Subject: GC - redifining the word "literature"?
Posted by: Krzysztof
Date: Mar 22 10
While I personaly don't care for this category anymore (I noticed last round that it becomes "unplayable" in Division 8), something should be done about it, to make it user-friendly again.
That I fail on some questions on Shakespeare (because I read or saw on stage only some of his plays), or that I mix up, again!, "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" with "The Glass Menagerie" (because I didn't read them) - I can accept it, mea culpa (I know they deserve respect, but I just prefer other authors).
However, most of those books that are subject of quizzes in the later stages of Global Challenge are so obscure that noone comes near that category :(
At the moment (6 hours into the game) there have been 5 people who decided to play Literature, and there are about 330 players in the Division 8. And this isn't an isolated case (unless Literature is the Hardcore category).
Does it mean people don't read anymore?
Of course not!
So, could we, players, help Funtrivia editors to change this?
Is there a way to banish some (many) of those quizzes/questions to "For Children" category or somewhere else?
Posted by: Krzysztof
Date: Mar 22 10
While I personaly don't care for this category anymore (I noticed last round that it becomes "unplayable" in Division 8), something should be done about it, to make it user-friendly again.
That I fail on some questions on Shakespeare (because I read or saw on stage only some of his plays), or that I mix up, again!, "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" with "The Glass Menagerie" (because I didn't read them) - I can accept it, mea culpa (I know they deserve respect, but I just prefer other authors).
However, most of those books that are subject of quizzes in the later stages of Global Challenge are so obscure that noone comes near that category :(
At the moment (6 hours into the game) there have been 5 people who decided to play Literature, and there are about 330 players in the Division 8. And this isn't an isolated case (unless Literature is the Hardcore category).
Does it mean people don't read anymore?
Of course not!
So, could we, players, help Funtrivia editors to change this?
Is there a way to banish some (many) of those quizzes/questions to "For Children" category or somewhere else?
26 replies. On page 1 of 2 pages. 1 2
Krzysztof
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I'm sorry about a mistake in the title, I meant "redefining" of course :( Reply #1. Mar 22 10, 6:13 PM |
cazza2902 
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I'm still at level 7 and continue to play literature only because that was what I studied at uni. When I first started FT I had a narrow definition of literature and soon realised that it is very much an all embracing category - I am not good at detective novels (don't read them very often), not au fait with current/recent cult fiction (ie Harry Potter and the new vampire series - see can't even remember the name). Guess I just accept that the category is just so big that I am going to take to take a hit on some quizzes. Reply #2. Mar 22 10, 6:19 PM |
Squisher
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I'm not very knowledgeable in literature, but more often than not I could score at least a 10/15 in level 7. Level 8, however, is another story. Most of the questions are obscure, bordering on ridiculous. It's one thing to have read a certain uncommon book, but to answer questions about specific minutiae of that book are impossible. The last two literature quizzes I took I scored 3/15. It would be nice if the question pool was a little less obscure. Reply #3. Mar 22 10, 6:51 PM |
honeybee4
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I have noticed that all the categories have gotten much harder since Terry made changes halfway through the challenge. If he didn't make changes, I'm sorry for mentioning it. I totally expect the challenge to get harder as we progress, but there are so many new questions that I am having a really hard time this challenge. Reply #4. Mar 22 10, 7:08 PM |
| honeybee4
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I agree that the questions are obscure, but they are, also, not interesting enough to take the time to learn the answers. Reply #5. Mar 22 10, 7:36 PM |
george48
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I thought i was the only one,because i read a lot. It just seems harder this time around. I hate to change categories half way though....but Reply #6. Mar 22 10, 8:15 PM |
Heleena
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I love to read but I agree, at the Newtonian level the Literature questions are just way too obscure. Since I'm playing hardcore this time around, I have no choice in categories! Reply #7. Mar 22 10, 8:28 PM |
| pattycake65
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I thought I was the only one having such a difficult time getting through the challenge.I am in the Newtonians and my rating had dropped really low.It has come up again now though.It isn't as enjoyable when the questions are so obscure. Reply #8. Mar 22 10, 10:07 PM |
Lochalsh
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I'd like to see a separation between "Literature" and Popular Fiction," as they provide in some bookstores. It's not a question of exalting the first category over the second, but it is a way of sorting out works that have stood the test of time and critics from the more casual pieces. Reply #9. Mar 22 10, 10:32 PM |
| Lochalsh
