Alexander, could you pass the ribs?
November 3, 2006 8:53 PM Subscribe
If you could invite *anyone* from all of history to your house for dinner, who would you invite, and why? Further details, and reasons why this isn't chatfilter:
I'm an English teacher in Indonesia and there's an activity I do where I divide students into groups and ask them to choose 10 people from a list of historical figures (plus two of their own choosing) to invite to a dinner party. They decide on the guest list and reasons for inviting people, seating arrangements, the menu, and any entertainment options.
The issue I have is that the list neatly provided on the worksheet is from 1988, features only 7 women, 10 people who aren't religious or political leaders, and 15 non-Westerners on a list of 60+ people, and the people it does feature includes people like Anwar Sadat and Mikhail Gorbachev. I'd like to update the list and make the activity more representative of today's world, as well as including more "minority" voices and non-politicians.
I've seen things like "The 100" but those lists seem really tilted towards the heavy movers-and-shakers of history while neglecting thinkers, artists, and other people who'd make fantastic guests at a dinner party. In this vein, note that the people don't have to be important or influential, just well-known enough to be discussed by secondary school/university students.
So, then, who's coming to dinner at your place? Feel free to list as many people as you want.
I'm an English teacher in Indonesia and there's an activity I do where I divide students into groups and ask them to choose 10 people from a list of historical figures (plus two of their own choosing) to invite to a dinner party. They decide on the guest list and reasons for inviting people, seating arrangements, the menu, and any entertainment options.
The issue I have is that the list neatly provided on the worksheet is from 1988, features only 7 women, 10 people who aren't religious or political leaders, and 15 non-Westerners on a list of 60+ people, and the people it does feature includes people like Anwar Sadat and Mikhail Gorbachev. I'd like to update the list and make the activity more representative of today's world, as well as including more "minority" voices and non-politicians.
I've seen things like "The 100" but those lists seem really tilted towards the heavy movers-and-shakers of history while neglecting thinkers, artists, and other people who'd make fantastic guests at a dinner party. In this vein, note that the people don't have to be important or influential, just well-known enough to be discussed by secondary school/university students.
So, then, who's coming to dinner at your place? Feel free to list as many people as you want.
Jesus Christ and Thomas Jefferson would be my big names. I would love to hear a conversation between just the two of them.
I will have to think a bit on my smaller names, but I am sure Bayard Rustin would be one of them.
posted by 4ster at 9:06 PM on November 3, 2006
I will have to think a bit on my smaller names, but I am sure Bayard Rustin would be one of them.
posted by 4ster at 9:06 PM on November 3, 2006
Eddie Izzard, Willie Nelson, and Hef. Talk about some great stories. Oh, and grumblebee's grandfather.
posted by ColdChef at 9:12 PM on November 3, 2006
posted by ColdChef at 9:12 PM on November 3, 2006
Response by poster: Just a quick heads-up: I'm in Indonesia, so I'm pretty sure that the unsung heroes/notables most Americans grew up with will would be, at best, only barely known here.
Thanks!
posted by mdonley at 9:13 PM on November 3, 2006
Thanks!
posted by mdonley at 9:13 PM on November 3, 2006
Probably obvious: Mahatma Ghandi. Jesus (and family). Mohammad (especially relevant today?). Hitler (certainly not as a supporter of his, but as an intriguing character from history). Einstein. Carl Marx.
Maybe less-obvious: Bach, Mark Twain, Mozart, Picasso, members of the Beatles. Sigmund Freud (hope you don't mind cigar smoke!). Homer (of The Illiad and Odyssey fame). Socrates, Plato, Aristotle (et al?). Douglas Adams.
Obvious US-centric: Sam Adams, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Edison, Abe Lincoln.
Maybe less-obvious US-centric: Henry Ford. And people like the Rockefellers, and all those who were influential around the Great Depression era (whose names I'm totally blanking on right now). Lizzie Borden.
Side-note: Couldn't you just make it open-ended and let the students pick anyone?
posted by fogster at 9:14 PM on November 3, 2006
Maybe less-obvious: Bach, Mark Twain, Mozart, Picasso, members of the Beatles. Sigmund Freud (hope you don't mind cigar smoke!). Homer (of The Illiad and Odyssey fame). Socrates, Plato, Aristotle (et al?). Douglas Adams.
Obvious US-centric: Sam Adams, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Edison, Abe Lincoln.
Maybe less-obvious US-centric: Henry Ford. And people like the Rockefellers, and all those who were influential around the Great Depression era (whose names I'm totally blanking on right now). Lizzie Borden.
Side-note: Couldn't you just make it open-ended and let the students pick anyone?
posted by fogster at 9:14 PM on November 3, 2006
Your comment about not needing American names must have been posted between when I hit "Preview" and when I submitted a deluge of American names. Sorry about that.
posted by fogster at 9:15 PM on November 3, 2006
posted by fogster at 9:15 PM on November 3, 2006
Richard Feynman, 'cuz he's Richard Fucking Feynman, dude.
