Chapter 14, Just Like The Ones We Used To Know, Christmas Day

[rthstewart]

Finally, I get Chapter 14 up, after a detour to something hinted at in Under Cover.

There actually isn't that much research that I haven't already discussed before.

The King's Speech took some research to find and while it's quite the info dump, I just didn't feel right editing it.  The part in the House of Russell was in my previous Christmas story but edited slightly to fit better within TSG. 

I did have fun with Susan's fashions and spent a lot of time here looking at the pictures of French fashion from the 1930s.  I imagine Susan wearing something like this:



Source:  HPrints  Also at this stte, you can see pictures of the sort of lovely things that First Officer Pole has in  her attic. 

Oh, I dropped the hint that Michael Pole is with the RAF Photo Reconnaissance Unit flying out of RAF Benson in Oxfordshire.

Edmund's musing on the Leipzig War Crimes tribunals come from various sources and while generally reviled as a failure were also precedent-setting.  My particular spin on it comes from Telford Taylor's The Anatomy of the Nuremberg Trials.  You can read the basics in the wiki entry.

  This page has good information about the context of Foreign Secretary Eden's statement to the House of Commons on December 17, 1942 regarding what would eventually be called the Holocaust.

Thanks to adaese, Doctor Dolly, anastigmatfic, h_dash_h and felipemarcusthomas who have been invaluable as I juggled with the different interactions. 

That's all.  Thanks so much for reading.  I'm now at the point where I can really turn to the NBB.  First check in is in a week and I've not started, so here's hoping I can pull it off.  And that's all for now.  I do hope I hear from folks.  I was two days late posting this.  I promised Christmas Day, but I felt I disappointed by using the King's Christmas Message and the repeat of the Russell House part, so I wrote the Under Cover tie in.  Writing that segment took a little time. 

Comments

Christmas chapter

[(Anonymous)]

Thanks so much for this chapter and the previous half. Sorry it took a while to get round to reviewing it. I have been working, but I have been thinking about it a lot and smiling to myself as I do.

You covered so much ground and I really liked how you gave everyone a significant scene/comment. No small feat to do this seamlessly, in context, and with such a large and diverse group of characters.

What I really liked--

Lucy and Eustace exiting church when they felt it was necessary. Contrasted with the beauty of the Carol service and the simple images of tthanks and sacrifice of the King's speech.

Peter's comment on the paper crown "I cannot imagine wearing a better crown today." Oh my...

The special Christmas present for Jill and Jack having their parents there for Christmas Day.

Susan reconciling with her mother. I was so glad to see that considering the danger Susan is going to be in.

Mary still not getting that trying to help Richard pick up things etc. is just going to make him mad. Everyone else in the household seems to be able to help tactfully. Or is it just that Richard gets really irritated with Mary because he is closest to her?

Digory and Polly cooing over hideous purple flying horse presents. I loved seeing that scene again and slightly expanded.

I had also been thinking about Edmund's reaction to dealing with war crimes when you raised it before. I think he would/will be very interested in the Nuremberg trials. I suppose there is no way he could realistically be present? Lessee--he would be about 17 years old in Spare Oom years in 1945-46 right? Too young to realistically be a very junior intern or something to some participant? Hmm...

Anyway--the story has been great so far, as always. Thank you again. Good luck with the next part--and the Big Bang. I look forward to it. And best wises for 2012.

ClaireI

Re: Christmas chapter

[rthstewart.livejournal.com]

Thank you, Clairel. I've thought about your comment about Mary and how everyone else seems to be learning and she isn't. I see that as a flaw in myself. I have a really, REALLY hard time just sitting back and letting someone do something badly or awkwardly -- my urge to FIX it is overwhelming. I'll take the hammer away, redo how someone has loaded the dishwasher, and unbutton the top button. I can't help myself and I think that is some of Mary's problem. She immediately sees something shaky or not right or likely to spill and she HAS to stop it and I think she would do the same to anyone.

As for Nuremberg, I'll just say, uh huh for now. On the Narnia side of things, I initially did a lot with Edmund as sort of sarcastic and code oriented -- reading and writing laws and contracts -- first in BRD and then as the clerk in the Lone Islands. Through Morgan, I've been able to use her to develop the mercy and compassionate part of his character. Further, a fundamental premise behind the swearing otters and hummingbirds has been the ability to love even the unlovable -- a point Edmund raises with Peter in the Narnia flashback at the TQSiT. We also see the development of Edmund speaking the lament for the wrongdoer. The interest in assuring justice even for those who don't deserve it is a fundamental thematic element of the work and very relevant in the post WW2 environment.