site banner
naraburns  nihil supernum  11mo ago (text post)   2949 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for April 28, 2023

Be advised: this thread is not for serious in-depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.

3
Top Bottom Old Controversial Comments
Jump in the discussion.

No email address required.

On the /r/FanTheories subreddit, a descendant of King James II of Scotland posted his theory that Captain Hook was always intended by J.M. Barrie to be recognizable as that king's bastard son, who went missing in Paris at the age of ten.

Captain Hook is James Beauclerk, the illegitimate son of King Charles II of England and his mistress, the low-born actress and courtesan Nell Gwyn. Evidence for this includes:

  • Captain Hook is the spitting image of King Charles II of England - with dark or black curly hair and "Stewart/Stuart resemblance", with the only difference being Hook's blue eyes.
  • Hook sharing personality traits, mannerisms, and physical features with both King Charles II and Nell Gwyn, balancing aristocratic dress and mannerisms with "slightly disgusting" ones.
  • "Captain Hook" is implied to be a fake name and invented identity to conceal Hook's true identity. J.M. Barrie states in Peter Pan & Wendy: "'Hook' was not his true name. To reveal who he really was would, even at this date, set the country [of England] in a blaze." This is especially true if Captain Hook was none other than the King Charles II's long-lost son, Lord James Beauclerk.
  • The mysterious "death" and disappearance of the Rt. Hon. James Beauclerk, or "Lord James Beauclerk". Nell Gwyn gave birth to her second child by the King, christened James - after King Charles II's younger brother, Prince James, Duke of York - on 25 December 1671 - or Christmas Day. Sent to school in Paris to receive an education fit for a prince when he was just 6, James Beauclerk supposedly died there in 1681 under mysterious circumstances. What James' life was like in Paris and the cause of his death are both unknown, one of the few clues being that he died "of a sore leg", which a great-nephew speculated could mean anything from "an accident to poison". This was published in the book The House of Nell Gwyn (1974). However, it is possible that James Beauclerk did not die, as reported - but rather, disappeared, or was whisked away in secrecy back to England due to fears over kidnapping and assassination attempts. His body was never returned; to this day, it is a mystery as to what, exactly, happened to James Beauclerk.

This contradicts the 2005 children's novel Capt. Hook: The Adventures of a Notorious Youth, an antihero-turns-villain origin story by J.V. Hart, screenwriter of Spielberg's Hook starring Robin Williams. In this novel, young James, alias King Jas., attends Eton and has an odd blood disorder, among other differences from this real-life theory.

What is this place?

This website is a place for people who want to move past shady thinking and test their ideas in a court of people who don't all share the same biases. Our goal is to optimize for light, not heat; this is a group effort, and all commentators are asked to do their part.

The weekly Culture War threads host the most controversial topics and are the most visible aspect of The Motte. However, many other topics are appropriate here. We encourage people to post anything related to science, politics, or philosophy; if in doubt, post!

Check out The Vault for an archive of old quality posts. You are encouraged to crosspost these elsewhere.


Why are you called The Motte?

A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently, it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey", originally identified by philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."

On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.


New post guidelines

If you're posting something that isn't related to the culture war, we encourage you to post a thread for it. A submission statement is highly appreciated, but isn't necessary for text posts or links to largely-text posts such as blogs or news articles; if we're unsure of the value of your post, we might remove it until you add a submission statement. A submission statement is required for non-text sources (videos, podcasts, images).

Culture war posts go in the culture war thread; all links must either include a submission statement or significant commentary. Bare links without those will be removed.

If in doubt, please post it!


Rules


Recommended Posts And Communities

Recommended Realtime Chats