English language help - pretty please

[from_the_corner]

Or I should rather say - cultural reference. Because I too often lack those, for obvious reasons =)

One of my prompts for art_bingo is JACK FROST.

First thing that I though of, was the movie. But the guy there was simply a snowman, right? I thought it would be a litle too easy, so I read "jack frost" Wiki page and then googled it, for a good measure. And ended up knowing even less than at the beginning.

So, when you say "Jack Frost" - what you actually mean?

Comments

[tarlanx]

Well... I always pictured him as a fairy type sprite with icicles hanging from him... a little bit like the one in the Santa Clause: The Escape Clause (3rd?) movie :-)

http://www.christmas-entertainers.co.uk/Images/Christmas/jack-frost-stilts-web.jpg

[tarlanx]

You know - I have this image of Jack Frost's face replaced with Rodney's now :-)

[dustandroses.livejournal.com]

I think this reference in The Encyclopedia Mythica is probably the closest to what I've always considered him: "Jack Frost is a figure from folklore, an elfish creature who personifies crisp, cold weather. He is said to leave those beautiful patterns on autumn leaves and windows on frosty mornings."

I saw the reference to him on Wiki that said he was the same thing as "Father Winter" - but I always saw him as more of a Fall figure than a Winter one.

I don't know if this will help at all, but I thought it was cool, so I thought I'd share it - there's a plant called Jack Frost: Brunnera macrophylla (http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/Plant.asp?code=M800). If you click on the pic to get the close up, you can really see the traceries of the green veins that show through the white of the leaves. It really does look like frost on the leaves. Like I said, it may not help at all, but as an artist, I thought you might appreciate it.

I hope this helps some...I think it sounds like a really cool prompt, you could have all sorts of fun with it.

[liresius.livejournal.com]

I think Jack Frost is essentially winter personified (elf, fairy, man figure), but culturally we do tend to associate him with late autumn because that's when we get the first frosts. From my childhood I seem to remember he was referred to at these times more than at the dead of winter.

On waking up on the first frosty morning people are likely to say, "Ooh, Jack Frost is on the way." or "Jack Frost has visited."

So for me, the way we speak (and when we speak) about JF - we use him to acknowledge that autumn is changing over to winter / that winter is on the way.