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I guess what I suggested above is too much for the GC, where there are only so many categories that can be covered, but I'd certainly like to see some separation made elsewhere on FT. Reply #10. Mar 22 10, 10:38 PM |
| Krzysztof
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Lochalsh, that's not a bad idea (from the point of view of the players, of course), but I'm not sure if FT editors will give it some thought or not. For example I'm playing History and Religion in the Global Challenge, not because I'm so good in them and I like them so much. I WOULD choose Olympic Sports or "mature" Literature over History and Religion, if they weren't so "hostile", but for now the chance of a really bad score in Literature or Sports is about 80-90%, while History and Religion are simply much "safer", with lower ratio of failures. Reply #11. Mar 23 10, 6:12 AM |
BxBarracuda
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The GC is a marathon and not just about popular topics. In the upper levels of all the GC categories it gets tougher, like it should. Yes the obscurity can seem a bit much. It's unreasonable to think that someone can go through every question on this site and decide what is "too obscure" and what is just "tough". At some point most of us who have strived for the Immortal and Hardcore badges have bemoaned the questions to some degree, myself included, just have to fight through the tough questions, everyone gets the same toughness of questions so it's fair. The Immortal and Hardcore badges aren't easy to get and they shouldn't be. Reply #12. Mar 23 10, 6:45 AM |
| BxBarracuda
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Krzysztof, I myself and I think alot of others too, have to narrow down the topics we play in the GC in the last couple of levels and stick to the topics we can score the best in, when I got to level 9, I was down to only 6 topics that I would venture ina try at. Reply #13. Mar 23 10, 6:49 AM |
| Krzysztof
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BxBarracuda, yes, I'm aware of this. I joined last year and I already had the "taste" of GC in the Divisions 8 and 9, and that's when I decided what 5 categories would be "on my menu" for most games in the current edition (Literature was NOT one of them). I understand that we are supposed to have good days (many questions about Europe for me) and (very) bad days (in my case: U.S. geography and Civil War or too much Biology in Sci-Tech etc.) I just resent the fact that Literature is so unpopular among GC players in the higher Division, it shows there's something wrong with the questions pool, not with the players :) Reply #14. Mar 23 10, 10:09 AM |
| BxBarracuda
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Understood, I would have loved to have taken the Sports category more often, but that category got to a point where if I had a choice I wouldn't chose it around level 5 and up. Reply #15. Mar 23 10, 10:28 AM |
agony
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Most of the Literature category is out of the running for tournaments, for the reasons that have been pointed out. A well read person *might* be able to know who wrote a certain book, but knowing the details of the plot is another thing. However, this is the reality of our Literature category (or since that term seems to offend some players, our "Books" category). The questions must be general questions, or they must be on specific books. If they are on specific books, you will need to have read the book. No way around it. As for obscurity - this is far too subjective a matter for us to enter into, when deciding on what to put in the tournament. A book is obscure to you if you haven't read it. We have players of all ages and nationalities playing this game - for some of them, the "Twilight" quizzes are the lifesavers, for some it's Terry Pratchett, and for others it's Aeschylus. All could be considered obscure, or familiar, depending on personal reading habits. Reply #16. Mar 23 10, 2:47 PM |
lesley153
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There were so many that were obscure for me that I simply stopped picking the Literature category. There was also the odd quiz in which seven out of ten questions were about Stephen King in his many forms, or three of the ten questions were about Chinese fantasy literature. We've had a few threads about over-representation of subjects in a category. I think fantasy generally is more popular among younger players. Nothing wrong with that. I'd be vaguely interested to know how many FT members (of any age), besides the quizwriters, are familiar with the Chinese variety. Reply #17. Mar 23 10, 4:43 PM |
jolana
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I totally agree with Lesley. Gone are the times when Literature category consisted of Stephen King and the Legend of Three Kingdoms, thanks God. It seems to me that the present GC is much more friendly than the previous ones. I am still in Division 7, though, and I don´t know what I will have to face in the next one. Reply #18. Mar 23 10, 5:15 PM |
| lesley153
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That's nice to know. Thanks, Jolana. I'll have a look, next time I play a round of GC. Reply #19. Mar 23 10, 5:31 PM |
| Terry
Head Honcho 
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All of the GC categories should be considerably more "generalist" this time around that last tournament. We'll continue to tweak them. If there are too many of a specific TYPE of question in a category let me know and they can be pruned back... ex. too many stephen king questions, or whatever. Reply #20. Mar 24 10, 10:56 AM |
26 replies. On page 1 of 2 pages. 1 2
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