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Post by The Doctor on Apr 27, 2011 8:21:46 GMT -5
I have been doing my first person interpretation of 'The Doctor' for several years now and really enjoy the creative and dramatic outlet it affords me as part of my hobby. But believe me when I tell you, the Doctor didn't just spring fully formed into the world, I had to work and develop him from the ground up... and that takes some time and thought.
Are you working on a Regency Persona, but not sure how to get started?
Well, please allow me to offer this as a way to jumpstart your creative juices and set you on the 'first person' path:
If you fill this out, share it with us so we can have a look at what you've done with it. And be creative,don't feel like you have to simply stick with what I've put on here, expand on things if they need expanding, add things that perhaps I haven't thought of etc.
I look forward to seeing what you come up with!
CHARACTER’S FULL NAME:
DOB: AGE: BIRTHPLACE: RELIGION: OCCUPATION: MARITAL STATUS: KNOWN RELATIVES:
SOCIAL STANDING: Beggar Poor Working Poor Indentured Servant Slave Servant Working Class/Tradesman Lower Middle Class Middle Class Upper Middling Sort Upper Class (New Money) Upper Class (Old Money) Politician/Nobility Royalty/Ruling Class
EDUCATION:
HOBBIES/INTERESTS:
GROUP AFFILIATION:
HOME ADDRESS:
WORK ADDRESS:
SKILLS:
MOTIVATIONS: Personality Traits:
Person you value most:
What you value most:
How you feel about most people:
Your most valued possession:
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Post by The Doctor on Apr 27, 2011 12:38:44 GMT -5
Now, as an example, I'll show you some of the initial work that went into the creation of my persona.
The Doctor
DOB: January 9th, 1776
AGE: 35
BIRTHPLACE: Lincolnshire, England
OCCUPATION: Physician, Surgeon in private practice
MARITAL STATUS: Widowed (in 1807)
KNOWN RELATIVES: Lucy (daughter, age 13) Molly (daughter, age 11) Rose (daughter, age 10) Sophia (daughter, age 7)
SOCIAL STANDING: Upper Class (New Money)
EDUCATION: Attended Boston Grammar School (at Boston, Lincolnshire) under Headmaster Bell in 1786 at age 10.
1792- age 16, trained in medicine at the hospital at Boston, Lincolnshire
1794- age 18, accepted in London as a member of the Company of Surgeons
HOBBIES/INTERESTS: Medicine, Collecting and studying plants and animals, fencing
GROUP AFFILIATION: Royal Navy, retired.
HOME ADDRESS: Birdsall Cottage, near the Hermitage in Nashville, Tenn.
WORK ADDRESS: Same
MOTIVATIONS: Personality Traits: The Doctor is quiet and reserved. He generally only opens up to people that are closest to him.
What you value most: Family and close friends, honesty, duty and integrity.
Your most valued possession: My surgical instruments, without them I couldn't practice the Art & Mystery of my profession.
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Post by Miss Waterman on Apr 27, 2011 13:08:27 GMT -5
To add another version for you all to peruse. Do try it, it is quite fun! Don't be afraid to ask for assistance, I am sure the Doctor would not mind, nor would I.
CHARACTER’S FULL NAME: Emily Anne Waterman
DOB: January 28, 1788
AGE: 23
BIRTHPLACE: Berkshire, England
OCCUPATION: Educated Lady
MARITAL STATUS: Single
KNOWN RELATIVES: Mr. and Mrs. Waterman (parents), Kathryn (twin sister), Elizabeth Reeser (aunt on father's side), Lady Georgiana Sully (Mother's Sister's Husband's Sister's daughter. Say that ten times fast.)
SOCIAL STANDING: A combination of upper class old money (natural family) and new money (current residence with the Hegwoods.)
EDUCATION: Arts of a young lady through a Governess, was not sent away to school.
HOBBIES/INTERESTS: Riding, music, writing, taking absurdly long walks among nature, a goodly amount of reading, observing out lofty feathered friends.
HOME ADDRESS: Currently at the Black Horse Inn, Nashville, T.N. Permanent new residence to be determined at a later date.
SKILLS: A good riding seat, singing and playing, writing with perhaps a little too much wit, dancing
MOTIVATIONS:
Personality Traits: "painfully" shy in large groups of new people, though upon further acquaintance is known for a stinging wit and true opinions. Feels thing perhaps a little too keenly, but can hide it well in the face of any unfortunate circumstances.
