Talk:Mango cult

Did you know nomination

The following is an archived discussion of the DYK nomination of the article below. Please do not modify this page. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as this nomination's talk page, the article's talk page or Wikipedia talk:Did you know), unless there is consensus to re-open the discussion at this page. No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was: rejected by Narutolovehinata5 (talk) 00:15, 13 February 2023 (UTC)

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• ... that some Chinese workers worshipped mangoes during the Cultural Revolution? Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-35461265
  • Reviewed:
  • Comment: This is my third DYK nomination, so I don't yet need to review other nominations

Created by Di (they-them) (talk). Self-nominated at 03:37, 31 January 2023 (UTC). Note: As of October 2022, all changes made to promoted hooks will be logged by a bot. The log for this nomination can be found at Template talk:Did you know nominations/Mango cult, so please watch a successfully closed nomination until the hook appears on the Main Page.

• I will review this. TompaDompa (talk) 11:44, 31 January 2023 (UTC)

General: Article is new enough and long enough
New enough: Long enough:

Policy compliance:

• Adequate sourcing: - See below.
• Neutral: - See below.
• Free of copyright violations, plagiarism, and close paraphrasing: - See below.

Hook: Hook has been verified by provided inline citation
Cited: Interesting:

QPQ: None required.

Overall: Article created on 31 January, and is well beyond the required minimum length. This is the nominator's third nomination, so they are QPQ exempt. The hook is properly cited and interesting. However, there are major content issues, mainly to do with WP:PLAGIARISM. Earwig reveals a high degree of verbatim overlap with https://www.collectorsweekly.com/articles/the-mao-mango-cult-of-1968/, and examining this further uncovers extensive WP:Close paraphrasing. I'll list some of the content issues below:

• See MOS:REFERSTO.
• Mao's gift of mangoes to the workers and the rise of the mango cult signified a turn in the Cultural Revolution, as the working class began to lead it. – not what the cited source says. It says that these things happened to coincide.
• Though it is considered by some historians to be a bizarre fad, the mango cult is a rare example of culture spontaneously created from the bottom-up, initiated and interpreted by the working class. – the source says Historians have tended to regard the mango craze as a bizarre fad, but it is one of the few occasions when culture was created spontaneously from the bottom-up, initiated and interpreted by the workers. That's pretty egregious WP:Close paraphrasing.
• One by-product of the Cultural Revolution was the spontaneous formation of various pro-Mao student groups, known as Red Guards, in middle schools, high schools, and universities across the country. – the source says One by-product of the Cultural Revolution was the spontaneous formation of zealously pro-Mao student groups [...] the students received Mao's personal blessing, which spawned countless other Red Guard units at middle schools, high schools, and universities across the country.
• Though unified by their allegiance to Mao, the Red Guards often had fierce rivalries and in-fighting. – the source says Though unified by their loyalty to Mao, these Red Guards units were often fierce and even violent rivals.
• The animosity between the Red Guards peaked in 1968 with a conflict that came to be known as the Hundred-Day War in Tsinghua University, in which two groups, the Jinggangshan Corps and the Fours, hurled stones, spears, and sulfuric acid at each other. – the source says The animosity between Red Guards peaked in the spring of 1968 at Qinghua (also spelled "Tsinghua") University, where two oppositional cadres, the Jinggangshan Corps and the Fours, engaged in what became known as the Hundred Day War, hurling stones, spears, and sulfuric acid at each other [...].
• On July 27th, 1968, Mao sent 30,000 Beijing factory workers to stop the conflict and keep the peace. – the source says On July 27, 1968, Mao sent 30,000 Beijing factory workers, dubbed the "Capital Workers Mao Zedong Thought Propaganda Teams," to interpose themselves between the Jinggangshan and the Fours in an orchestrated attempt to keep the peace.
• Half a dozen workers were killed and over 700 were wounded, leading Mao to officially disband the Red Guards the next day. – the source says About half a dozen workers were killed and more than 700 others were injured, which prompted Mao to disband his beloved Red Guards the very next day.
• Mao, who didn't like mangoes – the source is not at all unequivocal about this. It should not be presented in WP:WikiVoice like this.
• His refusal to eat the fruit himself was interpreted as a sacrifice on the Chairman’s part for the benefit of the workers. – the source says much would be made of Mao's "refusal to eat the fruit," which was interpreted as "a sacrifice" on the Chairman's part "for the benefit of the workers."
• The workers believed that the mangoes were symbolic of Mao's gratefulness, and that they auspiciously coincided [...] – the workers didn't believe it was an auspicious coincidence, the source characterizes it as such.
• coincided with the transfer of the Cultural Revolution’s stewardship from members of the nation’s intelligentsia (as personified by the student Red Guards) to its workers. – this is lifted verbatim from the source.
• Many workers stayed up late into the night examining and discussing the exotic fruits and the Chairman's meaning behind giving them to them. – the source says workers stayed up long into the night after the mangoes arrived, discussing their meaning and Mao's intent
• such as bed sheets, vanity stands, enamel trays, and washbasins, as well as mango-scented soap and mango-flavored cigarettes – the source says such as bed sheets, vanity stands, enamel trays and washbasins, as well as mango-scented soap and mango-flavoured cigarettes. There is no reason to use the same set of examples, listed in the same order, and using the same exact phrasing (serial comma and WP:ENGVAR notwitstanding), especially when there is another source that instead says enamel mugs and trays, packs of cigarettes, pencil cases, vanity mirrors, and medallions.
• Any particular reason to cite https://www.bbc.com/zhongwen/simp/fooc/2016/02/160217_fooc_mango? From a quick glance, it seems to be a translated version of https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-35461265.
• Within a year, the cult of the mango had declined significantly – according to the sources, it took longer than that.
• and some people even began using wax mangoes as candles when the power went out. – there is no reason for this to be uncited; there are sources used in the article that verify it.
• then-First Lady – "then-" is unnecessary.
• Mao passed away – MOS:EUPHEMISM.
• Mao passed away in September 1976 before filming was completed – this would seem to imply that the film was therefore not completed, but according to the sources it was released.
• The Cultural Revolution, and by extension, the mango cult, came to a permanent end soon after. – unsourced.
• They are no longer considered a sacred icon like they once were. – unnecessary and unencyclopedic in tone.

Ping Di (they-them). TompaDompa (talk) 13:55, 31 January 2023 (UTC)

TompaDompa Thank you so much for your thorough review. I have attempted to correct the issues that you have listed. I hope that this is enough to allow the article to be used for DYK, but if you see more issues, please let me know. Thank you, Di (they-them) (talk) 15:15, 31 January 2023 (UTC)

That takes care of many of the issues I listed, but WP:Close paraphrasing still abounds. TompaDompa (talk) 20:38, 31 January 2023 (UTC)

• @Theleekycauldron: I suggest closing this nomination. Pity, as we could use more China-related hooks. BorgQueen (talk) 03:20, 10 February 2023 (UTC)