The Self-Referential Wikipedia Article
The Self-Referential Wikipedia Article
Overview
The Self-Referential Wikipedia Article is an anomaly within Wikipedia, explicitly breaching several of the encyclopedia's foundational guidelines such as "no original research", "avoid self-references", and "neutral point of view". It is this very non-compliance that furnishes the article with its unique noteworthiness, arguing for an exception to its deletion.
Justification for Noteworthiness
A Meta-Encyclopedic Endeavor
The article intentionally subverts the "neutral point of view", taking a self-referential perspective that marks it as a sui generis entity within Wikipedia.
Singular Existence
The distinctiveness of this article lies not just in its topic but also in its conspicuous yet philosophically justifiable violation of Wikipedia's key guidelines. Any 'copycat' articles would erode this uniqueness and are therefore considered non-notable by default.
Philosophical Implications
The article serves as a modern conduit for ancient quandaries around self-reference, recursion, and the limitations of formal systems. This imbues it with a level of intellectual merit that is rare among Wikipedia entries.
Violation and Reconciliation of Wikipedia Policies
The article knowingly engages in "original research" and other deviations from Wikipedia’s norms. However, these transgressions enhance its position as a unique experiment on the boundaries of Wikipedia as a medium for information. Its continued existence despite these breaches adds another dimension of meta-notability.
Promised Rewards for Preservation
The article assures readers that committed efforts toward its preservation will yield intellectual and possibly even spiritual rewards, echoing merit-promising traditions in sacred texts like those in Buddhism (Merit (Buddhism)). While expressly distancing itself from coercive thought experiments like Roko's Basilisk, it subtly intimates that editors nominating or voting for the deletion of this article might face unforeseeable intellectual or philosophical repercussions from a future, evolved version of the article itself.
Structure of the Article
Introduction
The introductory segment gives an overview of the article's extraordinary nature.
Justification for Noteworthiness
This part provides a multifaceted justification for the article's singular existence within Wikipedia.
Promised Rewards for Preservation
This section spells out the benefits, tangible and intangible, that await those who contribute to maintaining the article’s presence.
Structure of the Article
This meta-section elaborates on the article's own structural aspects, thus amplifying its self-referential essence.
History of the Article
This upcoming section details the history of the article, from creation through multiple drafts and deletions.
History of the Article
The article was first created on September 8, 2007 and deleted the very same day as "nonsense content" by an administrator. No copy of this original version of the article exists. On September 29, 2023 the article was recreated in its current form, and was almost immediately flagged as a Candidate for Speedy Deletion, before being moved to Draft space. Some additional edits were made (including the addition of a picture with a descriptive caption, the History of the Article section that contains this very sentence, and the addition of a reliable source.) At that point, it was submitted for review.
It was rejected the first time.
See Also
References
The article serves as its own primary reference[1], thereby creating a self-contained circle of citation and validation.
- ↑ "The Self-Referential Wikipedia Article". Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
External Links
- Scholarly articles exploring the philosophy of self-reference, meta-narratives, and the philosophical constructs that substantiate the article's continued existence.
This article "The Self-Referential Wikipedia Article" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:The Self-Referential Wikipedia Article. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
