Talk:List of fictional institutions

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[edit] Libraries

I hate to say it, but I think the libraries section is getting silly. It's getting to the point that any building in any fictional work that had a library in it will get listed. I'm soon expecting to see an entry for "the library from the movie Ghostbusters" or for "the library two doors down from the pizza place in Two Guys and a Pizza Place". Soon I fear we'll have List of fictional kitchens or List of fictional bathrooms. KeithTyler 04:34, Sep 6, 2004 (UTC)

I agree. I'm surprised the Hogwarts' library hasn't been added yet! I think we should pare it down to libraries that are 1) a significant part of the works they appear in 2) are accessable (Gormenghast's library isn't an "institution", IIRC, it's a private collection) and 3) aren't part of another institution listed elsewhere (like the UU library). Daibhid C 14:05, Oct 18, 2004 (UTC)

I can almost see the point of the UU library, and maybe some others, because they do play such a significant part of the stories. The location of the Octavo or of the Necronomicon is worthwhile, but the place where Lisa looks up information on jazz saxophonists (or whatever) is not. Unless it has a distinctive name (besides "Springfield Library" -- if it were named Horace Greely Western Library, maybe it would be worth including. Besides, Springfield USA is already established as a fictional city; and there are undoubtedly lots of Springfield Libraries all over the country). - KeithTyler 18:24, Oct 18, 2004 (UTC)

[edit] Places of Worship

I'm not sure but it seems to me that places of worship are not, themselves, institutions. St Barnabas, for instance, is a fictional building, but it represents a non-fictional institution, namely the Church of England. It seems to me a bit like putting the Blackbury branch of Boots the Chemists (mentioned in Johnny and the Dead) into the list of fictional stores. What does everyone else think? Daibhid C 22:54 10 Mar 2005 (UTC)

Well for starters, each "branch" of an organized church has its own individual recognized name and its own individual community. An individual church's impact and relation to the community (at least within it's congregation) is not quite like a yet-another-franchise of a national pharmacy chain. And, at least in the U.S., they tend to do their own fundraising, their own events, and have their own separate quirks; not simply being a rubber stamp of the mother church's model. - Keith D. Tyler ¶ [AMA] 07:28, Mar 12, 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Predetermined fictionality

I start to wonder if this should only incluce fictional institutions based in non-fictional locations.

For example, the Federal Intelligence Service of the Restored Republic of Haven is predeterminally fictitious, because the nation it serves is fictitious. This is not as obvious as something like, say, CSI: Poughkeepsie.

Keith D. Tyler ¶ [AMA] 22:15, Jun 24, 2005 (UTC)

Maybe a less deletionist version of this principle is presumable fictionality. Maybe "Federal Intelligence Service of the Restored Republic of Haven" is more worth including, because the name "Federal Intelligence Service" is a novel name if not institution. However, "Metro City Police Department" is comparatively less worth including. We presume that if Metro City existed, it would have a police department, as well as other services. But Metro City does not exist. We do not, therefore, need to indicate that all its obvious institutions (police department, fire department, department of public works, clerk's office, etc.) are likewise fictitious, unless they are novel (e.g. Metro City Department of Social Engineering or some such). - Keith D. Tyler ¶ (AMA) 18:25, 29 March 2006 (UTC)