View Full Version : Hildabeasts
I've just read this in the Guardian: College votes to let in male 'Hildabeasts' (http://education.guardian.co.uk/administration/story/0,,1792826,00.html)
No, I don't have any connection with St Hilda's College, Oxford. But I'd never seen the word Hildabeast before, and it made me laugh, so I thought I'd share it.
In some ways I find it kinda sad that St Hilda's has bowed to the pressure of the modern world. I've stayed there a few times when at conferences in or near Oxford. It's down by the river (Isis/Thames) in the centre of Oxford but it has a nice rural feel to it. Imho it's the nicest of the former women's colleges in Oxford: Thatcherville Somerville is pretty horrible, Lady Margaret Hall is just as bad, and St Anne's is just boring. On the other hand, I've never been to St Hugh's - whoops.
Here's an excerpt:
St Hilda's became Oxford's last all-female college in 1992 when Somerville, whose old girls include Margaret Thatcher, announced it would admit men. Cambridge University still has three female-only colleges - Newnham, New Hall and Lucy Cavendish.
Ach weel, at least the Fenland Poly is keeping up faith with ancient traditions. :rolleyes:
The article continues:
College principal Lady English said: "The reaction here today among students was mixed. There were people in tears as well as students jumping for joy."
Jolly good show chaps. Is it Pimms and crocquet on the lawn at 4 as usual then? How's about John Prescott or Anthony Charles Lynton Blair for first male principal?
Hildabeasts, Hildabeasts, Hildabeasts. What a wonderful word - it's almost as good as Oranjeboom...
Tut, tut - I'm shocked. This is cause for deep mourning, not levity. How could they let it happen? Let us hope that Cambridge resists this modern trend and continues to man (woman?) the barricades.
Levity? Who mentioned getting high? We are discussing the higher education of young English ladies here. What could be more serious than that?
It's down by the river (Isis/Thames) in the centre of Oxford Wrong river Szin. St Hilda's is on the Cherwell.
Levity? Who mentioned getting high? We are discussing the higher education of young English ladies here. What could be more serious than that?
You said this word - Hildabeast - made you laugh so I feel fully justified in accusing you of treating this very serious subject with levity (as in frivolity if you must deliberately misunderstand me - hmmm. levitation makes me think of Pooh Bear and balloons - do Hildabeasts levitate? Or do they just think they do when getting high?). Whatever, it's all very sad and should not even cause the corners of your mouth to turn up :~(
You said this word - Hildabeast - made you laugh so I feel fully justified in accusing you of treating this very serious subject with levity (as in frivolity if you must deliberately misunderstand me - hmmm. levitation makes me think of Pooh Bear and balloons - do Hildabeasts levitate? Or do they just think they do when getting high?). Whatever, it's all very sad and should not even cause the corners of your mouth to turn up :~(I've never (knowlingly) got high with a Hildabeast, so I wouldn't know whether or not they levitate.
Why do you think this is such a serious subject? Do you approve of poor little rich girls receiving their higher education in a boy-free zone at the taxpayer's expense.
Btw Hilldabeast (http://www.hilldabeast.com/)is a derogatory name for Hillary Clinton.
And Crayola is of course correct. :o
Seriously Doc - I am not being serious. Did you seriously think I was? Although now I think about it there is something to be said for keeping some traditions, even all girl colleges. Ah well - passing of an era :(
Didn't know it was name for Mrs Clinton. Interesting .........
Well, I was seriously trying to figure out if you were serious about it being a serious matter.
Anyway, all is not lost, Cambridge University still has three female-only colleges - Newnham, New Hall and Lucy Cavendish. It seems you must be female and over 21 to get into the latter.
Are there any women-only colleges in Scotland? I can't think of any. Queen Margaret University College in Edinburgh used to be women-only. I think Dunfermline College of Physical Education was too, but I'm not sure. Perhaps there's a religious one of some sort?
Tush tush DrSzin are you advocating that we women should lower our standards and allow the male species into what hitherto has been our all female preserves?
Now when every golf club opens up it's membership to ladies, when the polo club allows us onto horseback,the rugby club permits us to use the same changing rooms ,there are equal numbers of women in parliament,when women earn the same salaries as men, when males have the babies we might just consider thinking about the matter.
