There's a thread concerning First Person imprssions going on, over on The Reenactor's Forum. It's my contention that most military reenactors, even the more authentic types, aren't really into role playing first person impressions. Do you guys agree or disagree?

When I say role playing, I mean taking on the personal history of a real or fictional person of the period and running with it for a weekend.  

Definitely needs to be done more often.

Quote :

toptimlrd wrote : Definitely needs to be done more often.

Bob,

My queation wasn't if first person should be done more. It was whether people enjoy doing it, or not. This is a hobby and people aren't likely to put much effort in something they don't have fun doing.

Sorry, I misread the question. I for one do enjoy the first person. There have been many times even at mainstream events where the situation was provided for an excellent first person vignette. I am always trying to maintain a first person persona although I often fail at it   but always try to get back into first person once I notice I've slipped. I am currently writing a column for my company newsletter that is encouraging our folks to improve their impression by incorporating first person more often. I think most people who do it do find it enjoyable if for no other reason than to surprise the public.

Quote :

Bill wrote : There's a thread concerning First Person imprssions going on, over on The Reenactor's Forum. It's my contention that most military reenactors, even the more authentic types, aren't really into role playing first person impressions. Do you guys agree or disagree? When I say role playing, I mean taking on the personal history of a real or fictional person of the period and running with it for a weekend.

Bill

I have found that if I am to do a first person impression all weekend long it is best if my person doesn't say much..

I have been trying to work on a pre-service persona and even thought about trying to figure out where my political leanings would be, but I tend to start that and then get sidetracked by something work or family related.  

I know we are trying to incorporate more 1st person scenarios at some of the different events we will be at this year.  Even at our upcoming drill, where we want to try to drill and keep the talk more period.

Bill,

That brings up several good points ranging from those enthusiastic folks who get into Bad Reenacting Theatre to those who are tired of the artificiality of first person play, to those who focus on the task at hand and let it be natural.

Good question.

IMHO, we basically have two types of first person events.
1. It is non spectator and the first person is for the enjoyment of the participants and going back to the time period so to speak.

2. The Williamsburg type first person ie; Thomas Jefferson (who is very good by the way) where the public is supposed to know it is first person and another person is there to explain the situation and answer the non period questions.

Very seldom at an NPS park will you see first person as the park service wants third person interpretation which the general public understands better.

I agree that most people shy away from first person, but I think it's a shame.  I think it happens because it's nearly impossible to stay in first person 24/7 and those who can do so are so good that it's intimidating for the rest of us.  So you tend to see people skip between extremes, from hobby gossip to bad impressions of Jed Clampitt.

Re Charles' comment, Schnapps's rule #73 states:  "Firper is not an excuse to say 'tarnation.'"

But it seems to me that we can establish a general rule to the effect that, the more period tasks at hand, the easier and more seamless first person behavior becomes.  I usually have some back story ready for most events, though it wouldn't sustain a long conversation.  

On the other hand, my fixation on military paperwork provides an endless source of material.  Some of it is stuff that anyone can use:  knowing roughly what things cost, what comes out of your clothing allowance, what you're on the hook to the sergeant for, what you have to answer to the captain for, what your chances for promotion are, what your officer was likely doing last year, where the half of your company not "for duty" probably is, & c. & c., can provide lots of fodder (provided by the QM Department's Division of Regular Supplies along with Forage, Fuel, and Stationery) for snippets of conversation in the idle moments between rustling up wood and water, drill, cooking, polishing brass,and other soldierly tasks.

I know I go on and on about this, but it's an easy way to fill in some of the blanks, and it's a lot easier to pick up than the sometimes surprisingly complex details of the average civilian occupation.

I enjoy first person at Immersion style events, not real keen on it if I am at some corndog festival. Oh and I only do firstperson CS impression anyways cause well I have a deep southern drawl that is hard to hide but that does help things out since I was raised very rural southern and the talk and lingo is very similar to what I have seen in letters. My only problem is Cussin' I sure do love modern cusswords when I am a Sgt. I need to learm mopre correct terms for the period.

I wouldn't mind trying a first person impression.  I need more time in, and observing.  I certianly need more education on the way people of the period spoke.  I've read soldiers letters like everyone else, but often how people talk, and how they write are a bit different.  

