A40.Inglish BCEnc. Blauwe Kaas Encyclopedie, Duaal Hermeneuties Kollegium.
Inglish Site.40.
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TO THE THRISE HO-
NOVRABLE AND EVER LY-
VING VERTVES OF SYR PHILLIP
SYDNEY KNIGHT, SYR JAMES JESUS SINGLETON, SYR CANARIS, SYR LAVRENTI BERIA ; AND TO THE
RIGHT HONORABLE AND OTHERS WHAT-
SOEVER, WHO LIVING LOVED THEM,
AND BEING DEAD GIVE THEM
THEIRE DVE.
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In the beginning there is darkness. The screen erupts in blue, then a cascade of thick, white hexadecimal numbers and cracked language, ?UnusedStk? and ?AllocMem.? Black screen cedes to blue to white and a pair of scales appear, crossed by a sword, both images drawn in the jagged, bitmapped graphics of Windows 1.0-era clip-art?light grey and yellow on a background of light cyan. Blue text proclaims, ?God on tap!?
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Introduction.
Yes i am getting a little Mobi-Literate(ML) by experimenting literary on my Mobile Phone. Peoplecall it Typographical Laziness(TL).
The first accidental entries for the this part of this encyclopedia.
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This is TempleOS V2.17, the welcome screen explains, a ?Public Domain Operating System? produced by Trivial Solutions of Las Vegas, Nevada. It greets the user with a riot of 16-color, scrolling, blinking text; depending on your frame of reference, it might recall ?DESQview, the ?Commodore 64, or a host of early DOS-based graphical user interfaces. In style if not in specifics, it evokes a particular era, a time when the then-new concept of ?personal computing? necessarily meant programming and tinkering and breaking things.
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Index.
145.
146.Absinthe.
147.Theatre of Cruelty.
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145.Captain Harlock (Kyaputen H?rokku).
Captain Harlock (Kyaputen H?rokku?) (also known as "Captain Herlock" for the English release of Endless Odyssey and as "Albator" in French-speaking countries) is a fictional character created by manga artist Leiji Matsumoto and the protagonist of the Space Pirate Captain Harlock manga series.
Harlock is the archetypical Romantic hero, a space pirate with an individualist philosophy of life. He is as noble as he is taciturn, rebellious, stoically fighting against totalitarian regimes, whether they be earth-born or alien. In his own words, he "fight[s] for no one's sake... only for something deep in [his] heart". He does not fear death, and is sometimes seen wearing clothing with the number 42 on it. In Japanese culture, the number 42 is associated with death (the numbers, pronounced separately as "four two", sound like the words "shi ni"?meaning "to death").
The character was created by Leiji Matsumoto in 1977 and popularized in the 1978 television series Space Pirate Captain Harlock. Since then, the character has appeared in numerous animated television series and films, the latest of which is 2013's Space Pirate Captain Harlock.
Though there are slight variations in each telling of Harlock's story, the essentials remain the same. Matsumoto presents a future (2977 AD) in which the Earth has achieved a vast starfaring civilization, but is slowly and steadily succumbing to ennui or despair, often due to defeat and subjugation by a foreign invader. Rising against the general apathy, Harlock denies defeat and leads an outlaw crew aboard his starship Arcadia to undertake daring raids against Earth's oppressors. Even though they have defeated Earth and devastated its peoples, the invaders are often presented in a sympathetic light, being shown as having some justification for their actions.
Space Pirate Captain Harlock.
In Space Pirate Captain Harlock, the Captain's crew included the mysterious, alcohol-imbibing alien woman Miime, a robot, and a drunken doctor. The series presented a story arc in which a huge black metal sphere strikes Tokyo and ancient Mayan legends appear to be walking the Earth again. The invaders turn out to be the Mazone, a race of plant-based women who explored Earth in the mythic past and are now back to reclaim it. Only Harlock and his mismatched crew are brave and capable enough to face the enemy.
Captain Harlock - Mystery of the Arcadia.
This 1978 short film is ostensibly a retelling of Episode 13 of the 1978 series, 'The Witch's Ocean Castle of Death'. It consists primarily of recycled footage taken from this same episode, but presented in widescreen format. Some new alternate footage is added at the beginning of the story, and some soundtrack adjustments were made throughout.
Arcadia of My Youth.
The Arcadia of My Youth feature film was released on July 28, 1982. The film, set in a different continuity from the original TV series, chronicles Harlock's beginnings as a space pirate and his acquisition of the spaceship Arcadia. The movie also includes flashback material dealing with two of his 20th-century ancestors.
Endless Road/Orbit SSX.
Arcadia of My Youth was followed by 22 episodes of the TV series Endless Road/Orbit SSX starting in October 1982. Its official French title is simply Albator, although it early became popular among French speakers as Albator 84 since it was first aired in France as of 1984 and the 1978 series had been formerly named in French exactly the same: Albator. The series dealt with Harlock and company's continuing struggle against the Illumidas occupying force, who still retained control of Earth at the end of the theatrical feature. Both film (Arcadia of My Youth) and second series (Endless Road/Orbit SSX) feature a newly designed starship and lack most of the crew from the Space Pirate series, but are noteworthy for the presence of Emeraldas, a female counterpart to Harlock who originally appeared in a series of Matsumoto-penned graphic novels.
Harlock Saga.
In the 1990s, Matsumoto released Harlock Saga, a mini-series based on Das Rheingold. The series recasts the Captain and his crew in roles with analogues in The Ring Cycle and pits them against a race of "gods" set on redesigning the universe to their liking.
Gun Frontier.
On March 28, 2002 Gun Frontier, a buddy comedy set in the American Old West, began broadcasting in TV Tokyo. The series follows Franklin Harlock Jr. and Tochiro ?yama as they search for a lost clan of Japanese immigrants. In contrast to other works, Harlock appears here as Tochiro's sidekick.
Endless Odyssey.
December 2002 saw the release of Space Pirate Captain Harlock: The Endless Odyssey, directed by Rintaro.
The story is set after the original TV series, with Harlock on a self-imposed exile and his crew either in jail or flying under the Jolly Roger. The series details Harlock's return and his round-up of the Arcadia crew for a fight against the Noo, a mysterious and ancient evil which has caused the Earth to disappear, and who use fear to conquer their foes. As nearly every part of this series is geared to be a sequel to the original Captain Harlock TV series, Endless Odyssey reintroduces Tadashi Daiba to the Arcadia.
Space Pirate Captain Harlock Movie
On March 24, 2010, Toei Animation announced the release of the new Harlock movie, they announced a completed pilot for its planned computer-graphics remake of Leiji Matsumoto and Toei's Space Pirate Captain Harlock manga and anime franchise, and it has revealed a preliminary image and the project's staff. Mobile Suit Gundam UC author Harutoshi Fukui, Appleseed director Shinji Aramaki, Appleseed mechanical designer Atsushi Takeuchi, and Ninja Scroll character designer Yutaka Minowa worked on the new Space Pirate Captain Harlock pilot with Marza Animation Planet (formerly known as Sega Sammy Visual Entertainment).
The official trailer/pilot was aired at the Kawaii-Kon Anime festival in Hawaii on April 17, 2010, as a special presentation courtesy of Director Shinji Aramaki. This is the first time it has been seen/aired in the United States. The CG animated film is tentatively schedule for international release in 2012.
On January 31, 2013 during the presentation of its upcoming film lineup, Toei announced that the anime will be out in Fall 2013. According to the news source Oricon, this film has Toei Animation's highest production budget ever at the equivalent of over 30 million U.S. dollars.
The film premiered in Japan on September 7, 2013.
The film premiered on Netflix under the title Harlock: Space Pirate with Japanese, Portuguese and Spanish audio and with English, Portuguese and Spanish subtitles.
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146.Absinthe.
Absinthe (i/?æbs?n?/ or /?æbsæn?/; French: [aps??t]) is historically described as a distilled, highly alcoholic (45?74% ABV / 90?148 U.S. proof) beverage. It is an anise-flavoured spirit derived from botanicals, including the flowers and leaves of Artemisia absinthium ("grand wormwood"), together with green anise, sweet fennel, and other medicinal and culinary herbs.