Person you value most: The Hegwoods, who have become her new family, and Abigail, her faithful personal maid who has followed her from England.
What you value most: Family; I have been very abruptly separated from my natural family, but have been swept into the arms of two people who know I consider it. Truth, and kindness to others.
How you feel about most people: The more I see of the world the less I am inclined to like it; but there is always something good to be found in the face of so much ill.
Your most valued possession: My Diary, of course, for without it, I would be dreadfully bored and my mind would go terribly dull. It carries all my secrets.
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Post by Eleanor on Apr 27, 2011 13:33:59 GMT -5
How interesting! I have only the basics right now, but this gives me something to work with.
One thing I'm always curious about. I've been involved in other history inspired groups and the topic of where the persona lives is always a lively conversation. Even though a person lives in the United States modernly, their persona often "lives" in Europe, or wherever it is they are originally from.
Both of your personae live now in Tennessee, presumably because your modern selves live there. Was there ever any consideration to still "live" in England? How did you decide? Or was the decision made for you by the group you belong to?
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Post by The Doctor on Apr 27, 2011 14:10:25 GMT -5
Well MY decision was made solely due to the fact that I actually live in Tennessee. And since there was some civilization here in TN around 1800-1812, that makes it really handy.
If I lived in... oh let's say, Oregon, I'm not sure HOW I would explain living in THAT part of the country during that time. I might just have to pretend to be in another part of the country... or Europe.
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Post by Miss Waterman on Apr 27, 2011 14:21:53 GMT -5
With Emily, there is a lot more convoluted of a story there; my intentions for her residence arose for a desire to have some correlation of characters between the Doctor and Emily. Circumstances needed to make sense for them to be in the same place at the same time, and when first I began correspondence with the Doctor I hailed from California, which considering it did not exist at the time I needed an explanation to why the Doctor and Emily were so far apart. The solution was England. But then came the need to have a transition of story as in September it was planned for us to meet at an event; therefore Emily needed to be closer.
That being a really long way to say I needed Emily to follow me in my moving about the country in a correct and logical manner.
Did I completely just confuse you there?
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Post by The Major on Apr 27, 2011 14:28:29 GMT -5
Since I am on the Great Plains, west of the Missouri and east of the Rockies. While there wasn't civilization exactly where I am, there was just South. I could claim residence in, say, St. Louis and I'm currently traveling the wilds. Hmmm, that's interesting to think about, and could be fun to figure it out.
My persona was fairly straight forward considering I've been a military reenactor for some time. But I am wanting to branch off and do something else in addition. I will be most anxious to see what others contribute to this.
Thank you to Miss Waterman and The Doctor. That is most helpful.
Warmest Regards,
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Post by Eleanor on Apr 27, 2011 14:59:57 GMT -5
Dear Emily, you make perfect sense, fear not!
My husband is in this (initially) for the navy uniform, so being from the Great Plains of the U.S. is not really an option. :-) And as an officer on active duty in the King's navy, England it will have to be.
Now, how we interact with others.... that could get complicated.
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Post by The Major on Apr 27, 2011 15:23:55 GMT -5
Dear Emily, you make perfect sense, fear not! My husband is in this (initially) for the navy uniform, so being from the Great Plains of the U.S. is not really an option. :-) And as an officer on active duty in the King's navy, England it will have to be. Now, how we interact with others.... that could get complicated. Perhaps at your local group events, from time to time, the host or hostess (or manager) could as part of the theme provide the location (England, or a town in England, or a U.S. location such as Waterbury, CT) and use it as an imaginative means of conversation. The guests could describe where they came from and talk about their trip and what it took to get there. Or it could be a way for folks to research an area. Could be fun. Warmest Regards,
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Post by Eleanor on Apr 27, 2011 15:36:56 GMT -5
I should amend my statement a bit from the above, so as not to make my dear husband seem a complete cockscomb.... He really does love the fiction and the history of the Napoleonic war, and happily it coincided with my love of Jane Austen and the Regency period. So it is from both of these that our background will come.
