters.

Section 2: Creating Characters

The characters in your Regency Era novel are the heart and soul of your story, so it's important to create well-rounded, believable, and relatable characters that your readers will care about. Here are a few tips to help you create compelling characters:

1. Consider the societal norms of the time: The Regency Era was a time of strict social conventions, and your characters should reflect this. Consider their social standing, their family background, and their education when creating your characters.

2. Give your characters depth: Your characters should have flaws, fears, and desires just like real people. Think about what motivates your characters and what obstacles they must overcome to achieve their goals.

3. Develop strong relationships: The relationships between your characters are just as important as the characters themselves. Create complex relationships that are based on love, friendship, and loyalty, and your readers will be invested in the outcomes of those relationships.

Section 3: Crafting a Compelling Plot

The plot of your Regency Era novel should be engaging, emotionally resonant, and true to the time period. Here are a few tips to help you craft a compelling plot:

1. Incorporate historical events: The Regency Era was a time of great social, political, and cultural change, and incorporating these historical events into your plot can add depth and richness to your story.

2. Create tension and conflict: Your plot should be driven by tension and conflict, whether it's a romantic conflict between your characters or a conflict between different social classes.

3. Use dialogue effectively: Dialogue is a powerful tool for advancing your plot and developing your characters. Use dialogue to reveal character motivations, advance the plot, and create tension between characters.

Conclusion

Writing a Regency Era novel can be a challenging but rewarding experience. By immersing yourself in the time period, creating well-rounded characters, and crafting a compelling plot, you can transport your readers back in time and create a world that is both captivating and memorable. So grab your quill and ink, and get ready to embark on a journey into the world of the Regency Era.

TheWriteAdviceForWriters 2023

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severin-photocopy · 2 days

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" Sabadil kneeled and started to cry without restraint. << Unfortunate, lost creature! >> Mardona continued. << Here you are, at the feet of your Lord, dejected by torments and doubts. Repent, obey, and my love will help you win the flesh that tortures you so cruelly>> "

- The Mother of God (Die Gottesmutter) by Leopold von Sacher-Masoch

unofficial translation by me based off the Italian translation by Umberto Gandini

#leopold von sacher masoch #sacher masoch #masoch #tw masoch #cw masoch #venus in furs #die Gottesmutter #19th century #19th century literature #literature #german literature #1800s #1800 writers #book quotes #quote #quotes

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burningvelvet · 11 months

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Excerpt of a letter from Claire Clairmont to Lord Byron discussing her step-sister Mary Shelley’s new novel, Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus, 12 January 1818:

“I have Faults. I am timid from vanity; my temper is inconstant & volage. I want dignity. I do not like our Mary sail my steady course like a ship under a gentle & favorable wind. But at thirty I shall be better and every year I hope to gain in value. What news shall I tell you? Mary has just published her first work a novel called Frankenstein or, the Modern Prometheus. It is a most wonderful performance full of genius & the fiction is of so continued and extraordinary a kind as no one would imagine could have been written by so young a person. I am delighted & whatever private feelings of envy I may have at not being able to do so well myself yet all yields when I consider that she is a woman & will prove in time an ornament to us & an argument in our favour. How I delight in a lovely woman of strong & cultivated intellect. How I delight to hear all the intricacies of mind & argument hanging on her lips! If she were my mortal enemy, if she had even injured my darling I would serve her with fidelity and fervently advocate her as doing good to the whole. When I read of Epicharis the slave in Tacitus & of Hypatia of Alexandria in Gibbon, I shriek with joy & cry Vitoria! Vitoria! I cannot bear that women should be outdone in virtue & knowledge by men.”

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cupcakes-and-pain · 9 months

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Is anyone here autistic about mid 1800s carriages and/or women’s fashion? Or knows someone who might be? Or even if it isn’t quite the mid 1800s, even just sometime around there? Because I know very little about it but I have a character in a (non-whump) novel who is extremely autistic about it and I am doing lots of research but I just feel like it’d help to have someone who already has that as a special interest.

#not whump #my autism over Minecraft and Joseph from the Bible and linguistics unfortunately won’t cut it #also this character is actually from the mid 1800s so from his perspective he’s just autistic over modern carriages and women’s fashion #should I tag this as autism? it’d get it out there more #eh it feels wrong #creative writing #writing process #autistic writer

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zeehasablog · 5 months

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Daguerreotype of young Edgar Allen Poe - ca. 1845

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thesourlemonwriting · 10 months

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"Anguish" and "The Cry of the Children"

The Victorian era is known most for its drastic changes in British social reform while also holding witness to the world of technology advancing faster than it ever had before. An unfortunate side effect to this progress is the unforeseen need for workers, especially smaller, cheaper workers, ultimately leading to a massive growth in child labor. Because of this, a movement came about during this time in which protestors advocated for the termination of such abuse of those too weak to defend themselves. Through this tumultuous process, Elizabeth Barret Browning and August Friedrich Schenk decided to demonstrate the horrors of this exploitation through their art.