Artemisia comes from Ancient Greek ?????????, from ??????? (Artemis).
In Hellenistic culture, Artemis was a goddess of the hunt, and protector of the forest and children. absinthum comes from the Ancient Greek ????????.
The word "wormwood" comes from Middle English wormwode or wermode. The form "wormwood" is attributable to its traditional use as a vermifuge. Webster's Third New International Dictionary attributes the etymology to Old English werm?d (compare with German Wermut and the derived drink vermouth), which the OED (s.v.) marks as "of obscure origin".
Absinthe traditionally has a natural green colour but may also be colourless. It is commonly referred to in historical literature as "la fée verte" (the green fairy). Although it is sometimes mistakenly referred to as a liqueur, absinthe is not traditionally bottled with added sugar; it is therefore classified as a spirit. Absinthe is traditionally bottled at a high level of alcohol by volume, but it is normally diluted with water prior to being consumed.
Absinthe originated in the canton of Neuchâtel in Switzerland in the late 18th century. It rose to great popularity as an alcoholic drink in late 19th- and early 20th-century France, particularly among Parisian artists and writers. Owing in part to its association with bohemian culture, the consumption of absinthe was opposed by social conservatives and prohibitionists. Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce, Charles Baudelaire, Paul Verlaine, Arthur Rimbaud, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Amedeo Modigliani, Pablo Picasso, Vincent van Gogh, Oscar Wilde, Aleister Crowley, Erik Satie and Alfred Jarry were all known absinthe drinkers.
Absinthe has often been portrayed as a dangerously addictive psychoactive drug and hallucinogen. The chemical compound thujone, although present in the spirit in only trace amounts, was blamed for its alleged harmful effects. By 1915, absinthe had been banned in the United States and in much of Europe, including France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland and Austria-Hungary. Although absinthe was vilified, it has not been demonstrated to be any more dangerous than ordinary spirits. Recent studies have shown that absinthe's psychoactive properties (apart from that of the alcohol) have been exaggerated. A revival of absinthe began in the 1990s, following the adoption of modern European Union food and beverage laws that removed longstanding barriers to its production and sale. By the early 21st century, nearly 200 brands of absinthe were being produced in a dozen countries, most notably in France, Switzerland, Australia, United States, Spain, and the Czech Republic.
The French word absinthe can refer either to the alcoholic beverage or, less commonly, to the actual wormwood plant, with grande absinthe being Artemisia absinthium, and petite absinthe being Artemisia pontica. The Latin name artemisia comes from Artemis, the ancient Greek goddess of the hunt. Absinthe is derived from the Latin absinthium, which in turn comes from the ancient Greek ???????? apsínthion, "wormwood". The use of Artemisia absinthium in a drink is attested in Lucretius' De Rerum Natura (I 936?950), where Lucretius indicates that a drink containing wormwood is given as medicine to children in a cup with honey on the brim to make it drinkable.
Some claim that the word means "undrinkable" in Greek, but it may instead be linked to the Persian root spand or aspand, or the variant esfand, which meant Peganum harmala, also called Syrian Rue?although it is not actually a variety of rue, another famously bitter herb. That Artemisia absinthium was commonly burned as a protective offering may suggest that its origins lie in the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European root *spend, meaning "to perform a ritual" or "make an offering". Whether the word was a borrowing from Persian into Greek, or from a common ancestor of both, is unclear. Alternatively, the Greek word may originate in a pre-Greek Pelasgian word, marked by the non-Indo-European consonant complex ??.
Alternative spellings for absinthe include absinth, absynthe and absenta. Absinth (without the final e) is a spelling variant most commonly applied to absinthes produced in central and eastern Europe, and is specifically associated with Bohemian-style absinthes.
Bohemian-style or Czech-style absinth (also called anise-free absinthe, or just ?absinth? without the ?e?) is an ersatz version of the traditional spirit absinthe, though is more accurately described as a kind of wormwood bitters. It is produced mainly in the Czech Republic, from which it gets its designations as ?Bohemian? or ?Czech,? although not all absinthe from the Czech Republic is Bohemian-style.
Bohemian-style absinth contains little or none of the anise, fennel, and other herbs that are central to the flavor of traditional absinthe. This usually results in a product that is more bitter and less aromatic than traditional absinthe. It is not produced by the traditional means of maceration and distillation, but by cold-mixing high-proof alcohol with herbal oils and artificial colorants ? a cheaper production method that involves no distillation.
Typical Bohemian-style absinth has only two similarities with its traditional counterpart, in that it contains wormwood and has a high alcohol content.
Since few countries possess a legal definition for absinthe, producers of Czech style absinth have taken advantage of this situation by borrowing the romantic Belle Époque associations and psychoactive reputation of traditional absinthe to create a market for their dissimilar products. Many of these producers aim to increase the appeal of their wares by making claims as to the thujone content of their absinth, levels which are uncharacteristic of "pre-ban" absinthe. A few Czech products even claim to have levels of thujone that would render them unfit to be sold in many parts of the world.
Bohemian-style absinth lacks much of the herbal profile and density of authentic absinthe, including the constituents that create the louche. Since this renders Czech style absinth unusable for the traditional method of preparation, a modern ritual involving fire was created. In the ?fire ritual,? absinth is poured into a glass, and a sugar cube on a slotted spoon is placed over the glass. The sugar cube is then soaked with absinth and is set on fire. The cube is then dropped into the absinth, setting it ablaze. Then water is poured over the flame until it goes out. Usually, a 1:1 ratio of water to absinth is used. This procedure produces a minor simulation of the louche that is seen in traditional absinthe, and the low water-to-alcohol ratio increases the strength of the resulting drink. (A traditional absinthe drink is diluted with water to a ratio between 3:1 and 5:1.) Many Czechs do not dilute the drink at all.
The fire ritual first appeared in advertisements after having been seen in a Prague bar in the late 1990s. It has been mistaken at times as historical fact due to its having been misrepresented as such in several contemporary costume drama films.
Drinkers of authentic absinthe scorn the Czech fire ritual, believing that it spoils the flavor of absinthe and ruins the drink.
The precise origin of absinthe is unclear. The medical use of wormwood dates back to ancient Egypt, and is mentioned in the Ebers Papyrus, c. 1550 BC. Wormwood extracts and wine-soaked wormwood leaves were used as remedies by the ancient Greeks. Moreover, there is evidence of the existence of a wormwood-flavoured wine, absinthites oinos, in ancient Greece.
The first clear evidence of absinthe in the modern sense of a distilled spirit containing green anise and fennel, however, dates to the 18th century. According to popular legend, absinthe began as an all-purpose patent remedy created by Dr. Pierre Ordinaire, a French doctor living in Couvet, Switzerland, around 1792 (the exact date varies by account). Ordinaire's recipe was passed on to the Henriod sisters of Couvet, who sold absinthe as a medicinal elixir. By other accounts, the Henriod sisters may have been making the elixir before Ordinaire's arrival. In either case, a certain Major Dubied acquired the formula from the sisters and in 1797, and with his son Marcellin and son-in-law Henry-Louis Pernod, opened the first absinthe distillery, Dubied Père et Fils, in Couvet. In 1805, they built a second distillery in Pontarlier, France, under the new company name Maison Pernod Fils. Pernod Fils remained one of the most popular brands of absinthe up until the drink was banned in France in 1914.
Rapid growth of French consumption.
An advertising poster for Absinthe Beucler.
Absinthe's popularity grew steadily through the 1840s, when absinthe was given to French troops as a malaria preventive. When the troops returned home, they brought their taste for absinthe home with them. The custom of drinking absinthe gradually became so popular in bars, bistros, cafés, and cabarets that, by the 1860s, the hour of 5 p.m. was called l'heure verte ("the green hour"). Absinthe was favoured by all social classes, from the wealthy bourgeoisie, to poor artists and ordinary working-class people. By the 1880s, mass production had caused the price of absinthe to drop sharply. By 1910, the French were drinking 36 million litres of absinthe per year, as compared to their annual consumption of almost 5 billion litres of wine.
International consumption.
