[PW] Seven Societal Ills

[Shari Haber]

Thanks, Fadia. That's another angle to check.

Shari Haber
MCLS Reference Center
shaber at mcls.org

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Doty, Fadia" <fdoty at co.fresno.ca.us>
To: <list at project-wombat.org>
Sent: Wednesday, June 25, 2008 1:38 PM
Subject: Re: [PW] Seven Societal Ills


> Literary works inspired by the seven deadly sins
>
> John Climacus (7th century) in The Ladder of Divine Ascent
> Dante's (1265-1321 A.D.) The Divine Comedy
> William Langland's (c. 1332-1386) Vision of Piers
> Geoffrey Chaucer's (c. 1340-1400) Canterbury Tales
> Christopher Marlowe's (1564-1593) The Tragical History of Doctor 
> Faustus
> Edmund Spenser's (1552-1599), The Faerie Queene
> Garth Nix's "The Keys to the Kingdom" is a seven-book children's 
> series
>
> fd
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: project-wombat-open-bounces at lists.project-wombat.org 
> [mailto:project-wombat-open-bounces at lists.project-wombat.org] On 
> Behalf Of Edward Franchuk
> Sent: Wednesday, June 25, 2008 1:10 PM
> To: list at project-wombat.org
> Cc: shaber at mcls.org
> Subject: Re: [PW] Seven Societal Ills
>
>
> Shari wrote:
> ~~~~~~~~
> I am helplessly spinning my wheels, and I am hoping that somebody can 
> recognize what I am looking for from my patron's decidedly scanty 
> memory. Years ago, in an English class, an English professor read to 
> them from a book a list of seven causes that "society went bad." One 
> of the causes was "man's inhumanity to man," and she wishes to know 
> what the other six causes were. She does not remember any other 
> details about what they were studying that might shed some light on 
> this problem. I came up with suspects such as ignorance, prejudice, 
> poverty, greed , political repression, disease, etc., but could not 
> find a set "list" that would make me realize, hey--this is what I am 
> looking for. Does anybody know what my patron is referring to? Any 
> ideas will be greatly appreciated. TIA.~~~~~~~~
> If you Google the phrase she remembers, the very first hit gives you 
> this:
> **********
> This phrase, which is always used with a sense of regret, was coined 
> by Robert Burns and used in his poem From Man was made to Mourn: A 
> Dirge, 1785:
>
> 'Many and sharp the num'rous illsInwoven with our frame!More pointed 
> still we make ourselvesRegret, remorse, and shame!And Man, whose 
> heav'n-erected faceThe smiles of love adorn, - Man's inhumanity to 
> manMakes countless thousands mourn!
>
> **********
> Given that this was an English class, I think this is probably what 
> the patron is looking for: the application to society could have come 
> up in the teacher's comments or in class discussion, and the number 
> seven count be a misremembering.
>
> The complete poem can be found at 
> http://www.robertburns.org/works/55.shtml.Edward Franchuk 
> \\\\=^..^=//// Royal Military College St-Jean
> See my latest book at: http://www.gomidas.org/books/Tork%20Angegh.htm.
> http://www.vif.com/users/edfranchuk/http://blog.myspace.com/cmrprof"A 
> book read is a life added to one's own. So it takes only nine books to 
> make cats look at you with envy." (Yann Martel) Books just wanna be 
> FREE! See what I mean at:http://www.bookcrossing.com/friend/Queensman
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