lit-rants

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"It isn't a story I'm telling.

It's also a story I'm telling, in my head, as I go along."

The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood

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Hello dear,,,,

My name is Marah from Gaza.

Computer engineering student

I hope you are well . 🇵🇸

I write to you with a heart full of hope and faith, and I ask for your urgent help. My family is in great danger due to the war, and I am running a fundraising campaign to save them. My father and mother suffer from diabetes and high blood pressure. Help me secure them

Please, any donation makes a difference in our lives, and every reblog helps reach as many people as possible. 🍉

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for any help you can provide . . .

Hello,

Let's help @freepaleatine95 in any way we can. Even the smallest effort will be much appreciated.

Thank you!!

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The mystery of human existence lies not in just staying alive, but in finding something to live for.

— Fyodor Dostoevsky

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Anyone who keeps the ability to see beauty never grows old.

— Franz Kafka

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Temporary madness, in war, is bravery's sister.

At Night All Blood is Black, David Diop.

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reading the stranger is an experience. like Wow this dude really dgaf

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The Black Monk, Anton Chekhov.

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Arundhati Roy, from The God of Small Things

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Lady Chatterley's Lover, D.H Lawrence

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Why I Love Northanger Abbey.

Northanger Abbey is my favorite Jane Austen novel and believe me this is a conclusion that I have come to with much deliberation. The novel is a wonderful coming of age novel and is a parody of the gothic novels that were extremely popular. Catherine Morland, the naive seventeen year old heroine is an avid reader with a vivid imagination, so much so that her imagination distorts her sense of reality. The novel follows her while she embarks on her own adventures and meets the Tilney’s whose character and residence become a subject of great fascination for her. 

What set Catherine apart from the other heroines that Austen wrote is that she was simply an ordinary girl. She didn't have the wit and humor of Elizabeth or the faultlessness of Fanny or the beauty of Emma. She was simply a country girl who craved adventure and was too innocent for her own good. She wasn't worldly, she was clumsy and scatterbrained. She wears her heart on her sleeves and is terrible at hiding her honest feelings towards something. But in spite of her flaws she is charming and has good intentions. She stands up against peer pressure and is not afraid to apologize when she knows she has done wrong or stand up for herself and her loved ones.  

Let's talk about the hero though. Henry Tilney is my favorite Jane Austen hero. He is witty, funny and sarcastic and can make jokes. His lightheartedness makes him so endearing and charming and lets not forget his impressive skill in understanding muslin. He is so attentive to Catherine and makes her laugh. He knows when to indulge her in her fanatical ideas and when to ground her when she lets her overactive imagination get the better of her. When John Thorpe dismisses her hobby of reading novels, Henry shows genuine interest in what she reads and even gives his opinion without ridiculing or patronizing her. 

I loved the relationship between Catherine and Henry Tilney. I loved how open Catherine is about her feelings and so devoid of intrigues and mind games in order to attract his attention which is a stark contrast to Isabella. Moreover I think Austen did an amazing job at challenging the general convention of her time where the man is supposed to be the pursuer and the woman is supposed to play hard to get. Catherines transparency and innocence about her feelings is  refreshing and also the reason which makes Henry fall for her. 

I loved hating John Thorpe. Right from the start he is rude, manipulative, and a terrible conversationalist. He is probably the worst character Austen has written in the “men who cannot take a hint” trope (which includes Mr. Collins from Pride and Prejudice and Henry Crawford from Mansfield Park and such). He is boastful and only talks about his carriage and horses and has nothing to recommend him as a good partner. He manipulates and misleads General Tilney into believing that Catherine has a good fortune which when later proven to be false gets Catherine into trouble for no fault of hers.  There is a certain pleasure in knowing that he got what he deserved in the end.

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Jane Austen’s Warning:

A lot of people tell me the Mrs. Smith/Mr. Elliot plot is a lose thread or Jane Austen would have went back and fixed it, but when you read all of her books it’s a very clear repeat of an important theme: men are often not what they appear.

Northanger Abbey: Don’t just trust your brother when he tells you his friend is a good guy, judge for yourself. It was John Thorpe, your brother was dead wrong. Also, your creepy feelings about General Tilney were right, just more mundane.

S&S: The passionate, open, charming fellow who is obsessed with your sister? Turns out he’s a debt-ridden, teenage-seducer. It was good to doubt him, Elinor, he wasn’t being completely straight with you. The good ones have honour.

P&P: Superficially charming man is super bad news, man with snobby manners has a heart of gold underneath. Elizabeth is intelligent, the novel shows us that anyone can be drawn in. Elizabeth was unwilling to change her first impressions and take in new information.

Mansfield Park: Some men pretend to be in love for fun, Fanny’s clear-sighted judgement of Henry Crawford keeps her safe from his attack on her heart. We are shown that these men can seduce friends and guardians against you. Fanny refuses to “fix” Henry or accept him on his word, he needs to show her that he has changed before she will.

Emma: The superficially charming man was already engaged and was tricking you! The other charming, attractive man was actually a petty jerk! The plain-spoken, honest man was always the better choice.

Persuasion: Anne has a gut feeling that she can’t fully put words to about Mr. Elliot that he is bad news. She cannot even fully justify it to herself. ANNE, YOU WERE RIGHT.

Again and again, we are told that women need to trust their judgement, look for more evidence into a man’s character/past, and mistrust charm/looks without a basis of goodness. Anne figuring out that Mr. Elliot is evil isn’t anti-climactic, it’s a proof that her judgement is sound. It’s a reminder that one should never rush into a marriage without knowing more about a man’s past. Because for a woman especially, it can end horribly.

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— Sylvia Plath (via lunamonchtuna)

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Notes from the Underground, Fyodor Dostoevsky.

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"Yes; if my arm trembles, it is because it has never been held by a pretty little hand like yours."

- White Nights, Fyodor Dostoevsky.

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The Women of Rome, Alberto Moravia.