But here's a contemporary, female, not-nearly-as-well-known-as-she-probably-should-be pick: Sheila E. Widnall. She has an instability named after her. 'Nuff said.
posted by dirigibleman at 9:16 PM on November 3, 2006
But here's a contemporary, female, not-nearly-as-well-known-as-she-probably-should-be pick: Sheila E. Widnall. She has an instability named after her. 'Nuff said.
posted by dirigibleman at 9:16 PM on November 3, 2006
Response by poster: Hi fogster - I would let people pick anyone, but then the lists tend to just take too long to compile. This all happens in one 80-minute class with people who are basically at an elementary level of English, so some level of prompting is required. Additionally, I often have groups debate one final class list built from everyone's group choices.
One final note: the list as it exists now includes both Stevie Wonder and Muhammad, both of whom have ended up on everyone's lists (and often right next to each other at the table) since I started doing the activity with different classes a few weeks ago. Stevie's more popular than Jesus.
I'm off to lunch but I'll be back later to check out everyone's ideas! Thanks so much, again!
posted by mdonley at 9:21 PM on November 3, 2006
One final note: the list as it exists now includes both Stevie Wonder and Muhammad, both of whom have ended up on everyone's lists (and often right next to each other at the table) since I started doing the activity with different classes a few weeks ago. Stevie's more popular than Jesus.
I'm off to lunch but I'll be back later to check out everyone's ideas! Thanks so much, again!
posted by mdonley at 9:21 PM on November 3, 2006
Mohamad Yunus, the founder of Grameen Bank from Bangladesh who just recently won the Nobel Peace Prize. Ang Saang Syu Kyi (sp?). Mahathir Mohamad. Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. Suharto.
There's probably a great deal of Indonesian and SEAsian people you could choose from - look out for politicians, activists, writers, artists, actors, musicians, and so on.
Keep in mind that some of the names mentioned above (besides being obscure and irrelevant to Indonesian society) may also be offensive. I'm not sure adding Muhammad, Jesus, or Hitler to a list would go over well. (This may go for Indonesian politicians as well, should you decide to go down that route.)
And I second fogster's question: why not make it open-ended?
posted by divabat at 9:21 PM on November 3, 2006
There's probably a great deal of Indonesian and SEAsian people you could choose from - look out for politicians, activists, writers, artists, actors, musicians, and so on.
Keep in mind that some of the names mentioned above (besides being obscure and irrelevant to Indonesian society) may also be offensive. I'm not sure adding Muhammad, Jesus, or Hitler to a list would go over well. (This may go for Indonesian politicians as well, should you decide to go down that route.)
And I second fogster's question: why not make it open-ended?
posted by divabat at 9:21 PM on November 3, 2006
on post: Huh, looks like Muhammad and Jesus have both passed. Hitler probably wouldn't be such a great idea though. Fascinating, but may stir up too many emotions.
posted by divabat at 9:23 PM on November 3, 2006
posted by divabat at 9:23 PM on November 3, 2006
Hmmm, since your list is lacking on womenfolk, here are some women from history I'd be interesting in having dinner with:
Mary Magdalene
Marie Curie
Mary Shelly
Cleopatra
Joan of Arc
posted by tastybrains at 9:28 PM on November 3, 2006
Mary Magdalene
Marie Curie
Mary Shelly
Cleopatra
Joan of Arc
posted by tastybrains at 9:28 PM on November 3, 2006
Not actually on my list, necessarily, but:
Aung San Suu Kyi
Suharto
Sukarno
Ferdinand Magellan (first European in Indonesia)
Buddha
On my own list:
Mohammed Ali
Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino (anti-Mafia judges in Sicily)
Nelson Mandela
Jane Austen
Cary Grant. mmmmmm Cary Grant.....
Howard Zinn
Jhumpa Lahiri
posted by katemonster at 9:34 PM on November 3, 2006 [1 favorite]
Aung San Suu Kyi
Suharto
Sukarno
Ferdinand Magellan (first European in Indonesia)
Buddha
On my own list:
Mohammed Ali
Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino (anti-Mafia judges in Sicily)
Nelson Mandela
Jane Austen
Cary Grant. mmmmmm Cary Grant.....
Howard Zinn
Jhumpa Lahiri
posted by katemonster at 9:34 PM on November 3, 2006 [1 favorite]
I think that Ben Franklin would be a fascinating dinner guest. Possibly the most erudite American who ever lived. And think of all the stories he could tell about his own life?
posted by Steven C. Den Beste at 9:44 PM on November 3, 2006 [1 favorite]
posted by Steven C. Den Beste at 9:44 PM on November 3, 2006 [1 favorite]
In all of history? Well then... somebody from the year 10,000 so he can tell me the future.
posted by wfrgms at 9:56 PM on November 3, 2006
posted by wfrgms at 9:56 PM on November 3, 2006
Philosophers - I'll list several biggies from western history and you can pick ones you think would go over well: David Hume (very influential philosopher, reputedly a great guy too, jolly, enjoyed his food and drink); Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Descartes (who from his writings sounds like a pompous bitch), Leibniz (cosmopolitan and lively), John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, John Stuart Mill, Nietzsche, Bertrand Russell.