Absinthe was exported widely from its native France and Switzerland, and attained some degree of popularity in other countries, including Spain, Great Britain, USA, and the Czech Republic. Absinthe was never banned in Spain or Portugal, and its production and consumption have never ceased. It gained a temporary spike in popularity there during the early 20th century, corresponding with the French influenced Art Nouveau and Modernism aesthetic movements.
New Orleans has a profound cultural association with absinthe, and is credited as the birthplace of the Sazerac, perhaps the earliest absinthe cocktail. The Old Absinthe House bar, located on Bourbon Street, serves as a prominent historical landmark. Originally named The Absinthe Room, it was opened in 1874 by a Catalan bartender named Cayetano Ferrer. The building was frequented by many famous people, including Mark Twain, Oscar Wilde, Franklin Roosevelt, Aleister Crowley and Frank Sinatra.
Absinthe has been consumed in the Czech countries (then part of Austria-Hungary) since at least 1888, notably by Czech artists, some of whom had an affinity for Paris, frequenting Prague's famous Café Slavia. Its wider appeal in Bohemia itself is uncertain, though it was sold in and around Prague. It is claimed that at least one local liquor distillery in Bohemia was producing absinthe at the turn of the 20th century.
Bans.
Spurred by the temperance movement and the winemakers' associations, absinthe was publicly associated with violent crimes and social disorder.
One critic claimed:
Absinthe makes you crazy and criminal, provokes epilepsy and tuberculosis, and has killed thousands of French people. It makes a ferocious beast of man, a martyr of woman, and a degenerate of the infant, it disorganizes and ruins the family and menaces the future of the country.
Edgar Degas' 1876 painting L'Absinthe, which can be seen at the Musée d'Orsay, epitomised the popular view of absinthe addicts as sodden and benumbed. Although Émile Zola mentioned absinthe only once by name, he described its effects in his novel L'Assommoir.
L'Absinthe, by Edgar Degas, 1876
A poster criticises the ban on absinthe in Switzerland (by Albert Gantner, 1910)
In 1905, it was reported that Jean Lanfray, a Swiss farmer, murdered his family and attempted to take his own life after drinking absinthe. The fact that Lanfray was an alcoholic who had consumed considerable quantities of wine and brandy prior to drinking two glasses of absinthe was conveniently overlooked or ignored, therefore placing the blame for the murders solely on absinthe. The Lanfray murders were the tipping point in this hotly debated topic, and a subsequent petition to ban absinthe in Switzerland collected more than 82,000 signatures. A referendum was subsequently held on banning the drink on 5 July 1908. After it was approved by voters, the prohibition of absinthe was then written into the Swiss constitution.
In 1906, both Belgium and Brazil banned the sale and distribution of absinthe, although these were not the first countries to take such action. Absinthe had been banned as early as 1898 in the colony of the Congo Free State. The Netherlands banned absinthe in 1909, Switzerland in 1910, the United States in 1912, and France in 1914.
The prohibition of absinthe in France would eventually lead to the popularity of pastis, and to a lesser extent, ouzo, and other anise-flavoured spirits that do not contain wormwood. Following the conclusion of the First World War, production of the Pernod Fils brand was resumed at the Banus distillery in Catalonia, Spain (where absinthe was still legal), but gradually declining sales saw the cessation of production in the 1960s. In Switzerland, the ban served only to drive the production of absinthe underground. Clandestine home distillers produced colourless absinthe (la Bleue), which was easier to conceal from the authorities. Many countries never banned absinthe, notably Britain, where it had never been as popular as in continental Europe.
Modern revival.
In the 1990s, realising the UK had never formally banned absinthe, British importer BBH Spirits began to import Hill's Absinth from the Czech Republic, which sparked a modern resurgence in absinthe's popularity. In these countries, where absinthe was never banned or truly popular, absinthe began to reappear during the revival in the 1990s.
Absinthes available during that time consisted almost exclusively of Czech, Spanish, and Portuguese brands that were of recent origin, typically consisting of Bohemian-style products. Absinthe connoisseurs considered these of inferior quality and not representative of the 19th century spirit.
In 2000, La Fée Absinthe became the first commercial absinthe distilled and bottled in France since the 1914 ban. Originally produced for export, it is now one of dozens of French absinthes that are produced and sold within France.
Modern absinthes. Vertes at left; blanches at right. A prepared glass is in front of each.
In the Netherlands, the restrictions on the manufacture and sale of absinthe were successfully challenged by the Amsterdam wine seller Menno Boorsma in July 2004, thus confirming the legality of absinthe once again. Similarly, Belgium lifted its longstanding absinthe ban on January 1, 2005, citing (as did the Dutch judge) a conflict with the adopted food and beverage regulations of the Single European Market. In Switzerland, the constitutional ban on absinthe was repealed in 2000 during an overhaul of the national constitution, although the prohibition was simultaneously rewritten into ordinary law instead. That law was later repealed such that as of March 1, 2005, absinthe was made again legal in its country of origin. Absinthe is once again distilled and sold in its Val-de-Travers birthplace, with Kübler and La Clandestine Absinthe among the first new brands to re-emerge.
Absinthe has a deep history in the Northern Catalan region of Spain that encompasses Barcelona, Tarragona, Lleida, and the region of the Pyrenees mountains. While the drink was never officially banned in Spain, it began to fall out of favour in the 1940s, and almost vanished into obscurity. The Catalan region has seen significant resurgence since 2007, when one producer established operations there.
Absinthe has never been illegal to import or manufacture in Australia. Importation requires a permit under the Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulation 1956 due to a restriction on importing any product containing "oil of wormwood". In 2000, an amendment proposed by Foods Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) as part of a new consolidation of the Food Code across Australia and New Zealand, made all wormwood species prohibited herbs for food purposes under Food Standard 1.4.4. Prohibited and Restricted Plants and Fungi. However, this amendment was found inconsistent with other parts of the preexisting Food Code. The proposed amendment was withdrawn in 2002 during the transition between the two codes, thereby continuing to allow absinthe manufacture and importation through the existing permit-based system. These events were erroneously reported by the media as Australia having reclassified it from a prohibited product to a restricted product. There is now an Australian-produced brand of absinthe called Moulin Rooz.
In 2007, the French Lucid brand became the first genuine absinthe to receive a COLA (Certificate of Label Approval) for importation into the United States since 1912, following independent efforts by representatives from Lucid and Kübler to topple the long-standing US ban. In December 2007, St. George Absinthe Verte, produced by St. George Spirits of Alameda, California, became the first brand of American-made absinthe produced in the United States since the ban. Since that time, other micro-distilleries have started producing small batch artisanal absinthes in the US.
The 21st century has seen new modalities for absinthe, including various frozen preparations, which have become increasingly popular.
In May 2011 the French Absinthe Ban of 1915 was repealed following petitions by the Fédération Française des Spiritueux, who represent French distillers.
Most countries have no legal definition for absinthe, whereas the method of production and content of spirits such as whisky, brandy, and gin are globally defined and regulated. As such, producers are at liberty to label a product as "absinthe" or "absinth" without regard to any specific legal definition or quality standards.
Producers of legitimate absinthes employ one of two historically defined processes to create the finished spirit: distillation, or cold mixing. In the sole country (Switzerland) that does possess a legal definition of absinthe, distillation is the only permitted method of production.
Distilled absinthe.
Distilled absinthe employs a method of production similar to that of high quality gin. Botanicals are initially macerated in distilled base alcohol before being redistilled to exclude bitter principles, and impart the desired complexity and texture to the spirit.
Absinthe distillation, ca. 1904
The distillation of absinthe first yields a colourless distillate that leaves the alembic at around 72% ABV. The distillate may be reduced and bottled clear, to produce a Blanche or la Bleue absinthe, or it may be coloured to create a verte using natural or artificial colouring.
Traditional absinthes obtain their green colour strictly from the chlorophyll of whole herbs, which is extracted from the plants during the secondary maceration. This step involves steeping plants such as petite wormwood, hyssop, and melissa (among other herbs) in the distillate. Chlorophyll from these herbs is extracted in the process, giving the drink its famous green colour.
This step also provides a herbal complexity that is typical of high quality absinthe. The natural colouring process is considered critical for absinthe ageing, since the chlorophyll remains chemically active. The chlorophyll serves a similar role in absinthe that tannins do in wine or brown liquors.