Schenck was a French painter whom the world knows very little about. However, his paintings come back into popularity every few decades. His most famous painting he titled “Angoisse,” which translates to “Anguish.” The scene depicts a ewe and her collapsed lamb surrounded by a large murder, otherwise known as a group of crows. A single line of blood drips out of the lamb’s mouth. One thing that is known about Schenck is his love for painting sheep and other animals in distress, “which were often seen as a metaphor for human relationships and society” (NGV). Through his distinct style, he is able to demonstrate the inherent struggle of human emotion.

The desperation and hopelessness in the ewe’s face is almost human in nature as it shows a parent’s love and sadness felt during the struggle of their young. As for the crows, it is now commonly known that they are intelligent birds, though, “...they’re thought to circle in large numbers above sites where animals or people are expected to soon die” (PBS). Because of the way society views crows, their symbolism in art and literature is commonly one of death and even apathy. In the portrait, the murder is obviously conscious of the lamb’s demise, but the birds show no sadness in the way that the ewe does. It instead appears as though they are waiting to reap the benefits of the ewe’s loss. This relates to the Victorian era’s struggle with child labor because of the constant intensity of emotion parents would feel sending their children into labor, as well as the way in which higher society remorselessly benefitted from this torture.

While on the topic of parents feeling torn apart sending their children to work, it is worth noting that Elizabeth Barret Browning’s poem, “The Cry of the Children,” shares this same sentiment. In this poem, she is denouncing those who make children work and desperately trying to make her readers aware of the agony these young workers go through in an attempt at a call to action. One line that stands out in particular because of its relatability to Schenk is, “If we cared for any meadows, it were merely/To drop down in them and sleep./Our knees tremble sorely in the stooping” (Browning 67-69). In the painting, the setting is a snowy wasteland symbolic of inevitability and the coldness of others. As for the poem, the meadow is symbolic of relaxation and enjoyment that the children cannot take part in. Both artists use this type of imagery as a way of conveying the difficulty of bearing the ordeal of society’s lack of humanity. The line also brings into light the physical pain of working long hours rather than just the emotional.

This brings up Robert Collyer, an American preacher, who wrote a memoir of his own time working in factories as a child, and it sparks some resemblance to Browning’s poetry. He states, “...there I was at work in the factory, with many children of about my same age…thirteen hours a day five days in the week, and eleven on the Saturday…the result of this was that the weaker children were so crippled that the memory of their crooked limbs still casts a rather sinister light for me” (Collyer 15). Robert Collyer was born in 1823, which makes him roughly eighty-five years old in 1908 when this memoir was published. Even so, the description of his memories is so vivid, which allows for the realization that the people reading Elizabeth Barret Browning would have also been able to relate to her poem in some way. They would most likely feel its impact and either have their own memories of working in factories or knowing someone who did.

However, such was not the case for a grand part of society. According to Melih Karakuzu and Ozlem Sayar in their essay about the Victorian and Romantic eras of literature, “The children were not valued” (Karakuzu et al). The writers go on to say that in this time period, society did not care about the effects of labor on children, and it was radical to do so. Especially when the economy was falling apart as much as it had been “during the period of 1884-1887” in which the unemployment rate in Great Britain was above 7.5% while in 1886 increased in 10.2%” (Katselidis). Essentially, technology was advancing with such acceleration that it left many open spots for workers, and there was no room left to question the morality of keeping children working for several hours a day. As Browning says later on in the poem, “When we sob aloud, the human creatures near us/Pass by, hearing not, or answer not a word!” (Browning 107-108). She is referring to society’s apathy and how it was manufactured by the profiters of child labor, those of who believed there was no other option for the economy. This made it so that parents in the lower class struggled the most to save their children from the treacherousness of what was essentially slavery.

Overall, the Victorian era bore many positives in the realm of technological advancements and inventions, but a painful weight came along with it. Children lost their innocence in ways and at a scale that would not have been possible before. They suffered the most, but it was the parents who suffered as well as they witnessed the torture their children went through meanwhile not being able to stop it. Elizabeth Barret Browning and August Friedrich Schenk acknowledged this and called out to the world to make society notice and to let children once again be children.

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