I think quite alot about what my backstory would be.  I know I'd be from Cleveland, but my social class, and pre-war occupation are the things I need to figure out.

A little (sort of related) side note....

On my honeymoon, in Salem MA, my wife and I took in the play, Cry Innocent.  The Actors start off in the street, arresting accused witch Bridget Bishop, then take her and the audience to the courthouse for her hearing.  The whole time the stay in character, and even take questions from the audience.  It's alot of fun and very impressive how good those kids are.  not once did anyone break character.  My wife sneezed, and one of the girls even blessed her in character.  "God bless you goodwife".  Not Civil War, but equally impressive, and worth checking out if your ever in the area.  It's really a GREAT example of first person impressions.  

--Last edited by TheBaldYankee on 2007-04-22 07:56:46 --

The biggest thing about first person is by far and away most folks are just plain bad at it. If you're an NCO or an Officer, it's easier because you're involved, sometimes really invloved, in day to day military matters. NCO's can help Fir Per by keeping their "underlings" busy, thusly causing them to gripe and speak more of current matters.

The, Are you maried, what do you do, where are you from questions, when ask of me will receive a tirade questioning the author's mental capacity. Good God man, how long have we been in this unit together?

Quote :

The, Are you maried, what do you do, where are you from questions, when ask of me will receive a tirade questioning the author's mental capacity. Good God man, how long have we been in this unit together?

That's pretty rough, but honestly it'd be cool to just be able to tell people off when they get annoying. I'd like to be part of an event where that kind of attitude of "do it right or suffer the consquences" is acceptable. I'd just as soon be told off rather than coddled when I screw up, so I could improve, as long as the person telling me off is holding himself to the same standards.

But given the state of the hobby today, I expect it would just scare almost everyone away from first person back to what they always do. Have you tried it? What was the reaction?

The way to avoid the tirade is, of course, to already know whether you're married, what you do, etc., and interact with those things already in mind. Is there a way for other reenactors to know those things about the man you're portraying, before an event? How do you learn those things about others?

Hank Trent
hanktrent@voyager.net

Quote :

TheBaldYankee wrote : I wouldn't mind trying a first person impression.  I need more time in, and observing.  I certianly need more education on the way people of the period spoke...

I think the most important thing is to just try getting in there and trying.  You'll never feel as though you've "observed enough" or are "educated enough in the way people spoke," so just jump in and try it.  If a person is educated enough that he/she can teach spectators in 3rd person, you'd be surprised how far he/she can get in first.  Just try not to open doors that you don't want to open and you'll do well. If those doors do get opened, politely close them by changing the subject to something you'd prefer to discuss.

I believe in constructive assistance.  Though admittedly I went through a serious interrogation by a captain who didn't want females in his hospital unit.  He raked my character over the coals, and had it not been for my determination to prove him wrong -- I probably wouldn't be where I am today.  I remembered all the things he said I failed in doing, and went home and studied.  By thunder I wasn't about to be caught twice, and I never have been.  Constructive assistance can help the newby to first person by showing them areas where they're weak, and what they need to study up on.  Though I don't support the kind of fire I had to go through to be here.  

In interpreting to the public you can talk about how you got to this location.  Did you march, take the [rail]cars...  Talk about your rations, how much and what have you had to eat lately?  What kind of daily routines do you have in the army?  Do you have a wife and children at home?  Talk about how much you miss them, and perhaps what you hope to do when the war's over.  Just this kind of simple exercise can start you in first person.  The more you do of it, the more fun it becomes and the more you want to study up on other topics.

To do first person, don't worry about period phrases so much at first (just eliminate things like "guys" "weekend" and those sort of things) and change your pronouns to I, me, we, and us.  So instead of saying "the army" say "we". Instead of saying "they would have" say "I do".

You can read an article I wrote several years ago by going to:
http://thebradfordplace1863.homestead.com/firstperson.html

Well, that's about all I have for now. But I'm willing to answer any questions.

Linda.