After the colouring process, the resulting product is diluted with water to the desired percentage of alcohol. The flavour of absinthe is said to improve materially with storage, and many pre-ban distilleries aged their absinthe in settling tanks before bottling.
Cold mixed absinthe.
Many modern absinthes are produced using a cold mix process. This inexpensive method of production does not involve distillation, and is regarded as inferior in the same way that cheaper compound gin is regarded as inferior to distilled gin. The cold mixing process involves the simple blending of flavouring essences and artificial colouring in commercial alcohol, in similar fashion to most flavoured vodkas and inexpensive liqueurs and cordials. Some modern cold mixed absinthes have been bottled at strengths approaching 90% ABV. Others are presented simply as a bottle of plain alcohol with a small amount of powdered herbs suspended within it.
The lack of a formal legal definition for absinthe in most countries enables some cold mixing producers to falsify advertising claims, such as referring to their products as "distilled", since the base alcohol itself was created at some point through distillation. This is used as justification to sell these inexpensively produced absinthes at prices comparable to more authentic absinthes that are distilled directly from whole herbs. In the only country that possesses a formal legal definition of absinthe (Switzerland), anything made via the cold mixed process cannot be sold as absinthe.
Ingredients.
Anise seeds.
Absinthe is traditionally prepared from a distillation of neutral alcohol, various herbs, spices and water. Traditional absinthes were redistilled from a white grape spirit (or eau de vie), while lesser absinthes were more commonly made from alcohol from grain, beets, or potatoes. The principal botanicals are grande wormwood, green anise, and florence fennel, which are often called "the holy trinity." Many other herbs may be used as well, such as petite wormwood (Artemisia pontica or Roman wormwood), hyssop, melissa, star anise, angelica, peppermint, coriander, and veronica.
Alternative colouring.
Adding to absinthe's negative reputation in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, unscrupulous makers of the drink omitted the traditional colouring phase of production in favour of adding toxic copper salts to artificially induce a green tint. This practice may be responsible for some of the alleged toxicity historically associated with this beverage. Many modern day producers resort to similar (but non-deadly) shortcuts, including the use of artificial food colouring to create the green colour. Additionally, at least some cheaply made preban absinthes were reportedly adulterated with poisonous antimony trichloride, reputed to enhance the louching effect.
Absinthe may also be naturally coloured red using hibiscus flowers. This was referred to as a rouge or rose absinthe. Only one historical rouge brand is reported to have existed.
Bottled strength.
Absinthe was historically bottled at 45-74% percent ABV. Some modern Franco?Suisse absinthes are bottled at up to 82.3% ABV, while some modern cold-mixed, bohemian-style absinthes are bottled at up to 89.9% ABV.
Kits.
The modern day interest in absinthe has spawned a rash of absinthe kits from companies that claim they produce homemade absinthe. Kits often call for soaking herbs in vodka or alcohol, or adding a liquid concentrate to vodka or alcohol to create an ersatz absinthe. Such practices usually yield a harsh substance that bears little resemblance to the genuine article, and are considered inauthentic by any practical standard. Some concoctions may even be dangerous, especially if they call for supplementation with potentially poisonous herbs, oils and/or extracts. In at least one documented case, a person suffered acute renal failure after drinking 10 ml of pure wormwood oil?a dose much higher than that found in absinthe.
Alternatives.
In baking, Pernod Anise is often used as a substitute if absinthe is unavailable. In preparing the classic New Orleans-style Sazerac cocktail, various substitutes such as Pastis, Pernod, Ricard, and Herbsaint have been used to replace absinthe.
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147.Theatre of Cruelty.
The Theatre of Cruelty (French: Théâtre de la Cruauté) is a form of theatre developed by avant-garde playwright, actor, essayist, and theorist, Antonin Artaud, in The Theatre and its Double. Originally a member of the surrealist movement, Artaud eventually began to develop his own theatrical theories. The Theatre of Cruelty can be seen as break with traditional Western theatre, and a means by which artists assault the senses of the audience, and allow them to feel the unexpressed emotions of the subconscious. While Artaud was only able to produce one play in his lifetime that reflected the tenets of the Theatre of Cruelty, the works of many theatre artists reflect his theories. These artists include Jean Genet, Jerzy Grotowski, and Peter Brook.
Antonin Artaud was a member of the surrealist movement in Paris in the 1920s, and was well known as an actor, playwright, and essayist of avant-garde theatre. Much of the avant-garde theatre developed in France from 1914-1939, can be seen as a revolt against tradition. Deeply affected by the events of World War I, the artists of the movement felt increasing skepticism of the existing societal structures that had allowed for global warfare.
While Artaud would eventually break away from surrealism, the movement helped to shape his later theories on the Theatre of Cruelty. Led by Andre Breton, surrealist theatre reflected a belief that the unconscious mind is a source of artistic truth. In his manifesto on surrealism, Breton writes, ?pure psychic automatism, by which is intended to express, verbally, in writing, or by other means, the real process of thought. Thought?s dictation, in absence of all control exercised by the reason and outside all esthetic or moral preoccupation.?
In 1926, in association with surrealist playwright Roger Vitrac, Artaud founded the Theatre Alfred Jarry, which only produced non-realistic drama. The theatre lasted only two years. After his work in surrealist theatre, Artaud would go on to develop his theories on the Theatre of Cruelty after he was inspired by a Balinese dance troupe performance that he viewed at the Paris Colonial Exhibit in 1931. The performance conventions of Balinese dance were different than any Artaud had previously experienced, and he was struck by the intense physicality of the dancers. Artaud would go on to publish his major work on the Theatre of Cruelty, The Theatre and Its Double, seven years later in 1938.
Defining Artaud?s ?theatre? and ?cruelty?.
In his writings on the Theatre of Cruelty, Artaud points to definitions of both ?theatre? and ?cruelty? that are separate from their colloquial meanings. For Artaud, theatre does not merely refer to a staged performance before a passive audience. The theatre is a practice, which ?wakes us up. Nerves and heart,? and through which we experience, ?immediate violent action,? that ?inspires us with the fiery magnetism of its images and acts upon us like a spiritual therapeutics whose touch can never be forgotten.?
Similarly, cruelty does not refer to an act of emotional or physical violence. According to scholar Nathan Gorelick, ?Cruelty is, more profoundly, the unrelenting agitation of a life that has become unnecessary, lazy, or removed from a compelling force. The Theatre of Cruelty gives expression to everything that is ?crime, love, war, or madness? in order to ?unforgettably root within us the ideas of perpetual conflict, a spasm in which life is continually lacerated, in which everything in creation rises up and asserts itself against our appointed rank.??
Break with Western theatre.
Artaud felt that the focus of theatre in the west had become far too narrow--primarily examining the psychological suffering of individuals or the societal struggles of specific groups of people. He wanted to delve into the aspects of the subconscious that he believed were often the root cause of human being?s mistreatment of one another. Through an assault on the audiences' senses, Artaud was convinced that a theatrical experience could help people purge destructive feelings and experience the joy that society forces them to repress. For Artaud, ?the theatre has been created to drain abscesses collectively.?
Insufficiency of language.
Artaud believed that language was an entirely insufficient means to express trauma. Accordingly, he felt that words should be stripped of meaning and chosen for their phonic elements. According to scholar Robert Vork, ?Speech on the Theatre of Cruelty?s stage is reduced to inarticulate sounds, cries, and gibbering screams, no longer inviting a subject into being but seeking to preclude its very existence.? Somewhat paradoxically, Artaud claims that his characters are able to express things that others are unable to say. Vork claims, ?Artaud seems to be suggesting that his play reveals emotions and experiences that we all attempt to proscribe and are unwilling to acknowledge, but which nevertheless occur."
"Impossible theatre"
Stephen Barber explains that "the Theatre of Cruelty has often been called an 'impossible theatre'?vital for the purity of inspiration which it generated, but hopelessly vague and metaphorical in its concrete detail." This impossibility has not prevented others from articulating a version of his principles as the basis for explorations of their own. "Though many of those theatre-artists proclaimed an Artaudian lineage," Susie Tharu argues, "the Artaud they invoke is marked by a commitment as ahistorical and transcendent as their own." There is, she suggests, another Artaud and "the tradition he was midwife to."