It doesn't hurt that he looks quite fine in his uniform. :-)
~E
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Post by Mme de Beaufort on Apr 27, 2011 22:11:32 GMT -5
Well MY decision was made solely due to the fact that I actually live in Tennessee. And since there was some civilization here in TN around 1800-1812, that makes it really handy. If I lived in... oh let's say, Oregon, I'm not sure HOW I would explain living in THAT part of the country during that time. I might just have to pretend to be in another part of the country... or Europe. Ai ai ai! Don't be cruel! ::LOL:: There was the settlement of Astoria, which came to be in 1811 when the fort was built. It's the oldest settlement in Oregon. But yes, you are right, we are quite want for period-appropriate venues. What makes it worse is knowing all the wonderful places I left behind in New England. CHARACTER’S FULL NAME: Dame Elise de Beaufort DOB: 2.22.1762 AGE: 40 BIRTHPLACE: Malines/Mechelen (Belgium/French Occupied) RELIGION: Catholic but far from practicing. OCCUPATION: None MARITAL STATUS: Widowed and newly remarried to a gentleman of the colonies. KNOWN RELATIVES: Sister: Dame Helene Terbronnen (46) Dowager Sister: Mrs. Anna D'Iselles (48) Married, no children Brother: Chevalier Stephane Bruneel (55) Four children SOCIAL STANDING: Politician/Nobility EDUCATION: Attended a school in northern England per her Father's wishes. HOBBIES/INTERESTS: Artist, horsewoman and meddler. GROUP AFFILIATION: HOME ADDRESS: Exeter New Hampshire WORK ADDRESS: SKILLS: Painting, writing, talking, reading, horse-riding MOTIVATIONS: Personality Traits: Sporting a strong French accent, this Walloon-born lady feels slightly out of place with the society of the town of Exeter. I endure it because I love my new husband and my new (humbler) home. I find trips to Boston, Portsmouth and Manchester to be excellent ways to spend my free time. I tend to meddle with the young lives of local singles and spend a good deal of time hosting little parties in order to orchestrate marriages and matches. I am happiest when undisturbed by visitors, but I cannot manage to avoid the unending succession of visitors, so I have learned to enjoy the frequent social visits from my neighbours. I travel occasionally home to French-Occupied Belgium to visit family--however I'd rather stay home and putter about my newly-built roman-revival house and ride across the beautiful New England countryside. Person you value most: My much adored-Husband What you value most: Peace of mind and happiness. How you feel about most people: I wish most of them would just leave me alone. Your most valued possession: My father's books and some of my family jewels. Read more: regencysa.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=reglarp&action=modifypost&thread=1196&post=8322#ixzz1KmfVhmae
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Post by The Major on May 5, 2011 20:32:29 GMT -5
While going through my book shelves looking for information on something else, I came across a book I forgot I had. The book is, "Who Was I? Creating A Living History Persona, A Modest Guide to the Hows and Whys" by Cathy Johnson, Graphics/Fine Arts Press, Excelsior Springs, MO, ISBN 0-9638158-1-4.
I have had the book for a long time and don't know if it's still in print. But if you can find it, it is a nice primer to building a persona and can be used for nearly any time period.
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Post by Eleanor on May 6, 2011 7:16:18 GMT -5
It's available from Amazon.com and Abebooks.com. Just type in the title. New copies around $10.
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Miss Clockwood
Officer
"So you are going. And never coming back?" ~ John Thornton
Posts: 60
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Post by Miss Clockwood on May 17, 2011 12:42:40 GMT -5
I'm going to re-do this. When I tried writing a fanfic, my beta readers informed me that a woman could not inherit a dukedom. So, I'm off to re-do this!
Here's my attempt. I have a few that I am working on, one being Regency, one being Victorian, and one being a combination (I fell really hard for P&P and North & South and can't seem to get away from them!) of Regency and Victorian. So I will probably do only a diary for each.
Anyway, so here's the Regency one. The Victorian and combination ones are similar, only in different time periods and with different or added relatives, respectively. If you would like to see the other two, please let me know.
