Man/Myth/Monotone

[aloysiavirgata]

I am working on a Mulder-centric piece right now and whoa. The fanwankery in which I am having to engage is epic. Several homes in New England!  Mother  from Ohio! Graves in Raleigh! Jewish jokes! Christian funeral!  Wedding band!  Not attending Oxford until age 22! Where he "graduated with honors"! Which I am given to understand is not done at

Comments

[wendelah1]

It seems like you have to throw out a lot of badly conceived "canon" in TXF universe; for example, that Scully is unable to perform CPR correctly. Her resumé is a mess, too.

I've always thought it best to ignore what 1013 said, be creative, and make something up that makes sense. To do the job he was hired for, Mulder would need a PhD degree in Clinical or Forensic Psychology. They don't offer the later at Oxford, so it would have to be the former. If memory serves me, he could get a doctorate in three years under their system, which would allow him to attend university as an undergraduate in the U.S. Or just write whatever you want that works for your story.

Three houses? I counted four. The house he grew up in on Martha's Vineyard, the summer house on Rhode Island, the house he dad moved to after the divorce, and the one his mother lived in, which was in Connecticut. Did I add a house accidentally? Someone in the family had money. Or made money.

Someone's family of origin has to be from North Carolina, presumably the Mulders. I don't suppose there is DVD commentary on the topic. I thought not. The better question to me is why people who are ostensibly divorced would be buried in the same place. Or why Teena Mulder was treated as a grieving widow.

You could make a case that one parent was Jewish, the other Christian, if works for your story. It's hard for me to picture either of his parents as practicing a religion except in a very superficial way. Weddings. Funerals.

If you want to write a story where Mulder was married, the ring lets you do that; otherwise, I'd just ignore it.

I know someone who attended Oxford. If the story is set there, or references his degree, I bet she'd be happy to answer questions.

[aloysiavirgata]

Thanks all around! I've already got many of the elements you mention in place (the degree, religion, the family in NC, marriage), so I'm very pleased to see we're thinking along the same lines. Very reassuring!

Is several synonymous with three? I didn't know; I meant it as a general term of "more than two but less than six or so." My bad on that. Yes, there are four. There was definitely money in that family, and lots of it. I'm guessing "had" rather than "made" because they strike me as old-money people, not "paid off by the Syndicate with a big wad of cash" people.

I am lucky to have an Oxford-educated friend as well (and she's thinking of joining the FBI!), so I'll probably pester if need be and save your friend the trouble.

Scully's resume...ugh. I can't even.

[wendelah1]

emily_shore is not on your flist but she is in fandom, attended Oxford, and has written fic and meta for TXF. I'm sure she'd be happy to answer any remaining Oxford-related questions.

[aloysiavirgata]

I appreciate the heads up! And you know, she really ought to be on my Flist. I see that girl everywhere. Must send PM...

[jenrose1]

I personally think Teena was old money.

[aloysiavirgata]

I have always thought the Mulder clan had an old-money air. Which is the approach I'm taking here, so I'll have at least one supporter!