Talk:James Sligo Jameson

Content notes

Nikkimaria, you added two contents notes to the article, can you explain why? It's true that the incident with the killed slave girl is now covered in quite some detail, but it is what he's chiefly remembered for today (as the lead already states), so I don't think it's given "undue weight". Plus I think the section is written in a balanced fashion, discussing what is known about the case without giving undue weight to any specific viewpoint. And where do you think the "encyclopedic tone" is missing? Gawaon (talk) 16:19, 30 March 2024 (UTC)

I appreciate that that incident plays a major role in considerations of his biography, but unless this is a BIO1E situation and we want to make this an article about that event rather than him, it's not appropriate for it to take up so much of the article. It also takes the perspective of the major source, to the extent that I wonder whether there might actually be a paraphrasing issue involved - it's not appropriate for us to be saying an account cannot be dismissed or cannot be true, as we are now. It's also not appropriate for encyclopedic tone to have phrasing like "at least some of her dignity. Instead he coolly watched and made sketches of her transformation, in a matter of hours, from a living girl into the main course of a feast" or "he was apparently willing to sacrifice the life and body of a black child in order to satisfy it". Nikkimaria (talk) 17:36, 30 March 2024 (UTC)

All right, fair enough. I'll rewrite and shorten especially the "What did really happen?" section and make it clear that it's based so far on an analysis from a single source. I'll also try to tone down the poetry and look for what other sources have to say – though I don't think that another similarly detailed analysis can be found.

As for BIO1E, hmm well ... I guess if the deadly incident hadn't happened, he might still have got an article because of the birds he discovered – but it would probably have been a fairly short article. Still, I'll try to find more info about him and add it, if possible. Gawaon (talk) 19:13, 30 March 2024 (UTC)

I have done a lot of rewriting and I think the reasons for both maintenance notes have been removed. The article no longer relies so strongly on a single source and now makes it clear which interpretations of the events exist and where they come from. The tone should now be sufficiently encyclopedic and everything should be covered in a sufficiently balanced fashion. I've also started to add more on what's known of his life outside the incident with the slave girl. That's work in progress and more will come.

I suppose the girl's case will continue to fill the biggest chunk of the article – he only lived for 32 years and it's what he's chiefly remembered for, so I don't think that's something we'll realistically be able to change. Please take another look, Nikkimaria, and let us know what you think. If I don't hear any objections, I'll remove the maintenance notes in a few days. Gawaon (talk) 16:54, 5 April 2024 (UTC)

Removed the one, will wait on the work in progress for the other - the article is improved but still significantly unbalanced. Nikkimaria (talk) 23:57, 5 April 2024 (UTC)

Nikkimaria, please take another look – I do think that the "undue weight" note can be removed now. The slave girl incident still takes the most space in the article and that will no doubt remain so, but I've added essentially every other snippet of information about his life I've been able to find. It's not very much, but then he only got 32 years old. And I don't think there's a single document mentioning him that doesn't refer to the slave girl affair, and often it's the only thing discussed. It's what he's chiefly remembered for, and that's not something we can change. So our coverage is not "undue", it reflects the sources. Gawaon (talk) 19:04, 28 April 2024 (UTC)

What you're describing still sounds an awful lot like a BIO1E situation, to be honest. What do you think about moving the article? Nikkimaria (talk) 01:35, 29 April 2024 (UTC)

I don't think so. The case of the slave girl now takes about half of the total article length, and nearly all the European members of the Emin Pasha Relief Expedition, and specifically the rear guard, got their own articles too. The one or two that don't yet have one will likely sooner or later get one – even though they likely didn't discover several bird species, like Jameson did. Jameson would have been notable without that incident, it just happens to be the event that has triggered most discussions and coverage. If it had not happened, he would still have gotten an article, though presumably a shorter one. Gawaon (talk) 06:40, 29 April 2024 (UTC)

I have removed the note now. Gawaon (talk) 17:22, 2 May 2024 (UTC)