In the meantime I am quite happy with the status quo, sexual equality is a myth because women are by nature superior.
Steps back and waits for the flack to fly.
Never mind DrSzin, Cambridge will drag itself out of the 13th Century eventually.
It's not all that many years ago that they noticed that people were no longer conversing in Latin.
"Amo, Amas, Amat" indeed. I don't know how I managed to survive without having had to learn that.
Tush tush DrSzin are you advocating that we women should lower our standards and allow the male species into what hitherto has been our all female preserves?No, I'm not. If anything, I'd argue for the retention of all-women colleges. Oxford's women-only colleges did relatively badly when they went mixed. The best female applicants wanted to go to the newly-mixed high-profile male colleges. The colleges that stayed all-female fared better, for a while at least. That's why Somerville and St Hilda's stayed all-female for so long after 1979 when a huge number of colleges went mixed - or so I'm led to believe...
The last all-female college at Durham University went mixed last year.
Never mind DrSzin, Cambridge will drag itself out of the 13th Century eventually.
It's not all that many years ago that they noticed that people were no longer conversing in Latin.
"Amo, Amas, Amat" "..., Amamus, Amatis, Amant." See, I can chant useless things too. :roll:
Seriously, I learned a lot about language and grammar during my one-and-only year of Latin at THS, and I'm glad I was compelled to do it.
Perhps you'd have a better understanding of conspiracy theory if you could converse with the Illuminati in their native tongue. :cool:
"..., Amamus, Amatis, Amant." See, I can chant useless things too.
Seriously, I learned a lot about language and grammar during my one-and-only year of Latin at THS, and I'm glad I was compelled to do it.
Perhaps you'd have a better understanding of conspiracy theory if you could converse with the Illuminati in their native tongue. :cool:It was hard work at the time but I too am glad I didn't miss it. But when it came to Mensa was a method of address meaning "O Table" I, rather like a certain famous person, wondered why anybody would wish to spend time talking to a Table. Fortunately, in that day and age we still addressed people and not "The Chair".
Latin was generally only taught at Public Schools and Grammar Schools and Oxford and Cambridge used this as a way of preventing people from the "Lower Orders" from gaining access. "You haven't got "A" Level Latin, boy? Well you can't come here! - No, it is definitely untrue that we are Class Conscious. Anybody can come here but they must have "A" Level Latin and we don't care which course you wish to do! Kindly close the door as you leave and leave the can of Air-freshener on the outside step!" [lol]
I think they had to ditch the insistence on Latin with the introduction of the Comprehensive System not from choice, but rather because there wouldn't be enough students with Latin Passes for them to keep going.
Thank Heaven those days and attitudes are long gone in any case.
Oops, sorry folks, but that is one Conspiracy which was true. You had to go to the right school to go to Oxford and Cambridge, those funny Red Brick Thingies out in the Sticks could have the others. Not that I would suggest they were a little "Intellectually Snobbish" in their attitudes.
I know the good Dr.S will know the answer to this one. I know Oxford and Cambridge were the first two Universities in England but I can't quite remember if St. Andrews was either a handful of years before or after them, I know it was very close.
I know the good Dr.S will know the answer to this one. I know Oxford and Cambridge were the first two Universities in England but I can't quite remember if St. Andrews was either a handful of years before or after them, I know it was very close.
I do belive that St Andrews was more than a handful of years after Oxford and Cambridge.
Oxford can go as far back as 1096,AD for it's teaching's then followed by Cambridge at around 1135,AD,St Andrews was 1413,AD then shortly after was Glasgow in 1451,AD.
I know the good Dr.S will know the answer to this one. I know Oxford and Cambridge were the first two Universities in England but I can't quite remember if St. Andrews was either a handful of years before or after them, I know it was very close.Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia) quotes 1167 for Oxford, 1209 for Cambridge, and 1413 for St Andrews, so it wasn't as close as either of us thought.