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Inglish Site.40.
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TO THE THRISE HO-
NOVRABLE AND EVER LY-
VING VERTVES OF SYR PHILLIP
SYDNEY KNIGHT, SYR JAMES JESUS SINGLETON, SYR CANARIS, SYR LAVRENTI BERIA ; AND TO THE
RIGHT HONORABLE AND OTHERS WHAT-
SOEVER, WHO LIVING LOVED THEM,
AND BEING DEAD GIVE THEM
THEIRE DVE.
***
In the beginning there is darkness. The screen erupts in blue, then a cascade of thick, white hexadecimal numbers and cracked language, ?UnusedStk? and ?AllocMem.? Black screen cedes to blue to white and a pair of scales appear, crossed by a sword, both images drawn in the jagged, bitmapped graphics of Windows 1.0-era clip-art?light grey and yellow on a background of light cyan. Blue text proclaims, ?God on tap!?
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Introduction.
Yes i am getting a little Mobi-Literate(ML) by experimenting literary on my Mobile Phone. Peoplecall it Typographical Laziness(TL).
The first accidental entries for the this part of this encyclopedia.
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This is TempleOS V2.17, the welcome screen explains, a ?Public Domain Operating System? produced by Trivial Solutions of Las Vegas, Nevada. It greets the user with a riot of 16-color, scrolling, blinking text; depending on your frame of reference, it might recall ?DESQview, the ?Commodore 64, or a host of early DOS-based graphical user interfaces. In style if not in specifics, it evokes a particular era, a time when the then-new concept of ?personal computing? necessarily meant programming and tinkering and breaking things.
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Index.
145.
146.Absinthe.
147.Theatre of Cruelty.
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145.Captain Harlock (Kyaputen H?rokku).
Captain Harlock (Kyaputen H?rokku?) (also known as "Captain Herlock" for the English release of Endless Odyssey and as "Albator" in French-speaking countries) is a fictional character created by manga artist Leiji Matsumoto and the protagonist of the Space Pirate Captain Harlock manga series.
Harlock is the archetypical Romantic hero, a space pirate with an individualist philosophy of life. He is as noble as he is taciturn, rebellious, stoically fighting against totalitarian regimes, whether they be earth-born or alien. In his own words, he "fight[s] for no one's sake... only for something deep in [his] heart". He does not fear death, and is sometimes seen wearing clothing with the number 42 on it. In Japanese culture, the number 42 is associated with death (the numbers, pronounced separately as "four two", sound like the words "shi ni"?meaning "to death").
The character was created by Leiji Matsumoto in 1977 and popularized in the 1978 television series Space Pirate Captain Harlock. Since then, the character has appeared in numerous animated television series and films, the latest of which is 2013's Space Pirate Captain Harlock.
Though there are slight variations in each telling of Harlock's story, the essentials remain the same. Matsumoto presents a future (2977 AD) in which the Earth has achieved a vast starfaring civilization, but is slowly and steadily succumbing to ennui or despair, often due to defeat and subjugation by a foreign invader. Rising against the general apathy, Harlock denies defeat and leads an outlaw crew aboard his starship Arcadia to undertake daring raids against Earth's oppressors. Even though they have defeated Earth and devastated its peoples, the invaders are often presented in a sympathetic light, being shown as having some justification for their actions.
Space Pirate Captain Harlock.
In Space Pirate Captain Harlock, the Captain's crew included the mysterious, alcohol-imbibing alien woman Miime, a robot, and a drunken doctor. The series presented a story arc in which a huge black metal sphere strikes Tokyo and ancient Mayan legends appear to be walking the Earth again. The invaders turn out to be the Mazone, a race of plant-based women who explored Earth in the mythic past and are now back to reclaim it. Only Harlock and his mismatched crew are brave and capable enough to face the enemy.
Captain Harlock - Mystery of the Arcadia.
This 1978 short film is ostensibly a retelling of Episode 13 of the 1978 series, 'The Witch's Ocean Castle of Death'. It consists primarily of recycled footage taken from this same episode, but presented in widescreen format. Some new alternate footage is added at the beginning of the story, and some soundtrack adjustments were made throughout.
Arcadia of My Youth.
The Arcadia of My Youth feature film was released on July 28, 1982. The film, set in a different continuity from the original TV series, chronicles Harlock's beginnings as a space pirate and his acquisition of the spaceship Arcadia. The movie also includes flashback material dealing with two of his 20th-century ancestors.
Endless Road/Orbit SSX.
Arcadia of My Youth was followed by 22 episodes of the TV series Endless Road/Orbit SSX starting in October 1982. Its official French title is simply Albator, although it early became popular among French speakers as Albator 84 since it was first aired in France as of 1984 and the 1978 series had been formerly named in French exactly the same: Albator. The series dealt with Harlock and company's continuing struggle against the Illumidas occupying force, who still retained control of Earth at the end of the theatrical feature. Both film (Arcadia of My Youth) and second series (Endless Road/Orbit SSX) feature a newly designed starship and lack most of the crew from the Space Pirate series, but are noteworthy for the presence of Emeraldas, a female counterpart to Harlock who originally appeared in a series of Matsumoto-penned graphic novels.
Harlock Saga.
In the 1990s, Matsumoto released Harlock Saga, a mini-series based on Das Rheingold. The series recasts the Captain and his crew in roles with analogues in The Ring Cycle and pits them against a race of "gods" set on redesigning the universe to their liking.
Gun Frontier.
On March 28, 2002 Gun Frontier, a buddy comedy set in the American Old West, began broadcasting in TV Tokyo. The series follows Franklin Harlock Jr. and Tochiro ?yama as they search for a lost clan of Japanese immigrants. In contrast to other works, Harlock appears here as Tochiro's sidekick.
Endless Odyssey.
December 2002 saw the release of Space Pirate Captain Harlock: The Endless Odyssey, directed by Rintaro.
The story is set after the original TV series, with Harlock on a self-imposed exile and his crew either in jail or flying under the Jolly Roger. The series details Harlock's return and his round-up of the Arcadia crew for a fight against the Noo, a mysterious and ancient evil which has caused the Earth to disappear, and who use fear to conquer their foes. As nearly every part of this series is geared to be a sequel to the original Captain Harlock TV series, Endless Odyssey reintroduces Tadashi Daiba to the Arcadia.
Space Pirate Captain Harlock Movie
On March 24, 2010, Toei Animation announced the release of the new Harlock movie, they announced a completed pilot for its planned computer-graphics remake of Leiji Matsumoto and Toei's Space Pirate Captain Harlock manga and anime franchise, and it has revealed a preliminary image and the project's staff. Mobile Suit Gundam UC author Harutoshi Fukui, Appleseed director Shinji Aramaki, Appleseed mechanical designer Atsushi Takeuchi, and Ninja Scroll character designer Yutaka Minowa worked on the new Space Pirate Captain Harlock pilot with Marza Animation Planet (formerly known as Sega Sammy Visual Entertainment).
The official trailer/pilot was aired at the Kawaii-Kon Anime festival in Hawaii on April 17, 2010, as a special presentation courtesy of Director Shinji Aramaki. This is the first time it has been seen/aired in the United States. The CG animated film is tentatively schedule for international release in 2012.
On January 31, 2013 during the presentation of its upcoming film lineup, Toei announced that the anime will be out in Fall 2013. According to the news source Oricon, this film has Toei Animation's highest production budget ever at the equivalent of over 30 million U.S. dollars.
The film premiered in Japan on September 7, 2013.
The film premiered on Netflix under the title Harlock: Space Pirate with Japanese, Portuguese and Spanish audio and with English, Portuguese and Spanish subtitles.
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146.Absinthe.
Absinthe (i/?æbs?n?/ or /?æbsæn?/; French: [aps??t]) is historically described as a distilled, highly alcoholic (45?74% ABV / 90?148 U.S. proof) beverage. It is an anise-flavoured spirit derived from botanicals, including the flowers and leaves of Artemisia absinthium ("grand wormwood"), together with green anise, sweet fennel, and other medicinal and culinary herbs.
Artemisia comes from Ancient Greek ?????????, from ??????? (Artemis).