Confucius
Lao Tsu
Siddhartha/Buddha
Galileo
Leonardo da Vinci
Newton (maybe not; he's supposed to have been kind of a jerk)
Darwin
Winston Churchill
Alan Turing
Jane Austen
Mary Wollstonecraft (you could also have them look at Vindication of the Rights of Women)
Eleanor Roosevelt (has international significance because of her work with the UN, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)
Helen Keller
Babe Didrickson
Josephine Baker
Dorothy Parker
Here's a list of great women born before 1900, with linked bios of most of them, that might help with ideas.
Here's a site with bios of female rulers and "heroines from different countries" , with pictures.
posted by LobsterMitten at 9:58 PM on November 3, 2006
Confucius
Lao Tsu
Siddhartha/Buddha
Galileo
Leonardo da Vinci
Newton (maybe not; he's supposed to have been kind of a jerk)
Darwin
Winston Churchill
Alan Turing
Jane Austen
Mary Wollstonecraft (you could also have them look at Vindication of the Rights of Women)
Eleanor Roosevelt (has international significance because of her work with the UN, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)
Helen Keller
Babe Didrickson
Josephine Baker
Dorothy Parker
Here's a list of great women born before 1900, with linked bios of most of them, that might help with ideas.
Here's a site with bios of female rulers and "heroines from different countries" , with pictures.
posted by LobsterMitten at 9:58 PM on November 3, 2006
Coco Chanel, William Burroughs, and Gengis Kahn.
Jesus may attend if he agrees to stay quiet and do the wine trick.
posted by dong_resin at 10:04 PM on November 3, 2006 [1 favorite]
Jesus may attend if he agrees to stay quiet and do the wine trick.
posted by dong_resin at 10:04 PM on November 3, 2006 [1 favorite]
My gang of five. Socrates, Artemisia Gentileschi, Judas Iscariot, Groucho Marx, and Genghis Khan.
Keep things lively.
I swear I typed that out before dong_resin posted.)
posted by furiousthought at 10:11 PM on November 3, 2006
Keep things lively.
I swear I typed that out before dong_resin posted.)
posted by furiousthought at 10:11 PM on November 3, 2006
the man knew how to party.
posted by dong_resin at 10:13 PM on November 3, 2006
posted by dong_resin at 10:13 PM on November 3, 2006
Terry Pratchett? Rasputin might be fun to have at the table. Ferdinand Magellan might provide an interesting historical note.
posted by maxwelton at 10:23 PM on November 3, 2006
posted by maxwelton at 10:23 PM on November 3, 2006
wasn't there a question like this a couple months ago?
anyway, I'd be interested in hearing from the ones who got away with financially significant crimes. embezzlers, imposters, fraudsters...
posted by krautland at 10:27 PM on November 3, 2006
anyway, I'd be interested in hearing from the ones who got away with financially significant crimes. embezzlers, imposters, fraudsters...
posted by krautland at 10:27 PM on November 3, 2006
In all of history? Well then... somebody from the year 10,000 so he can tell me the future.
Is the future history?
Anyway, my list is really long, and most of them have been posted, but a couple more:
Alfred Nobel (come on, he invented dynamite, and then founded the Nobel peace prize)
Shakespeare
Franklin Roosevelt
Harold Holt (Australian Prime Minister that 'drowned' off Bondi Beach)
Bertrand Russell
Woodrow Wilson
posted by cholly at 10:29 PM on November 3, 2006
Is the future history?
Anyway, my list is really long, and most of them have been posted, but a couple more:
Alfred Nobel (come on, he invented dynamite, and then founded the Nobel peace prize)
Shakespeare
Franklin Roosevelt
Harold Holt (Australian Prime Minister that 'drowned' off Bondi Beach)
Bertrand Russell
Woodrow Wilson
posted by cholly at 10:29 PM on November 3, 2006
Other major historical figures who I bet were fun at a party:
Queen Elizabeth I
Shakespeare
Chaucer
Marie Antoinette
Other more contemporary possibilities, who'd be interesting to talk to and your students probably know:
Charlie Chaplin
Buster Keaton (but probably your students won't know who he is)
Walt Disney
Jackie Chan
Matt Groening
Bill Gates
Sports stars, might add to the fun for the students:
- Sadaharu Oh, Ichiro Suzuki or Hideki Matsui, or other baseball stars (if your students follow American baseball here are some players they probably know: Barry Bonds, Derek Jeter, Roger Clemens, David Ortiz, Alex Rodriguez, Pedro Martinez, Albert Pujols)
- Yao Ming (or other basketball stars: Shaquille O'Neal, Michael Jordan, LeBron James)
- Venus or Serena Williams (or other tennis star, but I don't know enough tennis to recommend any)
- Tiger Woods
- Football/soccer stars, if they follow that, but I don't know enough to know who's who
posted by LobsterMitten at 10:32 PM on November 3, 2006
Queen Elizabeth I
Shakespeare
Chaucer
Marie Antoinette
Other more contemporary possibilities, who'd be interesting to talk to and your students probably know:
Charlie Chaplin
Buster Keaton (but probably your students won't know who he is)
Walt Disney
Jackie Chan
Matt Groening
Bill Gates
Sports stars, might add to the fun for the students:
- Sadaharu Oh, Ichiro Suzuki or Hideki Matsui, or other baseball stars (if your students follow American baseball here are some players they probably know: Barry Bonds, Derek Jeter, Roger Clemens, David Ortiz, Alex Rodriguez, Pedro Martinez, Albert Pujols)
- Yao Ming (or other basketball stars: Shaquille O'Neal, Michael Jordan, LeBron James)
- Venus or Serena Williams (or other tennis star, but I don't know enough tennis to recommend any)
- Tiger Woods
- Football/soccer stars, if they follow that, but I don't know enough to know who's who
posted by LobsterMitten at 10:32 PM on November 3, 2006
I always thought I'd like to have dinner with Hypatia of Alexandria. She would be a fascinating conversation partner, and, if she was really killed by a fanatical Christian mob, somebody in church leadership should apologize to her. I'd like to be the one.