More from Wikipedia:
Ancient universities of Scotland (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scotland) are those universities founded during the medieval (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medieval) period, and comprise (list by year of being chartered (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chartered)):
The University of St Andrews (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_St_Andrews), founded 1411 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1411) by papal bull (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papal_bull)
The University of Glasgow (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Glasgow), founded 1451 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1451) by papal bull (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papal_bull)
The University of Aberdeen (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Aberdeen), founded 1495 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1495) by papal bull (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papal_bull) (as King's College, Aberdeen (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King%27s_College%2C_Aberdeen))
The University of Edinburgh (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Edinburgh), founded 1583 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1583) by Royal Charter (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Charter)Marischal College (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marischal_College), was founded (in 1593) by George Keith, the fifth Earl Marischal, in Aberdeen (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aberdeen). This put Aberdeen in the highly unusual position of being a single city with two universities; some 20th Century editions of the University's prospectus point out that for many years this was as many as existed in the whole of England. Marischal College later merged with King's College, of Old Aberdeen (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Aberdeen), to form the University of Aberdeen in 1860.
But note also:
University of Northampton (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Northampton_%28thirteenth_century%29 ), England (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/England) – recognised as University 1261 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1261) – disbanded 1264 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1264)
I'd never heard of the (original) University of Northampton - mea culpa. [lol]
I do belive that St Andrews was more than a handful of years after Oxford and Cambridge.
Oxford can go as far back as 1096,AD for it's teaching's then followed by Cambridge at around 1135,AD,St Andrews was 1413,AD then shortly after was Glasgow in 1451,AD.Those dates are different from Wikipedia's ones - I'd already noticed that there was some disagreement on the various websites over exact dates.
Those dates are different from Wikipedia's ones - I'd already noticed that there was some disagreement on the various websites over exact dates.
I did notice that as well, but I then went on to the offical web sites for all four universities,and went by what they said, but in the case of Oxford and Cambridge, what they say is when teaching actully began.
Thanks Dr.S and Chillie, I too thought it was much closer than that. (In truth I was hoping against hope that St. Andrews beat both of the others)
I don't know if it's been traced as yet but I remember reading that the Papal Bull which created Glasgow University had become misplaced.
Apparently this meant that technically they had no legal proof that they were, in fact, a University.
Other than the fact that losing something of that importance is rather embarrassing I hope they eventually trace it if for no other reason than it's historical value.
Northampton is caught my interest so I did a little digging. My first instinct was to suspect the Black Death, but that was a good while later.
Having dug a little further and found the reason for the closure I am hesitant to explain.
As an Englishman who loves to tease you Scots about your Clan Wars and such hooligan behaviour I’m rather ashamed.
At the time Northampton was closed we English were engaged in a civilised discussion over certain important matters.
The Barons had made a respectful representation to the King requesting that he abide by certain agreements previously made. The King had politely declined the request.
You’ve probably guessed, we were in the middle of a huge Civil War between the King and the Barons.
In 1264 the King laid siege to Northampton and was not right happy when the students rose in revolt against him. In fact he got quite sulky and shut the University down.
Now that’s what I call really revolting students. And we think students can get a little rowdy nowadays. :D
Thanks Jaws that was very interesting about Northhampton University, my you English are a brutal mean lot never of happened under a Scottish king, he would of just kept the students bar open longer and got them drunk so that they were not fit to revolt.He he[lol]
Hildabeasts, Hildabeasts, Hildabeasts. What a wonderful word - it's almost as good as Oranjeboom...
Like the word Hildabeast lol........but Oranjeboom must be one of the worst ever beers to come out of the Netherlands ( sorry Ann )
Thanks Jaws that was very interesting about Northhampton University, my you English are a brutal mean lot never of happened under a Scottish king, he would of just kept the students bar open longer and got them drunk so that they were not fit to revolt. He he[lol]
You are probably right Chillie, we always were far too sober for our own good.
The problem is that somebody one told us that if we loosened up our pants would fall down.
Perhaps that's why we have always had this thing about Kilts and Underwear.
We are trying to work out how it is that when you loosen up yer kilts don't fall down. :lol:
And Crayola is of course correct. :oAs always. ;)
Wrong river Szin. St Hilda's is on the Cherwell.
What a Smarty Pants. I won't ask how you knew that though. :)
Nor will I admit I have never even heard of the Cherwell but then again I can't find my way round my house without a map and no I don't have a huge mansion, just a wee croft house.
What a Smarty Pants. I won't ask how you knew that though. :) An educated girl knows these things.
Nor will I admit I have never even heard of the Cherwell but then again I can't find my way round my house without a map and no I don't have a huge mansion, just a wee croft house.As I said above.
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