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London-based Boleyn fan
February 22, 2010
11:34 am
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The Other Boleyn Boy
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February 22, 2010
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hey

I'm Mickey, based in London and doing my dissertation on Anne at Birkeck; currently in the prepatory stages – I'm still in my first year – I'll be starting the work this summer and would love to get to know and meet up with fellow Tudor fans to share stories, opinions, and generally pick your brains!!

February 22, 2010
12:45 pm
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Claire
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Hi Mickey!

Welcome to the AB Files, it's great to “meet” you. What aspect of Anne do you think you will pick to focus on for your dissertation? She's certainly an interesting character. Feel free to pick our brains and bounce ideas off us, we're all really friendly and are complete Anne-aholics and Tudor history fans.

Speak soon,

Claire Smile

Debunking the myths about Anne Boleyn

February 23, 2010
8:33 pm
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Bella44
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Hi Mickey,

Doing your dissertation on Anne would be so interesting, so much to choose from – hopefully it wouldn't seem too much like work  Laugh

Welcome to the forum!

February 24, 2010
5:01 pm
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AnneBoleynFan
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Hey Mickey. It's so nice to see a new Anne Boleyn fan around here on the forum. Welcome! 😀 xx

My name is Sarah. I am deaf :)

February 24, 2010
5:20 pm
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AnnesAdmire1024
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Hello! Im new here as well and have found everyone here very amazing and have wonderful conversations about Anne and the tudors. I hope you feel as welcome as I did!Laugh

Anne's Admirer

March 5, 2010
4:06 am
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The Other Boleyn Boy
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February 22, 2010
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hey

thanks everyone;

my dissertation is roughly going to be – 'the virgin & the wh*re' ~ the shift in contemporary representations of Anne Boleyn & Jane Seymour; a second working title is 'has Anne Boleyn been fully reclaimed by contemporary feminism'?

March 5, 2010
8:26 am
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Claire
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Interesting theme! It does seem that people are now fighting the wh*re representation of Anne but contesting the pure virgin representation of Jane and seeing her as someone who learned from Anne and Catherine and who was cunning. I don't think we necessarily have to make Jane into a monster just because we are fighting the myths surrounding Anne but it is interesting how views have changed. I'd love to know how your dissertation goes and what your conclusion is. Good luck with it!

Debunking the myths about Anne Boleyn

March 5, 2010
9:57 am
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The Other Boleyn Boy
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I don't know if anyone has any opinions on how Anne is percieved widely? would the consensus swing more towards tragic heroine or is she still somewhat 'the other woman'?

March 5, 2010
10:17 am
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Claire
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I would say from running this site and receiving lots of comments, emails etc. that Anne is definitely not perceived as the other woman anymore but probably not a tragic heroine, after all, she didn't really die for her beliefs or anything, she was the victim of a coup. I think people have swung away from thinking of her as the martyr or the tragic heroine that the Victorians seem to make her into, as well as swinging away from the whole adulteress witch image or the bitch (excuse my French!) of The Other Boleyn Girl. I think she is seen more as a strong woman who lived before her time, a woman who thought she could be Queen and also stay true to herself and not have to change, a woman who greatly influenced the King. I think Henry saw her as a partner for a while, she wasn't just his wife and someone to decorate his home and give him a baby, she was the person he discussed things with and planned things with, and I think that's what makes her stand out from wives like Jane Seymour and Catherine Howard, Henry saw her as an equal.

Anyway, just a few of my thoughts, sorry to harp on!!

Debunking the myths about Anne Boleyn

March 5, 2010
10:55 am
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Sharon
Binghamton, NY
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February 24, 2010
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Hi Mickey.  Welcome.  I hope you enjoy this site as much as the rest of us.

“The Virgin & the wh*re”  Which one was which?  Just kidding.  Very interesting theme.  Pick away.

March 8, 2010
9:45 am
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The Other Boleyn Boy
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Sharon said:

Hi Mickey.  Welcome.  I hope you enjoy this site as much as the rest of us.

“The Virgin & the wh*re”  Which one was which?  Just kidding.  Very interesting theme.  Pick away.


which one was which is very much part of the theme of the dissertation; am I the only person who finds that Jane Seymour could let herself be wined and dined as Anne awaited her fate absolutely bloodcurdling? trouble is, my thoughts then flip back to the fact that Anne was quite happy to let Catherine of Aragon rot in oblivion

March 9, 2010
1:04 pm
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Sharon
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Mickey,

Yes it is chilling to read how Jane seemed to completely enjoy her new-found position as Anne was dying.  It's also true that Anne was perfectly willing to let Katherine rot in oblivion.  However, I cannot bring myself to call either one of these women wh*res.  (Such a hateful word.)  The people who wanted Anne gone are the one's responsible for the label, wh*re, which she has carried on down through the pages of history.  When people can't seem to find a way to explain what or why a woman chooses to face problems the way she does, the word wh*re is always attached to her.  My belief is that Cromwell and the Imperials knew exactly what they were doing when they accused her of those ridiculous crimes.  To this day she is labelled Witch and wh*re.  I certainly hope that in our time, history will be revised and the truth will vindicate Anne. 

Now Jane.  I think Henry wanted meek and mild after the tumultuous period he had with Anne.  He thought he was getting it with plain Jane. Jane had loved Katherine and she was of the faction that hated Anne.  She wanted Mary restored to the Succession and Elizabeth gone from sight.   Although she did it in a quieter, less volatile manner than Anne did, she certainly tried her hand at politics. When she told Henry that he should restore Mary to the Succession, she was told to look to her own children.  When she tried to save the monasteries, she was told by Henry that she should stay out of politics or she'd end up like Anne.  Jane stopped interferring.  Henry, when asked which wife he loved the most, he said Jane.  For me that sums him up.  Jane gave him a son, and she kept her mouth shut, therefore, he loved her best of all.  But Henry was ready to cheat on her a few weeks after they were married.  Where's the love? History has decided that Jane was virginal and good because that's the way Henry wanted her to be known.  But I can't get past how she played Anne's game and held out for marriage knowing full well that Anne had to be gotten rid of before her own marriage could take place.  That kind of behaviour doesn't add up to being quiet, loving, meek and mild.  Once again, history was revised by the men of their times.  Time to fix it.

To sum this up, neither Anne nor Jane were wh*res.  Not in my book anyway.   If by virgins we mean pure and good, neither were virgins either.

Wow.  I'm gonna shut up now.

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