Talk:The Story of Miss Moppet

Omnibus edition nuggets

I now own Beatrix Potter: The Complete Tales, which has all 23 regular Peter Rabbit stories, plus four unpublished stories. Anyway there are a few things in it that probably should be added to this article.

1. Page 140 says of Miss Moppet: "The book was reprinted in standard format in 1916 to please the bookshops, and listed at the end of the series of Peter Rabbit books with the other three titles for very young children..." (Fierce Bad Rabbit, Appley Dapply, and Cecily Parsley). I think I would include the first year for the standard format (article now just says after 1913), and might include the grouping with other books for very young children.
2. I also think that the article should mention that Moppet is not only Tom Kitten's sister, but that she appears as a character in both of the Tom Kitten books, i.e. The Tale of Tom Kitten and The Tale of Samuel Whiskers or The Roly-Poly Pudding.
3. In the latter tale it says near the end "Moppet and Mittens have grown up into very good rat catchers." and describes how they make their living at it (Mittens is the other sister of Tom). Not sure if this is worth including or not, but it seems to me (OR warning) that Miss Potter was winking a bit at her readers, who probably had read the story of Moppet being unable to catch and keep a mouse.

Ruhrfisch _><>°^° 04:49, 6 January 2011 (UTC)

Great finds! I think each of these items are relevant and deserve to be placed in the article. I, for instance, didn't know that other potter books included miss moppet, let alone that she had siblings! I would leave out the bit about 'rat catching' from the other book though. Btw, are we calling her "Miss Potter?"  :-)--NYMFan69-86 (talk) 05:23, 6 January 2011 (UTC)

Thanks - I will add the first two later today and wait to hear from anyone else on the last one. I just called her Miss Potter for fun. Ruhrfisch _><>°^° 16:34, 6 January 2011 (UTC)

Agree the 1916 publication date should be added. I read somewhere the kittens were of the same litter - I believe in Carpenter. He gives a very long treatment to her thematic approaches throughout the entire series of books which I scanned but didn't have time to fully synthesize. I believe there is merit to the fact that Potter moved from Tom Kitten to Mittens to Moppet, but would leave it as is for now. I returned the Carpenter book to the library only yesterday and will be gone for the next week, but will take it out again and look up that information when I return. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 21:51, 6 January 2011 (UTC)

I just added the publication in regular book format in 1916. The current sentences on Moppet and Tom Kitten are Potter used the same drawings of the kitten as a model for her next book, The Tale of Tom Kitten,[17] which she dedicated in 1907 "to all Pickles—especially those that get upon my garden wall".[18] Miss Moppet is one of Tom Kitten's sisters.[19][20] My thought was at least to point out that the Moppet character appears in two other Potter books, so the last sentence could be expanded to something like "Miss Moppet is one of Tom Kitten's sisters, and appears as a character in both books featuring him: The Tale of Tom Kitten and The Tale of Samuel Whiskers or The Roly-Poly Pudding.[19][20] (and add a ref for the latter). By the way Tabitha Twitchit is Tom and Moppet's mother and appears in both Tom Kitten books as well as The Tale of the Pie and the Patty-Pan and is mentioned in The Tale of Ginger and Pickles. Ruhrfisch _><>°^° 04:51, 7 January 2011 (UTC)

Sorry, I completely missed this comment. I think what you've written above is fine. Checked out the Carpenter book today - again - where I think I read about the kittens - but won't get to it immediately. Will post when I have the relevant information. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 19:28, 14 January 2011 (UTC)

No worries - I know you've been on break and busy. I just added the bit about the character's other appearances. The more Potter I read (and reread), the more I realize she did a pretty good job of intertwining most of her characters. Peter Rabbit, Benjamin Bunny, and Squirrel Nutkin are all mentioned in Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle (and the rabbits make a cameo appearance in an illustration). Jemimah Puddle-Duck first appears in Tom Kitten, then has her own book. The characters at the shop in Ginger and Pickles are from other books, and so on. All of which leads me to think that a mention of Tabitha Twitchit in this article, when she does not even appear in this book, is probably a bit much. Unless of course a scholarly commentator says something worth including here... thanks, Ruhrfisch _><>°^° 21:28, 14 January 2011 (UTC)

It's not in Carpenter, but it's somewhere. What you've added is fine though. Carpenter does mention the three books that feature Peter Rabbit and the intertwining of the characters - but not the kittens. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 21:36, 14 January 2011 (UTC)

Found it in Lear (p.218). Tom and Moppet's mother is Miss Tabitha Twitchett, the name of an actual cat. I think I'll add that to the Tom Kitten page. This is endless ... Truthkeeper88 (talk) 02:27, 21 January 2011 (UTC)

Hmhmhm...any children!?--NYMFan69-86 (talk) 02:28, 21 January 2011 (UTC)

Suppose not, they're kittens.--NYMFan69-86 (talk) 02:29, 21 January 2011 (UTC)

In The ROly-Poly Pudding Moppet and her sister Mittens grow up into very good rat catchers, but no mention is made of any of them having children of their own, Ruhrfisch _><>°^° 03:44, 22 January 2011 (UTC)

Quote

Should the full sentence for the carpenter quote be included?:

"In fact, it might be argued that she is writing something pretty close to a series of immoral tales; that the voice we hear again and again in her stories is not that of the late Victorian spinster decorously instructing her nieces and child-friends in acceptable social behaviour, but of a rebel, albeit a covert one, demonstrating the rewards of nonconformity, and exhorting her young readers to question the social system into which they found themselves born."

Smallman12q (talk) 01:53, 1 February 2011 (UTC)

I thinking about using this information in the Beatrix Potter article as it refers to her stories in general instead of a single story. Am moving very slowly though. Will get there eventually. Thanks for typing it out. Now it's only a question of copy/paste once a themes section has been added to that page. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 02:09, 1 February 2011 (UTC)

Rev / Del

Per this conversation, and per WP:BAN and WP:CV, I am revision deleting the edits of Susanne2009NYC, a known sockpuppet of banned user ItsLassieTime, especially as much of the material added was either a copyright violation or too close paraphrase. Ruhrfisch _><>°^° 01:39, 30 May 2011 (UTC)

Reprints section picture, and reorganisation of section

Hi, should the article include a picture, say in the reprints section, of the more familiar small book format cover? Also, is the section topsy turvy ie. it should start with the earlier editions and finish with the later editions? thanks, Coolabahapple (talk) 05:26, 3 November 2015 (UTC)

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