posted by Pater Aletheias at 10:43 PM on November 3, 2006
posted by Pater Aletheias at 10:43 PM on November 3, 2006
I like inviting couples to my soirées, that way there is always something to talk about:
Mao Zedong & Mayling Soong (Madame Chiang Kai-shek)
Alfred Nobel & Marie Curie
Raoul Wallenberg & Anne Frank
Napoleon Bonaparte & Marie Antoinette
Julius Caesar & Cleopatra
posted by gemmy at 10:48 PM on November 3, 2006
Mao Zedong & Mayling Soong (Madame Chiang Kai-shek)
Alfred Nobel & Marie Curie
Raoul Wallenberg & Anne Frank
Napoleon Bonaparte & Marie Antoinette
Julius Caesar & Cleopatra
posted by gemmy at 10:48 PM on November 3, 2006
Here are a few more, culled from searches of other places where random people respond to the same question (to get a sense of who people know):
Jim Henson
Voltaire
J.R.R. Tolkien
Stephen King
the current Dalai Lama
John Lennon
Murakami
Bill Clinton
Jack London
Einstein
Edison
Alexander Graham Bell
The Wright Bros.
Salvador Dali
Picasso
Fidel Castro
Nelson Mandela
John Belushi
JFK
Alexander the Great
Napoleon
posted by LobsterMitten at 10:52 PM on November 3, 2006
Jim Henson
Voltaire
J.R.R. Tolkien
Stephen King
the current Dalai Lama
John Lennon
Murakami
Bill Clinton
Jack London
Einstein
Edison
Alexander Graham Bell
The Wright Bros.
Salvador Dali
Picasso
Fidel Castro
Nelson Mandela
John Belushi
JFK
Alexander the Great
Napoleon
posted by LobsterMitten at 10:52 PM on November 3, 2006
Walter Benjamin, Abess Hildegard von Bingen, Marcel Duchamp, John Lennon.
posted by hortense at 11:01 PM on November 3, 2006
posted by hortense at 11:01 PM on November 3, 2006
Women I'd invite:
Ray Eames
Amelia Earhart
Katharine Hepburn
Rennie Sparks
Anais Nin
Joan of Arc
Patti Smith
Marie Curie
Leni Riefenstahl
Dorothy Parker
Ida Lupino
Men:
Philip Roth
Charles Bukowski
Marlon Brando
James Baldwin
PK Dick
Walter Murch
John Cassavetes
Finn Juhl
Danny Trejo
Sam Peckinpah
Billy Wilder
Warren Oates
Muhammad Ali
posted by dobbs at 11:10 PM on November 3, 2006
Ray Eames
Amelia Earhart
Katharine Hepburn
Rennie Sparks
Anais Nin
Joan of Arc
Patti Smith
Marie Curie
Leni Riefenstahl
Dorothy Parker
Ida Lupino
Men:
Philip Roth
Charles Bukowski
Marlon Brando
James Baldwin
PK Dick
Walter Murch
John Cassavetes
Finn Juhl
Danny Trejo
Sam Peckinpah
Billy Wilder
Warren Oates
Muhammad Ali
posted by dobbs at 11:10 PM on November 3, 2006
Now that I think about it, if I wanted a more subdued party, I'd sub Kafka and Montezuma for Groucho and Genghis. Not so much a party, but these two are better foils for Socrates, I bet.
posted by furiousthought at 11:10 PM on November 3, 2006
posted by furiousthought at 11:10 PM on November 3, 2006
huh. I'm from a Malaysian schooling background and I don't know half the people mentioned. I'd be surprised if your Indonesian students did.
