tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35743239.post761621982877351864..comments2024-03-19T07:36:33.915-04:00Comments on Of Battered Aspect: By GeorgeDave Hingsburgerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11918601687946534172noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35743239.post-83601595032058833632011-02-07T19:22:48.576-05:002011-02-07T19:22:48.576-05:00Followed the link on Belinda's blog over here....Followed the link on Belinda's blog over here.<br />Enjoyed the post as well as the comments. Dave, I love your perspective and insights, where you went with the spark that landed on you! - MarilynMarilyn Yocumhttp://www.asgoodadayasany.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35743239.post-42620775839874349632011-02-06T17:45:20.275-05:002011-02-06T17:45:20.275-05:00Thought you might appreciate this link http://usto...Thought you might appreciate this link http://ustooplease.com/ It's a mamma who is reviewing different places for their wheelchair acessibility and offering her suggestions to the stores and stuff. She's awesome and I read her regular blog.Mollyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15881590483174001768noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35743239.post-11062997261359514682011-02-06T09:27:55.387-05:002011-02-06T09:27:55.387-05:00Feminist Avatar: Thanks for your comment. I did a ...Feminist Avatar: Thanks for your comment. I did a fair bit of searching on the internet, not relying on simply one source for the facts here in the blog post. I searched George Matheson and read seven or eight different web pages all of which present the story pretty much as I tell it here. Some were on him as a person and some were of the history of that particular hymn. I will continue to look at information on the story and thank you for giving me another reference.Dave Hingsburgerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11918601687946534172noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35743239.post-87779736287599474062011-02-06T08:33:30.264-05:002011-02-06T08:33:30.264-05:00Great story. I wonder why they pushed for "tr...Great story. I wonder why they pushed for "tracing", rather than "climbing", a rainbow. "Climbing" is so much stronger. <br /><br />As to why he was home - did I read it wrong? It sounded to me as if he were home from the wedding - and alone. I just assumed he had already attended the wedding ceremony.Tamarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04624151975591059655noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35743239.post-48932280149306858382011-02-06T08:27:10.191-05:002011-02-06T08:27:10.191-05:00Okay, I am going to put a bucket of water on this ...Okay, I am going to put a bucket of water on this story, because there are too many wholes in it! <br /><br />George Matheson started going blind in his mid-teens; by 18-19, he could only see shadows- so any women who dated him would have dated a man who was blind, just as she refused to marry him. What is more, he is also Scottish and middle-class in the mid-Victorian period, so he would not typically marry until around age 30, perhaps later, and ONLY when his career was established. Any self-respecting middle-class woman would have never entertained a man without a career- blind or not (and she wouldn't have had much of a choice as dating was chaperoned and choice of partner controlled by her parents, if no longer selected for her as in past generations). Matheson's career is well underway by the time he was 30- the typical age for marriage. If there was a woman who rejected him, it is most likely she rejected him while he was famous (and so knew what she was 'missing'). <br /><br />This is also the high-period of Darwin- so blind people generally didn't marry. It would have been socially disaproved of, which would have meant few women (or their families) would have entertained him as a suitor, but it may have also stopped George pursuing that aspect of identity as he may have believed it was inappropriate to marry himself. It was particularly disaproved of for people with disabilities to have children, so if a woman did marry him, she may have been expected to forgo having children and perhaps even sex (if they didn't have any knowledge of contraceptives). These are big asks of any person- and it may be that George wouldn't have asked. Finally, in his biography, he is reported as saying that he had never been in love.<br /><br />George is one of eight children- 5 sons and 3 daughters. The sister with whom he was closest and who aided him in his ministry and lived with for much- but it seems not all- of his life, never married. This sort of arrangement between siblings is very common during the period, and they often had very close partnerships, resembling marriage in many ways. So, if he did miss a wedding, it was likely one of his younger sisters- who he may have been close to and so still seen this as a form of loss. <br /><br />Why he missed the wedding is an interesting question. If it had happened a hundred years earlier, I would have said that was normal. Weddings in Scotland were low-profile affairs. But this is not true by the 19thC- families do attend weddings and they have fancy clothes and a big meal. However, if his sister was some distance away, it may have been impractical for him to travel. And, weddings, at this point, are still not so important that people would go to huge inconvenience to attend them- unlike today.<br /><br />You can read his biography here: http://www.archive.org/details/lifeofgeorgemath00macmialaFeminist Avatarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03364456372396228106noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35743239.post-46159214236807562342011-02-06T04:08:45.035-05:002011-02-06T04:08:45.035-05:00Spinningfishwife, that's a really interesting ...Spinningfishwife, that's a really interesting question. I found no explanation in any of the many articles I read. They all just say that he was home. Why he was not there isn't explained. In my first draft of this post, I'd included that question but then the post grew too long and too confused. I decided, ultimately, to focus on just the one question - what caused despair. However, a whole post could be written about him being home on that day ... like many people with disabilities sit at home on days important to families - weddings (they may act up), funerals (they may cry), graduations (they may envy) ... I've got to be careful or this note will become a post itself. All to say, I'd love to know too.Dave Hingsburgerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11918601687946534172noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35743239.post-38323401083908428762011-02-06T04:00:16.045-05:002011-02-06T04:00:16.045-05:00So why wasn't he at the wedding? Either his si...So why wasn't he at the wedding? Either his sister thought it would be better for him not to go (doesn't sound likely) or he decided not to go. Very odd for a minister to miss his own sister's wedding. Anyone know why?Spinningfishwifehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13709744732495957360noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35743239.post-20207588337736036862011-02-06T03:20:45.521-05:002011-02-06T03:20:45.521-05:00Once again, a post that makes me think about what ...Once again, a post that makes me think about what I think I know. How wonderful of you to think about the woman who rejected him and to wonder at her life!<br /><br />BTW, lovely barbershop arrangment of the hymn!Valoriehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01861700479328908250noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35743239.post-49657274277457831672011-02-06T02:03:43.099-05:002011-02-06T02:03:43.099-05:00That makes three of us... I'm climbing that ra...That makes three of us... I'm climbing that rainbow from now on. I'm so glad you took my post to the next level, er, that is through the next ten levels! :)Susanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12527926041729913404noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35743239.post-3473773209054199842011-02-06T00:43:23.147-05:002011-02-06T00:43:23.147-05:00Dave, I so enjoyed reading your thoughts on George...Dave, I so enjoyed reading your thoughts on George Matheson and the woman who rejected him. <br /><br />I too, will sing the song as it was written, now that I know.<br /><br />I love the thought of climbing a rainbow!Belindahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09251920708783268740noreply@blogger.com