Gatsby: a mini review

The use of symbols in The Great Gatsby is both poetic and beautiful. When we are introduced to our main focus (though he isn't the main character) we are bombarded with images. First, or lovely narrator meets Gatsby's love interest, Daisy. Her name alone is enough to show us that she will be the beautiful and delicate flower among the brambles in this novel.  Jay Gatsby is himself a man of symbol. The manner in which our narrator meets Gatsby is informal and ever so enormously awkward. Many of us can relate, I am sure. Especially in the manner of being a lot younger than our protagonist expected, the reader is shown from the beginning that Gatsby is no ordinary rich man. He is a man of mystery and quiet ( or so we think) living. The rest? Well you'll have to see for yourself.

The Woman Scorned

I recently finished reading the short drama by Euripides , Medea. Medea is the ultimate woman scorned. She is married to Jason, the man who was able to procure the golden fleece. She helped him to get the fleece, and she had fallen in love with him. They married, and she gave him two beautiful children. But in our drama, we find her after she has discovered that he has married the princess, the daughter of the king of the and. This is almost a modern tale of a divorce, the anger, the fighting, and the resentment. Their children are found caught in the middle. Medea's revenge on Jason, though largely an extreme, is almost necessary and cathartic. She poisons the gift that she sends to the princess, her husbands new bride. The results of which are horrific when the reader hears from the messenger. The poison does not cause a quiet death, but one of retching and melting of skin. The disturbing image of the princess' father, the king, finding the corpse, and falling upon that body, sharing the poor one's fate burns into the readers mind. Medea, having heard this, proceeds to kill her own children in order to get back at Jason. Overkill? I think so.

Tuesdays

In the novel Tuesdays with Morrie, Mitch Albom details his last few weeks with his dying professor. His professor, though dying of ALS, decides to make the most of the situation, extending hope and love out to all of the people in his life. During his time with Mitch, whom he is still good mates with even after he taught him in the seventies, Morrie imparts many tidbits of wisdom upon him. This feeling of learning through losing someone gives the book a potent edge that not all books have. It is moving and intelligent, with a special way of getting readers to feel as though they are Morrie's student even though they never knew the man. I had personally never read a memoir before, and I can honestly say that my first go at the genre has impressed me. Morrie's perky attitude towards life, even in the weeks just before his death, drew me in. Despite the lack of intense action scenes, this novel substituted in emotionally intense material, forcing each one of us to face our own mortality that is the only sure thing in this world.

Proud and Prejudicial?

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen is arguably one of the most influential books of the twentieth century. But in the context of the times, this book is not just a love/hate/love story. Austen put the pedal to the medal in more ways than one when she wrote this book. She opened the door to the place where a woman who was quick-witted and smart could actually find love and a true one at that. Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy are not only a couple at the end of this novel, but also a representation of equal power in a relationship. The entire Bennet family seems to support this idea, apart from the oblivious Mrs. Bennet, who is a representation of the societal matriarch, who is whiny and more than a little bit annoying. She cannot stop going on about her "nerves." In many ways, it is not just Mrs. Bennet who is the idea of a typical mother, but also that of her relationship with Mr. Bennet, who is obviously in control of the relationship. What he says almost always goes, unless Mrs. Bennet annoys him into doing something. Mr. and Mrs. Bennet's relationship with each other is the foil to that of Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy. Where Mr. and Mrs. Bennet have different amounts of power, with most of it going to Mr. Bennet, Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth are equally seated. When Mr. Darcy pushes, Elizabeth pushes back, she herself going against the societal norms with her brash attitude and brain of her own. The twentieth century was the time of the woman coming into her own, and Pride and Prejudice is one of the examples of literature that depicts this change. The Bennet family is full of women that all show different aspects of a personality,  Elizabeth being the most favorable along with Jane, her elder sister. Lydia is young and very naive, with no regard for what is appropriate, and running off with a man who is of questionable integrity. Mary is the silent, intellectual type, who ignores most other people entirely. Katherine is wholly Lydia's sidekick, and really doesn't have much role in the story. Jane is quiet and sweet, but also follows her mother's demands, even if they make her physically ill. Elizabeth is the woman that every contemporary girl hopes to be like. She marches to the beat of her own drum, but does so in a reserved and intelligent way. This idea of the intelligent, romantic woman that Austen portrayed would have been a type of social commentary. P & P is like Austen' s way of saying "times are a'changin' !

The Telling of It Like It Is

For many reasons, Hemingway was the man. Recently, I read one of his more famous stories, called "Hills Like White Elephants." I have to say, (and by "have to say" I don't mean that there is anyone with a gun to my head forcing me) that I was absolutely blown away. His style is completely captivating. The dialogue in this little story is enough to make you beg for more information. It is bare enough to keep the reader guessing at almost all times. I usually don't really like a minimalist style, as the brevity of it makes me uncomfortable. I am a somewhat preschool-esque reader. I like to be told what to feel at almost all times in a story, and if I'm not, I usually get confused and have to ask another person what has just happened. To quote my Lit teacher I'm one to "always go for the connection," in any story that I read. But "Hills" was definitely not a story like any other, mostly because, well, you know, Hemingway and all. He uses his dialogue in a totally different way, allowing the reader's mind to take control and find its way on its own. Any tale told by Hemingway is deep, and this one is no exception. I don't want to ruin the ending, but I know that it will surprise you as much as it did me. My next undertaking by Hemingway is hopefully "David Copperfield." It's the only book I own that I haven't at least attempted to read. Anyways, read up! I'll see you next time, sailors!

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