Take a look at their other textbooks and lesson materials - in particular History and Religion (Islamic Studies). There's bound to be PLENTY of material there. I would imagine that Indonesian figures would matter more to them.
posted by divabat at 11:15 PM on November 3, 2006
Take a look at their other textbooks and lesson materials - in particular History and Religion (Islamic Studies). There's bound to be PLENTY of material there. I would imagine that Indonesian figures would matter more to them.
posted by divabat at 11:15 PM on November 3, 2006
Benjamin Disraeli. Vladimir Nabokov. Vladimir Dmitrievich Nabokov. Rosa Parks. Edith Piaf. Billie Hollday. Dred Scott. Karl Popper. Alfred North Whitehead. Kasimir Malevich. Mies van der Rohe. Julia Child. Alexander the Great. Flannery O'Connor. Thomas Merton. James Joyce. James Baldwin. Epaminondas.
posted by trip and a half at 11:27 PM on November 3, 2006
posted by trip and a half at 11:27 PM on November 3, 2006
Eugene V. Debs
Woody Guthrie
Samuel Beckett
Sojourner Truth
Gilles Deleuze
Cornelius Cardew
Morton Feldman
Djuna Barnes
Nathalie Sarraute
Robinson Jeffers
Ignatius of Loyola
Spinoza
Willie Nelson
Nietzsche (before he went too nuts)
Franz Kafka
or
a buncha naked ladies.
Oh, and an interesting Indonesian would be "Bapak" ( Muhammad Subuh Sumohadiwidjojo ), the founder of Subud.
posted by Joseph Gurl at 11:31 PM on November 3, 2006
Woody Guthrie
Samuel Beckett
Sojourner Truth
Gilles Deleuze
Cornelius Cardew
Morton Feldman
Djuna Barnes
Nathalie Sarraute
Robinson Jeffers
Ignatius of Loyola
Spinoza
Willie Nelson
Nietzsche (before he went too nuts)
Franz Kafka
or
a buncha naked ladies.
Oh, and an interesting Indonesian would be "Bapak" ( Muhammad Subuh Sumohadiwidjojo ), the founder of Subud.
posted by Joseph Gurl at 11:31 PM on November 3, 2006
I forgot that you're mainly looking for people from the last 20 years. A few suggestions for that...
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Jerry Seinfeld
David Beckham
Zinedine Zindane
Keita Takahashi (designer of the Katamari Damacy video games)
Larry Page and Sergey Brin (Google founders)
Jimmy Wales (Wikipedia)
whoever runs World of Warcraft (if your students play that)
Britney Spears
Peter Jackson
J.K. Rowling
Angelina Jolie
Joss Whedon (if Buffy has made her way over there)
But I think it might not be a bad idea to do a quick in-class survey of your students to find out their top 3 favorite musicians, top favorite comedian, etc. Then just put those people on the list. The Mefi crowd isn't going to be the best source on Indonesian recent cultural figures.
Or look at Google zeitgeist skimming back in time to find who are the always-popular searches. Indonesia doesn't seem to have one of its own, maybe Malaysia and Singapore are enough in the neighborhood to help?
posted by LobsterMitten at 11:35 PM on November 3, 2006
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Jerry Seinfeld
David Beckham
Zinedine Zindane
Keita Takahashi (designer of the Katamari Damacy video games)
Larry Page and Sergey Brin (Google founders)
Jimmy Wales (Wikipedia)
whoever runs World of Warcraft (if your students play that)
Britney Spears
Peter Jackson
J.K. Rowling
Angelina Jolie
Joss Whedon (if Buffy has made her way over there)
But I think it might not be a bad idea to do a quick in-class survey of your students to find out their top 3 favorite musicians, top favorite comedian, etc. Then just put those people on the list. The Mefi crowd isn't going to be the best source on Indonesian recent cultural figures.
Or look at Google zeitgeist skimming back in time to find who are the always-popular searches. Indonesia doesn't seem to have one of its own, maybe Malaysia and Singapore are enough in the neighborhood to help?
posted by LobsterMitten at 11:35 PM on November 3, 2006
Vladimir Nabokov
Jacques Derrida
Roland Barthes
Jorge Luis Borges
Gertrude Stein
T.S. Eliot
aw crap. those are all writers.
posted by juv3nal at 11:41 PM on November 3, 2006
Jacques Derrida
Roland Barthes
Jorge Luis Borges
Gertrude Stein
T.S. Eliot
aw crap. those are all writers.
posted by juv3nal at 11:41 PM on November 3, 2006
Response by poster: I'm guessing that Indonesian textbooks are probably quite similar in style to the ones you grew up with, Divabat, though I work at a private language school so I don't really have access to their other materials. (And terima kasih banyak for your region-specific contributions!)
