#the seven pillars

[colorhollywood]

How I Shall Play Lawrence

Leslie Howard reveals in this exclusive interview with J. Danvers Williams that he will definitely play Lawrence of Arabia on the screen–and outlines his plans for handling this most discussed rôle of recent years

A photographic impression of Howard as Lawrence of Arabia. The Arab robes are Lawrence’s, the face is Howard’s

“I have played some interesting parts in my time,” said Howard. “Somerset Maugham’s club-footed introvert in Of Human Bondage, the idealistic hero of The Petrified Forest, Romeo (such as it was) and, on the stage, Hamlet–but I think the title role in Lawrence of Arabia is the greatest acting opportunity of my career.”

I had gone to see Leslie Howard in an effort to clear up the Lawrence mystery. Almost weekly one reads conflicting reports in the newspapers, that the Lawrence film is definitely to be made or that it has been postponed; that a unit is shortly to leave for Arabia, or that the unit has been prevented from starting.

“This film has been in the air so long,” said Howard, “that it isn’t surprising newspapers have become sceptical. The truth is, however, that I am already hard at work on the preliminaries of the picture. Everything is signed and sealed. We hope to start the actual shooting in ten or twelve weeks’ time, and have the film edited and ready for presentation by the end of six or eight months.

“I am particularly interested in this picture because I am co-producing it. Korda is at present busy in America, which means that I shall be virtually in control of the whole production.

“For the first time in my life I shall not be the mere puppet of another man’s imagination. I shall be able to place on the screen my own undiluted conception of Lawrence of Arabia, and if the final result does not measure up to expectations I shall, at least, have the satisfaction of knowing that I have only myself to blame.

“At the moment, of course, I think we have a chance of making a first-class picture. Certainly, the story itself has all the aspects of a great drama.

“One of the chief reasons Korda has refrained so long from putting the picture into production is that he found it difficult to produce a scenario, a director and an actor whom he felt would do the subject justice.

“It is not the sort of film that anyone could make. You can rule out most of the ace directors–such as Capra, Lubitsch and Borzage–as types of mentalities who would be quite out of their depth in a picture of this sort. Off-hand, I can think of only two directors whom I would care to employ–John Ford, who made The Informer, and William K. Howard, who has actually been given the assignment.

Full Story:

[da-pu-ri-to-jo-po-ti-ni-ja]

[fuwbuki]

The sun and son of Arabia

Watched "Lawrence of Arabia" for the first time and i had to make something. I had a vision but dont know if i executed it correctly

[marfa-g]

[orlaite]

T.E. Lawrence, Seven Pillars of Wisdom

[history-confessions]

"I am so down bad for t. e. lawrence it's pathetic "

[nerdyhistoryenjoyer]

I fear I will never forgive the people whose only take away from Chapter 80 of Seven Pillars is his "masochistic writing style". You're purposely ignoring the bigger picture. People even exclude a part of a passage which has been used and used over and over to make a point. It reads:

"I remember smiling idly at him, for a delicious warmth, probably sexual, was swelling through me: and then that he flung up his arm and hacked with the full length of his whip into my groin"

This isn't the only impactful or telling quote from the chapter, but it's used the most, and I've constantly seen people exclude the first 5 words and the context behind this whole sentence. He's not only troubled with the fact that he found the flogging arousing, but, from how I understood it, he's also troubled by the fact that his arousal came from the abuser who was, in fact, male and who also wanted to take advances toward him (which he, in turn, did not want).

There is so much to explore and discuss in just this chapter alone but no one does and I find it rather tragic.

[vulpineknave]

[illustratus]

Lawrence of Arabia 1962

[a-taut-thread]

Just a little height chart reference thing here for the hell of it + some basic design stuff + heavy iterator generation lore. Warning; this gets LONG, so the rest after the height chart is under the cut. Massive lore dump inside, be prepared.

The height order of the main iterators mentioned in this AU, from tallest to shortest, is Wind > Suns > Moon > Pebbles > Sig > UI.

UI is pretty much around as short as iterators get, Suns is around as tall as normal iterators get. For comparison; UI pretty much comes up to around mid chest height on Suns.