In Hellenistic culture, Artemis was a goddess of the hunt, and protector of the forest and children. absinthum comes from the Ancient Greek ????????.
The word "wormwood" comes from Middle English wormwode or wermode. The form "wormwood" is attributable to its traditional use as a vermifuge. Webster's Third New International Dictionary attributes the etymology to Old English werm?d (compare with German Wermut and the derived drink vermouth), which the OED (s.v.) marks as "of obscure origin".
Absinthe traditionally has a natural green colour but may also be colourless. It is commonly referred to in historical literature as "la fée verte" (the green fairy). Although it is sometimes mistakenly referred to as a liqueur, absinthe is not traditionally bottled with added sugar; it is therefore classified as a spirit. Absinthe is traditionally bottled at a high level of alcohol by volume, but it is normally diluted with water prior to being consumed.
Absinthe originated in the canton of Neuchâtel in Switzerland in the late 18th century. It rose to great popularity as an alcoholic drink in late 19th- and early 20th-century France, particularly among Parisian artists and writers. Owing in part to its association with bohemian culture, the consumption of absinthe was opposed by social conservatives and prohibitionists. Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce, Charles Baudelaire, Paul Verlaine, Arthur Rimbaud, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Amedeo Modigliani, Pablo Picasso, Vincent van Gogh, Oscar Wilde, Aleister Crowley, Erik Satie and Alfred Jarry were all known absinthe drinkers.
Absinthe has often been portrayed as a dangerously addictive psychoactive drug and hallucinogen. The chemical compound thujone, although present in the spirit in only trace amounts, was blamed for its alleged harmful effects. By 1915, absinthe had been banned in the United States and in much of Europe, including France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland and Austria-Hungary. Although absinthe was vilified, it has not been demonstrated to be any more dangerous than ordinary spirits. Recent studies have shown that absinthe's psychoactive properties (apart from that of the alcohol) have been exaggerated. A revival of absinthe began in the 1990s, following the adoption of modern European Union food and beverage laws that removed longstanding barriers to its production and sale. By the early 21st century, nearly 200 brands of absinthe were being produced in a dozen countries, most notably in France, Switzerland, Australia, United States, Spain, and the Czech Republic.
The French word absinthe can refer either to the alcoholic beverage or, less commonly, to the actual wormwood plant, with grande absinthe being Artemisia absinthium, and petite absinthe being Artemisia pontica. The Latin name artemisia comes from Artemis, the ancient Greek goddess of the hunt. Absinthe is derived from the Latin absinthium, which in turn comes from the ancient Greek ???????? apsínthion, "wormwood". The use of Artemisia absinthium in a drink is attested in Lucretius' De Rerum Natura (I 936?950), where Lucretius indicates that a drink containing wormwood is given as medicine to children in a cup with honey on the brim to make it drinkable.
Some claim that the word means "undrinkable" in Greek, but it may instead be linked to the Persian root spand or aspand, or the variant esfand, which meant Peganum harmala, also called Syrian Rue?although it is not actually a variety of rue, another famously bitter herb. That Artemisia absinthium was commonly burned as a protective offering may suggest that its origins lie in the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European root *spend, meaning "to perform a ritual" or "make an offering". Whether the word was a borrowing from Persian into Greek, or from a common ancestor of both, is unclear. Alternatively, the Greek word may originate in a pre-Greek Pelasgian word, marked by the non-Indo-European consonant complex ??.
Alternative spellings for absinthe include absinth, absynthe and absenta. Absinth (without the final e) is a spelling variant most commonly applied to absinthes produced in central and eastern Europe, and is specifically associated with Bohemian-style absinthes.
Bohemian-style or Czech-style absinth (also called anise-free absinthe, or just ?absinth? without the ?e?) is an ersatz version of the traditional spirit absinthe, though is more accurately described as a kind of wormwood bitters. It is produced mainly in the Czech Republic, from which it gets its designations as ?Bohemian? or ?Czech,? although not all absinthe from the Czech Republic is Bohemian-style.
Bohemian-style absinth contains little or none of the anise, fennel, and other herbs that are central to the flavor of traditional absinthe. This usually results in a product that is more bitter and less aromatic than traditional absinthe. It is not produced by the traditional means of maceration and distillation, but by cold-mixing high-proof alcohol with herbal oils and artificial colorants ? a cheaper production method that involves no distillation.
Typical Bohemian-style absinth has only two similarities with its traditional counterpart, in that it contains wormwood and has a high alcohol content.
Since few countries possess a legal definition for absinthe, producers of Czech style absinth have taken advantage of this situation by borrowing the romantic Belle Époque associations and psychoactive reputation of traditional absinthe to create a market for their dissimilar products. Many of these producers aim to increase the appeal of their wares by making claims as to the thujone content of their absinth, levels which are uncharacteristic of "pre-ban" absinthe. A few Czech products even claim to have levels of thujone that would render them unfit to be sold in many parts of the world.
Bohemian-style absinth lacks much of the herbal profile and density of authentic absinthe, including the constituents that create the louche. Since this renders Czech style absinth unusable for the traditional method of preparation, a modern ritual involving fire was created. In the ?fire ritual,? absinth is poured into a glass, and a sugar cube on a slotted spoon is placed over the glass. The sugar cube is then soaked with absinth and is set on fire. The cube is then dropped into the absinth, setting it ablaze. Then water is poured over the flame until it goes out. Usually, a 1:1 ratio of water to absinth is used. This procedure produces a minor simulation of the louche that is seen in traditional absinthe, and the low water-to-alcohol ratio increases the strength of the resulting drink. (A traditional absinthe drink is diluted with water to a ratio between 3:1 and 5:1.) Many Czechs do not dilute the drink at all.
The fire ritual first appeared in advertisements after having been seen in a Prague bar in the late 1990s. It has been mistaken at times as historical fact due to its having been misrepresented as such in several contemporary costume drama films.
Drinkers of authentic absinthe scorn the Czech fire ritual, believing that it spoils the flavor of absinthe and ruins the drink.
The precise origin of absinthe is unclear. The medical use of wormwood dates back to ancient Egypt, and is mentioned in the Ebers Papyrus, c. 1550 BC. Wormwood extracts and wine-soaked wormwood leaves were used as remedies by the ancient Greeks. Moreover, there is evidence of the existence of a wormwood-flavoured wine, absinthites oinos, in ancient Greece.
The first clear evidence of absinthe in the modern sense of a distilled spirit containing green anise and fennel, however, dates to the 18th century. According to popular legend, absinthe began as an all-purpose patent remedy created by Dr. Pierre Ordinaire, a French doctor living in Couvet, Switzerland, around 1792 (the exact date varies by account). Ordinaire's recipe was passed on to the Henriod sisters of Couvet, who sold absinthe as a medicinal elixir. By other accounts, the Henriod sisters may have been making the elixir before Ordinaire's arrival. In either case, a certain Major Dubied acquired the formula from the sisters and in 1797, and with his son Marcellin and son-in-law Henry-Louis Pernod, opened the first absinthe distillery, Dubied Père et Fils, in Couvet. In 1805, they built a second distillery in Pontarlier, France, under the new company name Maison Pernod Fils. Pernod Fils remained one of the most popular brands of absinthe up until the drink was banned in France in 1914.
Rapid growth of French consumption.
An advertising poster for Absinthe Beucler.
Absinthe's popularity grew steadily through the 1840s, when absinthe was given to French troops as a malaria preventive. When the troops returned home, they brought their taste for absinthe home with them. The custom of drinking absinthe gradually became so popular in bars, bistros, cafés, and cabarets that, by the 1860s, the hour of 5 p.m. was called l'heure verte ("the green hour"). Absinthe was favoured by all social classes, from the wealthy bourgeoisie, to poor artists and ordinary working-class people. By the 1880s, mass production had caused the price of absinthe to drop sharply. By 1910, the French were drinking 36 million litres of absinthe per year, as compared to their annual consumption of almost 5 billion litres of wine.
International consumption.
Absinthe was exported widely from its native France and Switzerland, and attained some degree of popularity in other countries, including Spain, Great Britain, USA, and the Czech Republic. Absinthe was never banned in Spain or Portugal, and its production and consumption have never ceased. It gained a temporary spike in popularity there during the early 20th century, corresponding with the French influenced Art Nouveau and Modernism aesthetic movements.