*promises to post new list upon completion*
posted by mdonley at 11:45 PM on November 3, 2006
*promises to post new list upon completion*
posted by mdonley at 11:45 PM on November 3, 2006
Some women:
Imelda Marcos
Indira Ghandi
Condoleeza Rice
Margaret Thatcher
Princess Diana
Madeleine Albright
Hilary Clinton
Catherine the Great
Sally Ride
Sacagawea
Elizabeth Cady Stanton
Madonna (the singer)
Yoko Ono
Joan Baez
Janis Joplin
Hannah Arendt
Angela Lansbury
Queen Latifah
posted by croutonsupafreak at 11:46 PM on November 3, 2006
Imelda Marcos
Indira Ghandi
Condoleeza Rice
Margaret Thatcher
Princess Diana
Madeleine Albright
Hilary Clinton
Catherine the Great
Sally Ride
Sacagawea
Elizabeth Cady Stanton
Madonna (the singer)
Yoko Ono
Joan Baez
Janis Joplin
Hannah Arendt
Angela Lansbury
Queen Latifah
posted by croutonsupafreak at 11:46 PM on November 3, 2006
Jesus Christ, except I'd be too busy kneeling and praising Him to eat.
posted by dropkick at 12:50 AM on November 4, 2006
posted by dropkick at 12:50 AM on November 4, 2006
Isadora Duncan, Corazon Aquino, Benazir Bhutto, Indira Ghandi, Mother Teresa, Jane Goodall, Jerri Cobb, Eileen Collins, Catherine the Great, Lisa Gherardini, Lauren Bacall, Eva Peron, Lise Meitner, Frida Kahlo, Ms. Feodor Vassilyev, Jeanne d'Arc, Pocohantas, Sacagawea, Beryl Markham, and Aung San Suu Kyi come to mind.
posted by paulsc at 1:15 AM on November 4, 2006
posted by paulsc at 1:15 AM on November 4, 2006
Response by poster: Whoa! Great job, people, great job. So many good answers I can’t mark best answers, but my teacher-y heart thanks you from its deepest cockles.
Here’s a possible list, divided by gender and (sort of) in chronological order. Again, the more my students already know about a person, the more they can discuss them, so I’ve kept things toward the well-known side – I’d rather hear them talking than me talking, as it’s more of a conversation-based class. (And don’t worry: I have kept Stevie Wonder on the list.)
I’ve added links to some less-known-in-the-West figures.
Men
Adam
Moses
Confucius
The Buddha
Alexander the Great
Jesus Christ
Muhammed
Genghis Khan
Ibn Battuta
William Shakespeare
Ferdinand Magellan
Benjamin Franklin
Alfred Nobel
Post-1900
Pablo Picasso
Albert Einstein
Lenin
Mahatma Gandhi
Mao Zedong
Cary Grant
Walt Disney
Adolf Hitler
Sukarno
Suharto
Pele
John Lennon
Pramoedya Ananta Toer
The Dalai Lama
Stevie Wonder
Bill Gates
Muhammed Yunus
Taufik Hidayat
Kim Jong-Il
Nelson Mandela
Hamengkubuwono X
Sumanto
Wong Kar-wai
Women
Eve
Cleopatra
Murasaki Shikibu
Joan of Arc
Queen Elizabeth I
Jane Austen
Harriet Tubman
Marie Curie
Jane Austen
Kartini
Post-1900
Billie Holiday
Frida Kahlo
Eleanor Roosevelt
Coco Chanel
Aung San Suu Kyi
Margaret Thatcher
Madonna
Megawati Sukarnoputri
Utada Hikaru
Aishwarya Rai
Inul Daratista
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
Keep your suggestions coming!
posted by mdonley at 1:43 AM on November 4, 2006
Here’s a possible list, divided by gender and (sort of) in chronological order. Again, the more my students already know about a person, the more they can discuss them, so I’ve kept things toward the well-known side – I’d rather hear them talking than me talking, as it’s more of a conversation-based class. (And don’t worry: I have kept Stevie Wonder on the list.)
I’ve added links to some less-known-in-the-West figures.
Men
Adam
Moses
Confucius
The Buddha
Alexander the Great
Jesus Christ
Muhammed
Genghis Khan
Ibn Battuta
William Shakespeare
Ferdinand Magellan
Benjamin Franklin
Alfred Nobel
Post-1900
Pablo Picasso
Albert Einstein
Lenin
Mahatma Gandhi
Mao Zedong
Cary Grant
Walt Disney
Adolf Hitler
Sukarno
Suharto
Pele
John Lennon
Pramoedya Ananta Toer
The Dalai Lama
Stevie Wonder
Bill Gates
Muhammed Yunus
Taufik Hidayat
Kim Jong-Il
Nelson Mandela
Hamengkubuwono X
Sumanto
Wong Kar-wai
Women
Eve
Cleopatra
Murasaki Shikibu
Joan of Arc
Queen Elizabeth I
Jane Austen
Harriet Tubman
Marie Curie
Jane Austen
Kartini
Post-1900
Billie Holiday
Frida Kahlo
Eleanor Roosevelt
Coco Chanel
Aung San Suu Kyi
Margaret Thatcher
Madonna
Megawati Sukarnoputri
Utada Hikaru
Aishwarya Rai
Inul Daratista
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
Keep your suggestions coming!
posted by mdonley at 1:43 AM on November 4, 2006
King Louis XIV
Miyamoto Musashi
Louis Pasteur
J. Robert Oppenheimer
Hippocrates of Cos II
Sir William Osler
Claude Shannon
John von Neumann
José Raúl Capablanca
posted by NucleophilicAttack at 3:28 AM on November 4, 2006
Miyamoto Musashi
Louis Pasteur
J. Robert Oppenheimer
Hippocrates of Cos II
Sir William Osler
Claude Shannon
John von Neumann
José Raúl Capablanca
posted by NucleophilicAttack at 3:28 AM on November 4, 2006
Anyone?