Wind is a special case and is one of the tallest select few because they're a patriarch. For another comparison, Suns comes up to their shoulder at best. The tallest patriarch however, and iterator as a whole, is Pillars; they're at least a solid head taller than Wind.

Patriarchs, who mark the beginning of the first generation and the creation of iterators as a whole, are absolutely massive and are just generally quite bulky due to technological limitations so early in, making the progress towards a more streamlined design a later trait. They're built to last over to look good. There's more dramatic head shape variation in patriarchs than in other iterators. They tend to have dull main colors, often shades of gray, with bright markings.

Patriarchs are the centers of regional groups (multiple clusters of local groups forming a broader region), in charge of keeping watch of and keeping order in their regions. They're the ones who big issues are brought to, and their cities can pass laws that effect the entire region, although this level of involvement is rare.

Patriarch examples include:

Pillars of Change; they have a light gray puppet with green markings, a more blocky/squarish head shape, and short, straight gray antennae.

Chasing Wind/Grey Wind; they have a medium gray puppet with orange markings, a longer face (think that common Pebbles design trope type of head design), and long, mostly straight gray antennae.

Storm on the Horizon; they have a dark gray/nearly black puppet with light blue/cyan markings, a rounded head shape, and three sets of gray antennae.

First generation iterators are generally on the taller side and are rarely below where falls Pebbles in height, most being around the same height as Moon give or take a bit. After the time of creating the patriarchs, the rest of the iterators in this generation were generally designed with a very friendly appearance in mind, to help further increase public favor towards iterators. They often have a more rounded/"soft" looking build, although there are a few rare exceptions, and they typically have softer features and friendly looking design traits such as rounded or circular heads, vibrant or pastel color schemes, and big antennae. Not a lot of points and edges, lots of curves.

First generation iterators typically hold important roles in their local groups, and are usually the first sources younger iterators go to for guidance. Quite a few are group seniors; the heads of local group who act as leads of sorts, ranking directly below their patriarchs and reporting to them any issues that need greater interference than what they themselves have authority over. They are as vital to the functions of their local groups as patriarchs are to their regional groups.

First generation examples include:

A Hazy Sky; they have a dusty teal puppet with yellow markings, a rounded face shape (but a bit tapered at the chin), and short but wide, rounded dark gray antennae. They have a very chubby build. They're a local group senior under Pillars.

Sliver of Straw; she has a dull cream puppet with darker cream markings, a rounded face shape, and long, thin, straight antennae shaped similarly to thin rods. Her rather muted color scheme is notably somewhat rare for this stage in the generation. She has a slightly slimmer build than a lot of first generation iterators, but still a bit rounded/"soft" looking. She's a local group senior under Storm.

Looks to the Moon (we all know more or less how she looks); she has a turquoise(?) puppet with red markings, a somewhat long face shape, and somewhat rectangular light gray antennae. She has a more rounded/"soft" build that's typical of her generation. She's a local group senior under Wind.

Second generation iterators vary heavily in design overall, from height to build to colors to common traits. This was by far the longest generation, spanning at least 1000 kilocycles, and it shows in the sheer number and variety of iterators created during this time period. Quite a few of them have more unusual physical traits, as during this time the Ancients experimented with just about anything at least once. Technology was improving and changed heavily over the duration of this generation.

While iterators of this generation are typically no longer group seniors, early second generation iterators are also common sources of advice to turn to, and they may temporarily fill in for their seniors for certain tasks in the case of said senior being away, incapacitated, or otherwise temporarily occupied.

Second generation examples include:

No Significant Harassment; he has a green puppet with lighter green markings, a somewhat long face shape, and light gray antennae bases with no "proper" antennae. He has a very rounded, stocky build, more so than even a lot of first generator iterators such as Moon. He has a screen/LED type display for an upper face in order to make him more expressive; looking too closely or when his display is off can get creepy however, as what resembles pupils in the display are actually typical iterator eye cameras that are more visible due to the screen. He at one point filled in for Moon and acted as her replacement for a rather important project she couldn't supervise at the time.

Waning Fire; they have a pale gray puppet with orange markings, a slightly tapered head shape (sort of a heart shaped face look), and two sets of medium length, mostly straight dark gray antennae. They have a medium to somewhat thin build.