New Orleans has a profound cultural association with absinthe, and is credited as the birthplace of the Sazerac, perhaps the earliest absinthe cocktail. The Old Absinthe House bar, located on Bourbon Street, serves as a prominent historical landmark. Originally named The Absinthe Room, it was opened in 1874 by a Catalan bartender named Cayetano Ferrer. The building was frequented by many famous people, including Mark Twain, Oscar Wilde, Franklin Roosevelt, Aleister Crowley and Frank Sinatra.
Absinthe has been consumed in the Czech countries (then part of Austria-Hungary) since at least 1888, notably by Czech artists, some of whom had an affinity for Paris, frequenting Prague's famous Café Slavia. Its wider appeal in Bohemia itself is uncertain, though it was sold in and around Prague. It is claimed that at least one local liquor distillery in Bohemia was producing absinthe at the turn of the 20th century.
Bans.
Spurred by the temperance movement and the winemakers' associations, absinthe was publicly associated with violent crimes and social disorder.
One critic claimed:
Absinthe makes you crazy and criminal, provokes epilepsy and tuberculosis, and has killed thousands of French people. It makes a ferocious beast of man, a martyr of woman, and a degenerate of the infant, it disorganizes and ruins the family and menaces the future of the country.
Edgar Degas' 1876 painting L'Absinthe, which can be seen at the Musée d'Orsay, epitomised the popular view of absinthe addicts as sodden and benumbed. Although Émile Zola mentioned absinthe only once by name, he described its effects in his novel L'Assommoir.
L'Absinthe, by Edgar Degas, 1876
A poster criticises the ban on absinthe in Switzerland (by Albert Gantner, 1910)
In 1905, it was reported that Jean Lanfray, a Swiss farmer, murdered his family and attempted to take his own life after drinking absinthe. The fact that Lanfray was an alcoholic who had consumed considerable quantities of wine and brandy prior to drinking two glasses of absinthe was conveniently overlooked or ignored, therefore placing the blame for the murders solely on absinthe. The Lanfray murders were the tipping point in this hotly debated topic, and a subsequent petition to ban absinthe in Switzerland collected more than 82,000 signatures. A referendum was subsequently held on banning the drink on 5 July 1908. After it was approved by voters, the prohibition of absinthe was then written into the Swiss constitution.
In 1906, both Belgium and Brazil banned the sale and distribution of absinthe, although these were not the first countries to take such action. Absinthe had been banned as early as 1898 in the colony of the Congo Free State. The Netherlands banned absinthe in 1909, Switzerland in 1910, the United States in 1912, and France in 1914.
The prohibition of absinthe in France would eventually lead to the popularity of pastis, and to a lesser extent, ouzo, and other anise-flavoured spirits that do not contain wormwood. Following the conclusion of the First World War, production of the Pernod Fils brand was resumed at the Banus distillery in Catalonia, Spain (where absinthe was still legal), but gradually declining sales saw the cessation of production in the 1960s. In Switzerland, the ban served only to drive the production of absinthe underground. Clandestine home distillers produced colourless absinthe (la Bleue), which was easier to conceal from the authorities. Many countries never banned absinthe, notably Britain, where it had never been as popular as in continental Europe.
Modern revival.
In the 1990s, realising the UK had never formally banned absinthe, British importer BBH Spirits began to import Hill's Absinth from the Czech Republic, which sparked a modern resurgence in absinthe's popularity. In these countries, where absinthe was never banned or truly popular, absinthe began to reappear during the revival in the 1990s.
Absinthes available during that time consisted almost exclusively of Czech, Spanish, and Portuguese brands that were of recent origin, typically consisting of Bohemian-style products. Absinthe connoisseurs considered these of inferior quality and not representative of the 19th century spirit.
In 2000, La Fée Absinthe became the first commercial absinthe distilled and bottled in France since the 1914 ban. Originally produced for export, it is now one of dozens of French absinthes that are produced and sold within France.
Modern absinthes. Vertes at left; blanches at right. A prepared glass is in front of each.
In the Netherlands, the restrictions on the manufacture and sale of absinthe were successfully challenged by the Amsterdam wine seller Menno Boorsma in July 2004, thus confirming the legality of absinthe once again. Similarly, Belgium lifted its longstanding absinthe ban on January 1, 2005, citing (as did the Dutch judge) a conflict with the adopted food and beverage regulations of the Single European Market. In Switzerland, the constitutional ban on absinthe was repealed in 2000 during an overhaul of the national constitution, although the prohibition was simultaneously rewritten into ordinary law instead. That law was later repealed such that as of March 1, 2005, absinthe was made again legal in its country of origin. Absinthe is once again distilled and sold in its Val-de-Travers birthplace, with Kübler and La Clandestine Absinthe among the first new brands to re-emerge.
Absinthe has a deep history in the Northern Catalan region of Spain that encompasses Barcelona, Tarragona, Lleida, and the region of the Pyrenees mountains. While the drink was never officially banned in Spain, it began to fall out of favour in the 1940s, and almost vanished into obscurity. The Catalan region has seen significant resurgence since 2007, when one producer established operations there.
Absinthe has never been illegal to import or manufacture in Australia. Importation requires a permit under the Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulation 1956 due to a restriction on importing any product containing "oil of wormwood". In 2000, an amendment proposed by Foods Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) as part of a new consolidation of the Food Code across Australia and New Zealand, made all wormwood species prohibited herbs for food purposes under Food Standard 1.4.4. Prohibited and Restricted Plants and Fungi. However, this amendment was found inconsistent with other parts of the preexisting Food Code. The proposed amendment was withdrawn in 2002 during the transition between the two codes, thereby continuing to allow absinthe manufacture and importation through the existing permit-based system. These events were erroneously reported by the media as Australia having reclassified it from a prohibited product to a restricted product. There is now an Australian-produced brand of absinthe called Moulin Rooz.
In 2007, the French Lucid brand became the first genuine absinthe to receive a COLA (Certificate of Label Approval) for importation into the United States since 1912, following independent efforts by representatives from Lucid and Kübler to topple the long-standing US ban. In December 2007, St. George Absinthe Verte, produced by St. George Spirits of Alameda, California, became the first brand of American-made absinthe produced in the United States since the ban. Since that time, other micro-distilleries have started producing small batch artisanal absinthes in the US.
The 21st century has seen new modalities for absinthe, including various frozen preparations, which have become increasingly popular.
In May 2011 the French Absinthe Ban of 1915 was repealed following petitions by the Fédération Française des Spiritueux, who represent French distillers.
Most countries have no legal definition for absinthe, whereas the method of production and content of spirits such as whisky, brandy, and gin are globally defined and regulated. As such, producers are at liberty to label a product as "absinthe" or "absinth" without regard to any specific legal definition or quality standards.
Producers of legitimate absinthes employ one of two historically defined processes to create the finished spirit: distillation, or cold mixing. In the sole country (Switzerland) that does possess a legal definition of absinthe, distillation is the only permitted method of production.
Distilled absinthe.
Distilled absinthe employs a method of production similar to that of high quality gin. Botanicals are initially macerated in distilled base alcohol before being redistilled to exclude bitter principles, and impart the desired complexity and texture to the spirit.
Absinthe distillation, ca. 1904
The distillation of absinthe first yields a colourless distillate that leaves the alembic at around 72% ABV. The distillate may be reduced and bottled clear, to produce a Blanche or la Bleue absinthe, or it may be coloured to create a verte using natural or artificial colouring.
Traditional absinthes obtain their green colour strictly from the chlorophyll of whole herbs, which is extracted from the plants during the secondary maceration. This step involves steeping plants such as petite wormwood, hyssop, and melissa (among other herbs) in the distillate. Chlorophyll from these herbs is extracted in the process, giving the drink its famous green colour.
This step also provides a herbal complexity that is typical of high quality absinthe. The natural colouring process is considered critical for absinthe ageing, since the chlorophyll remains chemically active. The chlorophyll serves a similar role in absinthe that tannins do in wine or brown liquors.