Well, God, obviously. If (s)he shows, (s)he's got some explaining to do.
posted by jaded at 3:41 AM on November 4, 2006
Well, God, obviously. If (s)he shows, (s)he's got some explaining to do.
posted by jaded at 3:41 AM on November 4, 2006
Just to second (third) other voices here, I have tried similar activities in ESL classrooms in various parts of the world.
Here's the problem: 95% of the people listed in these answers will be absolutely unknown to Indonesian youth. Those that will be known will be known as "oh, ah, that's some American guy", or "I think he's a musician". And the activity will die a boring death as you go around trying to explain about these people, and eating up all the class time.
What you really need to do is ask this question to Indonesians.
posted by Meatbomb at 3:54 AM on November 4, 2006
Here's the problem: 95% of the people listed in these answers will be absolutely unknown to Indonesian youth. Those that will be known will be known as "oh, ah, that's some American guy", or "I think he's a musician". And the activity will die a boring death as you go around trying to explain about these people, and eating up all the class time.
What you really need to do is ask this question to Indonesians.
posted by Meatbomb at 3:54 AM on November 4, 2006
Oh, that's a good list. Could use more Indonesians (or just regional folk) but otherwise that seems about right. They would definitely know heads of state of neighbouring countries, for instance.
And our textbooks may be similar in style but we're too caught up with Malaysian issues to ever talk about Indonesian history and such ;) Sama-sama!
posted by divabat at 5:18 AM on November 4, 2006
And our textbooks may be similar in style but we're too caught up with Malaysian issues to ever talk about Indonesian history and such ;) Sama-sama!
posted by divabat at 5:18 AM on November 4, 2006
Assuming the presence of a universal translator, I would think it would be interesting to have a few representatives of prehistoric or early man come to the party.
posted by Thorzdad at 5:34 AM on November 4, 2006
posted by Thorzdad at 5:34 AM on November 4, 2006
Heddy Green
Mohammad Ali
Jerry Garcia
Winston Churchill
King Tut
My mother
posted by JohnnyGunn at 6:12 AM on November 4, 2006
Mohammad Ali
Jerry Garcia
Winston Churchill
King Tut
My mother
posted by JohnnyGunn at 6:12 AM on November 4, 2006
Solve a mystery by inviting Jack the Ripper. See who shows up.
posted by Faint of Butt at 7:20 AM on November 4, 2006
posted by Faint of Butt at 7:20 AM on November 4, 2006
If the students are Muslim, you could always add Aisha and Fatima.
posted by dilettante at 7:56 AM on November 4, 2006
posted by dilettante at 7:56 AM on November 4, 2006
Totally off the top of my head:
Ian Curtis
Jonathan Ive
Orson Welles
Eric Arthur Blair (better known as George Orwell)
Michael Jackson
David Lynch
Eddie Murphy
John F. Kennedy
Jean Paul Gaultier
Hans Christian Andersen
Marilyn Monroe
Britney Spears
Condoleezza Rice
Elizabeth Arden
Janis Joplin
Diana, Princess of Wales
Virginia Woolf
Martha Stewart
Susan Sontag
Eva Braun
Pamela Anderson
Ingrid Bergman
posted by sveskemus at 8:05 AM on November 4, 2006
Ian Curtis
Jonathan Ive
Orson Welles
Eric Arthur Blair (better known as George Orwell)
Michael Jackson
David Lynch
Eddie Murphy
John F. Kennedy
Jean Paul Gaultier
Hans Christian Andersen
Marilyn Monroe
Britney Spears
Condoleezza Rice
Elizabeth Arden
Janis Joplin
Diana, Princess of Wales
Virginia Woolf
Martha Stewart
Susan Sontag
Eva Braun
Pamela Anderson
Ingrid Bergman
posted by sveskemus at 8:05 AM on November 4, 2006
Just thinking about some more diverse people and Aung San Suu Kyi and Yasser Arafat came to mind.
posted by echo0720 at 10:50 AM on November 4, 2006
posted by echo0720 at 10:50 AM on November 4, 2006
Many of these are good lists of people you respect.
But dinner guest lists? I'm not so sure. To paraphrase a rather profound television commercial, what are you and Ghandi really going to talk about?
posted by IvyMike at 10:58 AM on November 4, 2006
But dinner guest lists? I'm not so sure. To paraphrase a rather profound television commercial, what are you and Ghandi really going to talk about?
posted by IvyMike at 10:58 AM on November 4, 2006
Richelieu.