Seven Red Suns; they have a light yellow puppet with red markings, a tapered head shape (their face more resembling a mask in a way than anything), and long, outwards pointing triangular dark gray antennae. They have somewhat chubby build. They have quite a few odd traits. They have expressive antennae that are mobile sideways, unlike normal iterator antennae. They have very unusual eyes with colored "iris" lights in the usual black eye; the right is red and has an actual camera capable of zooming and taking pictures, the left is gold/yellow and actually has fairly poor vision due to only being intended to give them a proper field of vision and depth perception when not using their camera eye. They're also the last or one of the last few iterators in their generation, and they have some third generation level technology as a result.

Third generation iterators are usually on the shorter side, with most ranging in height from as short as Unparalleled Innocence to around as tall as No Significant Harassment. They're typically very slender, being quite sleek and streamlined in build, with a few sporadic models with a slightly bulkier build mixed in. Their colors vary heavily varied in range, with everything from muted monochromes to bright vibrant hues and anything in between. In a more canon leaning timeline this would be a very short generation, not even 100 kilocycles before ending in mass ascension, but mass ascension didn't happen here so it could theoretically last at least a good bit longer than that.

Third generation iterators have no real notable positions in the chain of command; they're simply made to iterate and get their tasks done while doing so. Unintentional built in flaws or outright oversights and careless design traits aren't uncommon in this generation, having started to pop up at the tail end of the second generation and becoming more common at this point.

Third generation examples include:

Five Pebbles (we know more or less how he's gonna look too); he has a pink puppet with yellow markings, a long face shape, and long, mostly straight gray antennae antennae. He has a thin, almost too skinny looking build. His appearance, especially head shape, is notably odd among iterators of his generation; this is this is because he was modeled after Wind, with intent to directly resemble them, and as a result he heavily looks like a smaller, more streamlined version of them with different colors, down to having the same forehead markings. This is also why he's the tallest in his generation.

Unparalleled Innocence; they have a white puppet with bright teal markings, a long face shape, and light gray antlerlike antennae. They have a sleek/slender build that's typical for their generation.

[macabre-discotheque]

originally this started with Sally because of a joke with a friend of mine, but then I drew Eddie, Frank, and Howdy because that same friend Asked me to we've been using these (specifically Eddie and Howdy) as reaction images when we're distressed lmao

[wiirocku]

Proverbs 9:1 (NKJV) - Wisdom has built her house, She has hewn out her seven pillars;

[marfa-g]

His wounds are from Deraa

[orlaite]

T.E Lawrence's SEVEN PILLARS OF WISDOM (1922 Oxford Edition)

David Lean's LAWRENCE OF ARABIA (1962)

[dying-suffering-french-stalkers]

— T.E. Lawrence, Seven Pillars of Wisdom

[nerdyhistoryenjoyer]

Tuesday 6th of April 1927

Your letter has interested me much: though you vitiate your thinking by the assumption that books are meant to be read. They are to be written only.

The abridgement is better than the complete text. Half a calamity is better than a whole one. By excising heights + depths I have made a balanced thing: yet I share your difficulty of seeing the shorter version's real shape across the gaps.

Specific points

(i) The ending. I was overpersuaded to stop on page 644 The natural place is after(?) "sun", on line 35 of page 635. It fulfills your demands for balance + reflection and sordidness among the triumphs. Pages 632 and 633 are the philosophic climax of the narrative.

If you will consider anew, suppose this new Finis, will you then please so amend your text, and also cross out "a" before "pearl" in the last line of the revised version.

Your statement that the hospital passage would be a (?) in the eye of 19 readers out of 20 puts it out of court, as I put it. This abridgement is to be fit for girl guides.

(ii) To include the death of Farraj meant the restoration of many pages, to explain it. The "private delectation" of 115 people is better than public delectation of 10,000. My men are not to walk the common street.

Me. to write again? God forbid I do not bear another mis shaped child. C'est fini. If only I had the courage to destroy this one in time.

Yours T.E.S.

Left handwriting constrains to brevity.

Letter to Edward Garnett after his right wrist had been broken while trying to help someone start their car