Two events at the NMM

[anteros_lmc]

There are a couple of events coming up at the National Maritime Museum which sound completely fascinating if anyone happens to be in the vicinity.

Masculinity and mental health in the Georgian Navy
Dr Roland Pietsch, Queen Mary, University of London
British Maritime History Seminars 2010–11
22 February, 17.15, free, no booking required.

Abstract:

During the war against Napoleon, physician Sir Gilbert Blane observed that insanity was seven times more common in the Royal Navy than among the general population. In London’s famous Bethlem Hospital (Bedlam) sailors made up the largest group among the patients. Blane did not have any explanation for this, but presumed it had something to do with the sailors frequently banging their heads against the beams under the influence of alcohol. Today we immediately think of posttraumatic stress disorders, something that Blane’s contemporaries were only beginning to grasp. But for the eighteenth-century sailor, battle stress was just one aspect of many that could have had a negative impact on his mental health. Most sailors had entered the wooden world at a very young age, experiencing an abrupt separation from home and attachment figures. They were thrown into an adult world that was not just the most dangerous profession at the time, but which also cultivated an extreme idea of masculinity, a world in which dangers, pain and death were trivialised and meant to be taken without complaint. The sailor’s mental wounds were more likely to show once he was off the Navy’s radar, when he tried to reintegrate into life on land, away from the ship’s family he had spent his formative years in. Now it would show whether his bravado, celebrated in the songs of Charles Dibdin and other popular contemporary performers, had been genuine or whether he had just locked away all the negative impressions in a sea chest deep down in his memory, hoping that it would never be opened.

100 Years of International Women's Day
David Cordingly, Susan Ronald, Anthony Sattin and Kate Williams.
8 March, 18.00–20.00, £10/£8, booking required.

Abstract:

As part of Women’s History Month and to mark the 100th year of International Women’s Day, this day of events will explore the role of women in history.

* 18.00–19.00: David Cordingly will investigate the history and stories of female pirates.
* 19.00–20.00: A women’s history debate on the lives of Elizabeth I, Emma Hamilton and Florence Nightingale and their impact on British history and influence on British maritime history. With Susan Ronald (author of Pirate Queen: Queen Elizabeth I, Her Pirate Adventurers, and the Dawn of Empire), Anthony Sattin (author of A Winter on the Nile) on Florence Nightingale, and Kate Williams (author of England's Mistress: the Infamous Life of Emma Hamilton).

Sadly I can't get to either event *weeps* so if anyone else can make it along I'd be very grateful for a review, particularly of the "Masculinity and Mental Health" lecture. I'll contact the NMM's Research Administrator to see if slides, transcripts or podcasts will be available so I'll keep you posted.

Cross posted to anything_aos

Comments

[mylodon.livejournal.com]

I can't get there, either, although will be there in spirit.

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

They sound like fascinating events don't they?

[eglantine-br.livejournal.com]

Well, of course this has bearing on my understanding of our boys. And maybe not just the fictional ones. From what little you have said about the real Cadogan, for instance, maybe he suffered from some of these effects? Bravado and hyper-masculine posturing are things I have seen with guys trying to return to the "real world."

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

You're absolutely right. The "Masculinity and Mental Health" talk could be of direct relevance to our understanding of both fictional and historical characters.

Pietsch has also written a book called The Real Jim Hawkins: Ships boys in the Georgian Navy which I would very much like to read.

Bravado and hyper-masculine posturing are things I have seen with guys trying to return to the "real world."
I can imagine. It can't be easy for these guys.

[nodbear.livejournal.com]

Think I might be able to get there - though may depend on what is happening the next day.Greenwich is such a nightmare to get to from here though not actally that far away.

I cannot alas take notes though of course :( - but apopros of that same issue - if you find that there is no podcast or similar I will maybe enquire via our friendly Caird source if I could be allowed to record it for private use and listening.

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

I'll contact the Research Administrator in the first instance to see if they can suggest anything. I'll keep you posted :)

[stevie-carroll.livejournal.com]

Those look fascinating, but sadly I can't make it to them either.

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

C'est la vie!

[vespican.livejournal.com]

Eight time zones out of my area, so no chance for me to make it either.

Regarding the mental health of former sailors (and those in other military services); I believe that those who can find humor, be it a bit twisted, in nearly all circumstances are more likely to carry on in later life with fewer problems.
Dave

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

I believe that those who can find humor, be it a bit twisted, in nearly all circumstances are more likely to carry on in later life with fewer problems.
That's a very interesting point. I'm sure you're absolutely right

[vespican.livejournal.com]

Along these lines, I think those who do not take themselves too seriously also have a better chance or normalcy.

[eglantine-br.livejournal.com]

Seems right to me too. I suspect that ways of coping successfully have not changed much.

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

Definitely. I can't help thinking of Archie's smart lip at the beginning of the Frogs and Lobsters and also later on Renown...

[eglantine-br.livejournal.com]

Remember when he made fun of Buckland?

Also, that icon is "This is my rifle, this is my gun!"

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

That icon is two seconds after he made fun of Buckland :/

Also, that icon is "This is my rifle, this is my gun!"
You are incorrigible!

[eglantine-br.livejournal.com]

Or is this Archie getting shot?

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

'Fraid so :(