CHARACTER’S FULL NAME: Lady Julie Purcell
DOB: August 8, 1785 AGE: 22 BIRTHPLACE: Purcell Manor, Kent RELIGION: Protestant OCCUPATION: Duchess MARITAL STATUS: Unmarried KNOWN RELATIVES: Fitzwilliam and Georgiana Darcy, cousins
SOCIAL STANDING: The Duchess of Kent
EDUCATION: Governesses and Masters
HOBBIES/INTERESTS: Helping the less fortunate, horseback riding, travelling, drawing, reading, playing the pianoforte, writing to and visiting friends and family, playing chess
MAIN HOME ADDRESS: Purcell Manor, Kent
MOTIVATIONS: Personality Traits: Loves to be around people, understanding, kind, generous, values people for who they are and not their social standing or wealth
Person you value most: My cousins
What you value most: People
How you feel about most people: None should be looked down on because of their social standing. They should be taken on their own merit. Detests interfering, meddling relatives and those who think they have a right to be interfering and meddling simply because of their connection to one's relative
Your most valued possession: My horses and my books
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Post by ladylisette on May 18, 2011 10:59:10 GMT -5
When creating your personna, do you user your own given name, a made up name, or an actual historical person's name from the time period? If you are titled, do you carry a title that actually exists or existed, or do you make one up? I've been working on mine but am a bit confused on these points.
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Post by Eleanor on May 18, 2011 12:11:47 GMT -5
When creating your personna, do you user your own given name, a made up name, or an actual historical person's name from the time period? If you are titled, do you carry a title that actually exists or existed, or do you make one up? I've been working on mine but am a bit confused on these points.
I chose a made up name, after researching what names were used during the period. I did not what to recreate an actual person, because I'm not doing this for public education, as at a living history village or similar venue. This is just my own fun. Your circumstance may dictate what you choose. As for titles, and let me stress this is for myself only, I did not think it appropriate to pretend to be titled. Not because I think there is anything wrong with doing so, but I do not feel I could accurately portray someone with a title, considering my real life budget. Someone with a title would *likely* have been very wealthy, and their clothing, accessories, etc. would reflect that. I just don't think I could do it justice. What would people think of a Countess (for example) in simple "country fashions?" ;-) I fully admit this is my own weirdness, and I apply it only to myself. Now, if I ever win a large lottery, all bets are off! ;-)
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Post by The Major on May 18, 2011 13:22:17 GMT -5
When it comes to choosing a name, I will first echo Eleanor - "Your circumstance may dictate what you choose." I will caution you about choosing the name of a person who actually existed, especially if you are going to do any living history for the public. Here is a true story and one of the cautions about it. A friend of mine was doing an impression of Captain Meriwether Lewis at a living history venue when a little girl approached him and told him that she was his great great great great great great (or thereabouts) granddaughter, "please tell me about yourself". To say the least my friend was very uncomfortable and speechless. My friend never portrayed someone who actually existed ever again. If you do choose someone who existed, you will want to be prepared for this type of encounter. While it may be unlikely, it is certainly possible to happen to you. Then, in general, if you make up a name, do not be too strict about everyone using it. You will probably have friends that are like me that have trouble remembering people's real names and constantly getting their real names mixed up (for me, to the point of embarrassment, yes I'm a bone head but most of my friends know and understand by now). Then you throw in a made up name, and those like me will probably just call you "hey you" I have had my living history persona determined for a number of years and within my family line, I'm a descendant of an officer and commander of the regiment I recreate. But I'm still working on my 'Regency' persona or character. I will say that I'm fortunate enough to already have an English name, but for the sake of theatrics I am going to go by a variation of my real name to keep it simple but separate from my normal living history persona which simply uses my real name. Just food for thought.
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Post by Eleanor on May 18, 2011 14:59:34 GMT -5
I will say that I'm fortunate enough to already have an English name, but for the sake of theatrics I am going to go by a variation of my real name to keep it simple but separate from my normal living history persona which simply uses my real name. Why, Major... do you have a name? (I hope you do not think me too forward, sir, to tease you a bit.) With kind regards, Mrs. Eleanor Tracey
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Post by ladylisette on May 18, 2011 15:12:38 GMT -5
I guess fortunately, since I am an ever so great-grandaughter of the second Earl of Grey and Mary Elizabeth Ponsonby, I thought perhaps I could base my personal character on my ancestor of that time and use the family estates as my "home" since I have visited Howick Hall in Northumberland and met my English relations.
I will have to give more thought to how I want to do my persona to tie everything together. I prefer to use my given name but it sounds very French. I'm not sure how that will work.
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Post by The Major on May 18, 2011 15:33:27 GMT -5
I will say that I'm fortunate enough to already have an English name, but for the sake of theatrics I am going to go by a variation of my real name to keep it simple but separate from my normal living history persona which simply uses my real name. Why, Major... do you have a name? (I hope you do not think me too forward, sir, to tease you a bit.) With kind regards, Mrs. Eleanor Tracey Indeed madame, I do. And I do not think you too forward, perhaps just about right
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