1/24/25
Yesterday, I wrote a new paper, which I titled "Hidden Indications of the 19th-century Literati's Respect for Mathew Franklin Whittier." You can access it directly from this website, here. My purpose was to establish Mathew as a serious player in the 19th-century literary field. He has been so badly marginalized by the official Whittier legacy, that when any scholar has bothered to look him up, this cartoonish version of him is all they see. Or, it was, until I started posting online back in 1998. Now, even the AI co-pilot may give you the links to my papers, if you ask it precisely the right set of questions.

This is the missing piece of the puzzle, which is to say, respect. Respect for me, and respect for Mathew. Respect for me is something I would have to earn, over time. People's knee-jerk cynical reaction would have to very gradually thaw, if I was able to win them over. I can tell them that I've been practicing strict honesty as a spiritual discipline for over 50 years; I can tell them I have a master's in counseling from a respected State university; that my documentary on reincarnation is distributed to universities through Films Media Group; and that I was meticulous and rigorous in my 16 years of research. I can write this advanced blog on a near-daily basis; and the quality of my papers (over 50 of them, now) is self-evident. If all of that doesn't create respect for me personally, I don't know what to tell them.

But Mathew Franklin Whittier must also be respected; and moreover, I have to demonstrate that he was an influential, respected author of the 19th-century, despite being almost entirely unknown to the public (except, once he was exposed, as the author of one series). I have to explain, with supporting evidence, that his anonymity was his own choice, not being a result of any lack of talent. I have to show that he was, in fact, capable of wielding a significant influence from behind the scenes.

Only such a person could have co-authored "A Christmas Carol"; only such a person could have been the real author of "The Raven."

Now, most persons want to see endorsements. What prominent person says that I'm an authentic pioneering researcher? What prominent person says Mathew was an important author?

Well, no prominent person will stick his or her neck out, today, to say that I'm what I claim to be, and that I've discovered what I claim to have discovered. Some few of them could, but for whatever reasons of fear or prudence, they opt not to. I cannot expect anyone to sacrifice their career and reputation on my account. I would be deeply grateful if anyone chose to do that, but I cannot ask it of them. If they did, it wouldn't be a personal favor for me; it would be a matter of standing up for the truth.

But it so happens, after 16 years of digging into dark research corners in primary sources, I can provide a list of notables who respected Mathew Franklin Whittier. And this will come as a shock and a complete surprise to the keepers of the Whittier legacy. Would they have ever imagined that this man, whom they paint as the ne'er-do-well nuisance little brother of their hero, would be invited into Victor Hugo's living room? Or that he would be invited to dinner by William Makepeace Thackeray, at the latter's club?

I doubt any of them will read this paper. I don't think they keep up with me--I think they studiously avoid me and everything I write. But this paper is not just for the present; it is also for posterity. The second, or third, or fourth generation of keepers of the Whittier legacy may encounter it. That is, if I can preserve my work beyond my passing.

I am now 71 years and one month old. Barring either fame or notoriety, I will need donations--serious donations. Fifteen or twenty dollars isn't going to cut it. If nobody acknowledges my work during my lifetime, somehow it is going to have to be preserved for the next 50, 100, or even 200 years, when Society and Academia are more receptive to the information.

As I've said before, I'm working upstream--so far upstream, that most donors can't even see the relevance of my work at all. I'm addressing the root causes of the mess we are in, today. Somebody has to, while everyone else is putting out fires.

Sincerely,

Stephen Sakellarios, M.S.