After the colouring process, the resulting product is diluted with water to the desired percentage of alcohol. The flavour of absinthe is said to improve materially with storage, and many pre-ban distilleries aged their absinthe in settling tanks before bottling.
Cold mixed absinthe.
Many modern absinthes are produced using a cold mix process. This inexpensive method of production does not involve distillation, and is regarded as inferior in the same way that cheaper compound gin is regarded as inferior to distilled gin. The cold mixing process involves the simple blending of flavouring essences and artificial colouring in commercial alcohol, in similar fashion to most flavoured vodkas and inexpensive liqueurs and cordials. Some modern cold mixed absinthes have been bottled at strengths approaching 90% ABV. Others are presented simply as a bottle of plain alcohol with a small amount of powdered herbs suspended within it.
The lack of a formal legal definition for absinthe in most countries enables some cold mixing producers to falsify advertising claims, such as referring to their products as "distilled", since the base alcohol itself was created at some point through distillation. This is used as justification to sell these inexpensively produced absinthes at prices comparable to more authentic absinthes that are distilled directly from whole herbs. In the only country that possesses a formal legal definition of absinthe (Switzerland), anything made via the cold mixed process cannot be sold as absinthe.
Ingredients.
Anise seeds.
Absinthe is traditionally prepared from a distillation of neutral alcohol, various herbs, spices and water. Traditional absinthes were redistilled from a white grape spirit (or eau de vie), while lesser absinthes were more commonly made from alcohol from grain, beets, or potatoes. The principal botanicals are grande wormwood, green anise, and florence fennel, which are often called "the holy trinity." Many other herbs may be used as well, such as petite wormwood (Artemisia pontica or Roman wormwood), hyssop, melissa, star anise, angelica, peppermint, coriander, and veronica.
Alternative colouring.
Adding to absinthe's negative reputation in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, unscrupulous makers of the drink omitted the traditional colouring phase of production in favour of adding toxic copper salts to artificially induce a green tint. This practice may be responsible for some of the alleged toxicity historically associated with this beverage. Many modern day producers resort to similar (but non-deadly) shortcuts, including the use of artificial food colouring to create the green colour. Additionally, at least some cheaply made preban absinthes were reportedly adulterated with poisonous antimony trichloride, reputed to enhance the louching effect.
Absinthe may also be naturally coloured red using hibiscus flowers. This was referred to as a rouge or rose absinthe. Only one historical rouge brand is reported to have existed.
Bottled strength.
Absinthe was historically bottled at 45-74% percent ABV. Some modern Franco?Suisse absinthes are bottled at up to 82.3% ABV, while some modern cold-mixed, bohemian-style absinthes are bottled at up to 89.9% ABV.
Kits.
The modern day interest in absinthe has spawned a rash of absinthe kits from companies that claim they produce homemade absinthe. Kits often call for soaking herbs in vodka or alcohol, or adding a liquid concentrate to vodka or alcohol to create an ersatz absinthe. Such practices usually yield a harsh substance that bears little resemblance to the genuine article, and are considered inauthentic by any practical standard. Some concoctions may even be dangerous, especially if they call for supplementation with potentially poisonous herbs, oils and/or extracts. In at least one documented case, a person suffered acute renal failure after drinking 10 ml of pure wormwood oil?a dose much higher than that found in absinthe.
Alternatives.
In baking, Pernod Anise is often used as a substitute if absinthe is unavailable. In preparing the classic New Orleans-style Sazerac cocktail, various substitutes such as Pastis, Pernod, Ricard, and Herbsaint have been used to replace absinthe.
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147.Theatre of Cruelty.
The Theatre of Cruelty (French: Théâtre de la Cruauté) is a form of theatre developed by avant-garde playwright, actor, essayist, and theorist, Antonin Artaud, in The Theatre and its Double. Originally a member of the surrealist movement, Artaud eventually began to develop his own theatrical theories. The Theatre of Cruelty can be seen as break with traditional Western theatre, and a means by which artists assault the senses of the audience, and allow them to feel the unexpressed emotions of the subconscious. While Artaud was only able to produce one play in his lifetime that reflected the tenets of the Theatre of Cruelty, the works of many theatre artists reflect his theories. These artists include Jean Genet, Jerzy Grotowski, and Peter Brook.
Antonin Artaud was a member of the surrealist movement in Paris in the 1920s, and was well known as an actor, playwright, and essayist of avant-garde theatre. Much of the avant-garde theatre developed in France from 1914-1939, can be seen as a revolt against tradition. Deeply affected by the events of World War I, the artists of the movement felt increasing skepticism of the existing societal structures that had allowed for global warfare.
While Artaud would eventually break away from surrealism, the movement helped to shape his later theories on the Theatre of Cruelty. Led by Andre Breton, surrealist theatre reflected a belief that the unconscious mind is a source of artistic truth. In his manifesto on surrealism, Breton writes, ?pure psychic automatism, by which is intended to express, verbally, in writing, or by other means, the real process of thought. Thought?s dictation, in absence of all control exercised by the reason and outside all esthetic or moral preoccupation.?
In 1926, in association with surrealist playwright Roger Vitrac, Artaud founded the Theatre Alfred Jarry, which only produced non-realistic drama. The theatre lasted only two years. After his work in surrealist theatre, Artaud would go on to develop his theories on the Theatre of Cruelty after he was inspired by a Balinese dance troupe performance that he viewed at the Paris Colonial Exhibit in 1931. The performance conventions of Balinese dance were different than any Artaud had previously experienced, and he was struck by the intense physicality of the dancers. Artaud would go on to publish his major work on the Theatre of Cruelty, The Theatre and Its Double, seven years later in 1938.
Defining Artaud?s ?theatre? and ?cruelty?.
In his writings on the Theatre of Cruelty, Artaud points to definitions of both ?theatre? and ?cruelty? that are separate from their colloquial meanings. For Artaud, theatre does not merely refer to a staged performance before a passive audience. The theatre is a practice, which ?wakes us up. Nerves and heart,? and through which we experience, ?immediate violent action,? that ?inspires us with the fiery magnetism of its images and acts upon us like a spiritual therapeutics whose touch can never be forgotten.?
Similarly, cruelty does not refer to an act of emotional or physical violence. According to scholar Nathan Gorelick, ?Cruelty is, more profoundly, the unrelenting agitation of a life that has become unnecessary, lazy, or removed from a compelling force. The Theatre of Cruelty gives expression to everything that is ?crime, love, war, or madness? in order to ?unforgettably root within us the ideas of perpetual conflict, a spasm in which life is continually lacerated, in which everything in creation rises up and asserts itself against our appointed rank.??
Break with Western theatre.
Artaud felt that the focus of theatre in the west had become far too narrow--primarily examining the psychological suffering of individuals or the societal struggles of specific groups of people. He wanted to delve into the aspects of the subconscious that he believed were often the root cause of human being?s mistreatment of one another. Through an assault on the audiences' senses, Artaud was convinced that a theatrical experience could help people purge destructive feelings and experience the joy that society forces them to repress. For Artaud, ?the theatre has been created to drain abscesses collectively.?
Insufficiency of language.
Artaud believed that language was an entirely insufficient means to express trauma. Accordingly, he felt that words should be stripped of meaning and chosen for their phonic elements. According to scholar Robert Vork, ?Speech on the Theatre of Cruelty?s stage is reduced to inarticulate sounds, cries, and gibbering screams, no longer inviting a subject into being but seeking to preclude its very existence.? Somewhat paradoxically, Artaud claims that his characters are able to express things that others are unable to say. Vork claims, ?Artaud seems to be suggesting that his play reveals emotions and experiences that we all attempt to proscribe and are unwilling to acknowledge, but which nevertheless occur."
"Impossible theatre"
Stephen Barber explains that "the Theatre of Cruelty has often been called an 'impossible theatre'?vital for the purity of inspiration which it generated, but hopelessly vague and metaphorical in its concrete detail." This impossibility has not prevented others from articulating a version of his principles as the basis for explorations of their own. "Though many of those theatre-artists proclaimed an Artaudian lineage," Susie Tharu argues, "the Artaud they invoke is marked by a commitment as ahistorical and transcendent as their own." There is, she suggests, another Artaud and "the tradition he was midwife to."
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