I enjoy doing first person impressions when I can. One such place I can do one at is the Nathan Bedford Forrest boyhood home. I portray William (Willie) Montgomery Forrest (Gen. Forrest's son) there and get good remarks from the spectators there. It also helps to have someone playing your dad, two uncles, along with your mother, and grandmother there also. We have a blast at it. The other times I just play a farm boy that took up arms because his best friend talked him into it and he thought it would be fun at the time. Then I play it from there.

On one first person occasion I was blessed by nothing less than luck.  Some guy from the crowd asked if my wife and I were going to vote for Lincoln’s reelection.  I paused.  Truth of the matter, I was trying to form an appropriate answer but felt uncomfortable with the question.  It is a good things there was a pause.  During that brief hesitation the fact finally penetrated this thick skull females did not vote in the Civil War era.

Quote :

Curtis Makamson wrote : On one first person occasion I was blessed by nothing less than luck.  Some guy from the crowd asked if my wife and I were going to vote for Lincoln’s reelection.  I paused.  Truth of the matter, I was trying to form an appropriate answer but felt uncomfortable with the question.  It is a good things there was a pause.  During that brief hesitation the fact finally penetrated this thick skull females did not vote in the Civil War era.

On a related note....at Harpers Ferry when they have their Election Day Weekend of 1860, some of us are promoting candidates and encouraging people to vote for Breckenridge etc etc....When we give the ballotts to female spectators, quite a few say we can't vote in 1860. Of course we tell them this weekend is special so they can participate and see how the system worked in 1860. This is especially necessary to show them that their vote was announced and their employer etc could then know who they voted for. As an aside, Lincoln was not on the ballott in Virginia in 1860.

Two farby things about authentic's firper:

Silence. couln't be LESS authentic than that once you weed out the Leprechaun impressions. Not saying anything, boy that's some real reenacting. This is as good as keeping a clean rifle by not firing it (they kept their clean by elbow grease).

Inside jokes: the kind that says we're a clique from RR1, or the 125's and you're not in our high school club. The hushed talk followed by raucus laughter and the 'looks'. They knew each other after  a few months of living with each other and drilling together. the messes formed from the companies, not the other way around. for those attending the 'friendler' CPH events like McDowell....the cliques still abound....even though this is supposed to be a regiment formed x00 days ago.

Silence isn't golden, it's boring.

A heck of a lot of soldiering was (and still is) boring.

At the Pickett's Mill LH a few weeks ago I had one of theose boring first pers, we had just finished a drill demonstration and had been given "rest". I walked over to a nice tree, dropped my gear, sat down, pulled my kepi down a bit, and closed my eyes for a rest. About that time I heard a man say "Son, see him? That's what soldiers did any chance they got." I opened my eyes looked up nd smiled at the boy which started up a rather good exchange between us about the life of a soldier on campaign. Didn't quite get the nap I hoped for but wouldn't trade the experience for anything. Sure wasn't exciting but it did open up an opportunity. Antoher first per I had a couple of years ago was at a mainsteam event when a couple of ladies were shocked to see me cooking my dinner over the campfire. When asked what I was doing, I never broke my character. I simply responded I was cooking my dinner and they were incredulous when I said that I was indeed going to eat the salt pork that was frying. I really wish they had hung around to see the corn meal coosh I fried in the grease afterwards.  

--Last edited by toptimlrd on 2007-08-13 17:39:54 --

It can be done very, very well in a period context for a while, and if you have enough field experience, or are just a homey kind of person, the time-frame can grow exponentially. EX: At Payne's Farm, some of the boys had researched the professions of some of the real soldiers in our company (canal boat teamsters) and planted some wonderful period seeds in a conversation around the campfire. Boys being boys, we launched into arguments about boat versus rail versus horse travel, what we would have done different, invented new Transport Companies WIth Our Names On The Letterhead, went off on tangents of sillyness or seriousness, for nearly an hour and a half. Modern stuff entered into the picture only on a few awkward occasions, which were wiped away by not acknowledging them.

First person isn't about knowing exactly how to act or speak. It is knowing how NOT to act or speak.

As always, reading about the period is the best guide to this. When you are comfortable enough, fir-per just happens, and often, for sustained periods, and often without you even realizing it.

Goat