Francois Villon.
Vladimir Nabokov.
Emily Bronte.
Mary, Queen of Scots.
Salman Rushdie.
Ingrid Bergman.
Che Guevara.
Alexander Hamilton.
posted by nonmerci at 11:20 AM on November 4, 2006
Francois Villon.
Vladimir Nabokov.
Emily Bronte.
Mary, Queen of Scots.
Salman Rushdie.
Ingrid Bergman.
Che Guevara.
Alexander Hamilton.
posted by nonmerci at 11:20 AM on November 4, 2006
I'd invite Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison, put them right across from one another, and let Einstein & Bob Moog act as moderators for the ensuing argument about the AC/DC battle for supremacy. Jimi Hendrix and John Lennon would serenade us during desert, while Da Vinci spent the evening sketching everyone's portraits for my art collection. We'd wrap up the evening with a joke circle involving Bill Hicks, Red Skelton, Milton Berle, Lenny Bruce and Brother Theodore, with the Marquis de Sade as MC and Charles Bukowski as bartender. What a night!
posted by dbiedny at 11:36 AM on November 4, 2006
posted by dbiedny at 11:36 AM on November 4, 2006
Someone who was on the Titanic.
Someone who was on the Anola Gay.
Someone who was in Hiroshima when they dropped the bomb.
Someone who was above the 50th floor of the WTC and managed to get down in time.
An officer from each side who spent more than a year in the trenches in WWI.
Someone who has flown around the moon.
Someone who lived in a concentration camp.
Somoene who was unwittingly projected into the media spotlight.
Someone who was from a Western tribe that was brought to Europe as a novelty.
Somoene who was born and raised in slavery, and who's parents and children were raised similarly.
All would have a story to tell, some would impress, others may dissapoint, but if just one increases your perspective on the world...
posted by furtive at 12:00 PM on November 4, 2006
Someone who was on the Anola Gay.
Someone who was in Hiroshima when they dropped the bomb.
Someone who was above the 50th floor of the WTC and managed to get down in time.
An officer from each side who spent more than a year in the trenches in WWI.
Someone who has flown around the moon.
Someone who lived in a concentration camp.
Somoene who was unwittingly projected into the media spotlight.
Someone who was from a Western tribe that was brought to Europe as a novelty.
Somoene who was born and raised in slavery, and who's parents and children were raised similarly.
All would have a story to tell, some would impress, others may dissapoint, but if just one increases your perspective on the world...
posted by furtive at 12:00 PM on November 4, 2006
Laura Ingalls Wilder.
Rose Wilder Lane might be a good choice, too (or instead).
Might add Frederick Douglass.
posted by dagnyscott at 12:12 PM on November 4, 2006
Rose Wilder Lane might be a good choice, too (or instead).
Might add Frederick Douglass.
posted by dagnyscott at 12:12 PM on November 4, 2006
that girl who rejected me in kindergarten.
what the hell do you mean I am icky?
posted by krautland at 12:25 PM on November 4, 2006
what the hell do you mean I am icky?
posted by krautland at 12:25 PM on November 4, 2006
George Bernard Shaw
posted by allthingsfixable at 2:54 PM on November 4, 2006
posted by allthingsfixable at 2:54 PM on November 4, 2006
Since the host obviously has the power to pluck guests from any point in history, and make people from disparate times and cultures understand one another, why not look further afield for commentary on the human condition?
Keiko
Cleopatra's asp
The Bodhi tree
The Borg Queen
Stephen Hawking's unfettered mind
posted by rob511 at 2:56 PM on November 4, 2006
Keiko
Cleopatra's asp
The Bodhi tree
The Borg Queen
Stephen Hawking's unfettered mind
posted by rob511 at 2:56 PM on November 4, 2006
Ooooo... Oppenheimer is a good one!
If there are some you'd like to include, but you think they might not know the names, you could include a quick parenthetical explanation of who the person is. Eg:
- J. Robert Oppenheimer ("father" of the atomic bomb)
- Yuri Gagarin (first person in space)
That way, the exercise doesn't end up as a test of how much historical trivia they know; they can go directly to figuring out who they want to come to the party, and skip the step of figuring out who all the candidates are.
posted by LobsterMitten at 11:25 PM on November 4, 2006
If there are some you'd like to include, but you think they might not know the names, you could include a quick parenthetical explanation of who the person is. Eg:
- J. Robert Oppenheimer ("father" of the atomic bomb)
- Yuri Gagarin (first person in space)
That way, the exercise doesn't end up as a test of how much historical trivia they know; they can go directly to figuring out who they want to come to the party, and skip the step of figuring out who all the candidates are.
posted by LobsterMitten at 11:25 PM on November 4, 2006
Emily Dickinson!
I like Anne Frank and Sacagawea too.
posted by torticat at 11:55 PM on November 4, 2006
I like Anne Frank and Sacagawea too.
posted by torticat at 11:55 PM on November 4, 2006
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by visual mechanic at 9:00 PM on November 3, 2006