This Day in History on Literature - History and Headlines

April 17, 2018: Today is National Haiku Day

By Major Dan on April 17, 2018 April 17, Humor, Literature

A Brief History On April 17, 2018, we celebrate National Haiku Day, the day that the traditional Japanese form of poetry is celebrated. In recognition of this great “holiday,” we offer a few of our own creations. We invite our readers to compose their own Haiku poetry and share those with our other readers! Digging Deeper Remember, the Haiku form is normally consisting of 3 lines, the first line containing 5 syllables, the second line containing 7 syllables, and the third line containing 5 syllables. Rhyming is not necessary. Haiku appeared in Japan in the 1600’s, and in the US…

August 10, 1901: Time Travel and Ghosts! The Moberly-Jourdain Incident

By Major Dan on March 17, 2018 August 10, Literature, The Paranormal, The Unexplained

A Brief History On August 10, 1901, Charlotte Anne Moberly (1846–1937) and Eleanor Jourdain (1863–1924) traveled by train to Versailles to visit the Royal Palace and grounds located there about 12 miles from the city center of Paris. Little did they realize their sight seeing trip would be a trip into the supernatural, a trip they would never forget. Digging Deeper Moberly was born in 1846 in Winchester, England, and had become an academician, working as Principal of St. Hugh’s College, in Oxford. Previously she had served as her father’s secretary, her father serving as the Bishop of Salisbury. Jourdain…

March 15, 44 BC: “Beware the Ides of March!” and other Common Latin Phrases

By Major Dan on March 15, 2018 Crime, Lists, Literature, March 15

A Brief History On March 15, 44 BC, the Dictator of the Roman Republic (contrary to popular belief, he was not the Emperor, as that post did not exist at this time), Gaius Julius Caesar, was assassinated by Roman senators and political rivals (as many as 60 of them!), brutally stabbed to death. Prior to his assassination, Caesar is said to have been warned by a seer that he would be assassinated not later than “The Ides of March,” what the Romans called March 15th. Since then, we have frequently heard the cautionary phrase, “Beware the Ides of March,” and…

Worrisome Wednesday: “The Russian Sleep Experiment”

By Dr. Zar on March 14, 2018 Health/Medicine, Literature, The Bizarre

A Brief History What follows is a short story written by an unknown author either before or in 2010, the year when it was posted on the Creepypasta Wiki by Orange.Soda. This content is available per the Creative Commons License. The story has become an internet legend and has been adapted into a short film (2017). This story has had a positive reception. TatsTopVideos ranks it among the “Top 22 Non Gaming Creepypastas”. Digging Deeper: “The Russian Sleep Experiment” Full Text Russian researchers in the late 1940s kept five people awake for fifteen days using an experimental gas based stimulant. They were kept in…

January 29, 1845: 10 Greatest Works of Literature with a Bird in the Title

By Major Dan on January 29, 2018 Cinema & TV, January 29, Lists, Literature

A Brief History On January 29, 1845, Edgar Allan Poe, the Baltimore writer of such classics as “The Telltale Heart,” “The Pit and the Pendulum,” and “The Goldbug,” published his famous poem, “The Raven,” certainly one of if not the most renowned poem in American literature, and ranks among the most famous of poems. Today we list 10 great works of American Literature that feature a bird in the title. What other works would you include on this list? Digging Deeper 1. “The Raven,” Edgar Allan Poe, 1845. This poem is the work that got Poe widespread fame and acclaim,…

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